What Is an Injury Settlement?

An injury settlement is a deal between the plaintiff and the defendant to settle the case outside of court. This is a great way to receive compensation quickly.

Contrary to special damages that can be easily calculated however, non-economic damages are more difficult to quantify in a specific dollar amount. They can be defined as things like pain and suffering.

Medical expenses

Based on the severity of an injury, medical costs can be a substantial portion of the settlement. These expenses can include medical visits, prescriptions and even surgery. In most cases, these costs are not covered by health insurance, and are often very costly. In addition, in a lot of cases there are ancillary costs arising with the injuries such as home healthcare adaptive devices, transportation to medical appointments, and many more.

Medical bills are typically paid by your private health insurance plan, Medicare, Medicaid or PIP. If you receive a settlement with outstanding medical balances that are not paid, these must be paid by the settlement funds. Your attorney can negotiate with billing companies to lower the balances.

Your lawyer will also be able determine the right amount of damages needed to pay for your other non-medical expenses. These include future income loss or pain and suffering and other damages that are not economic. To claim a claim your attorney needs to provide documentation and expert testimony regarding these additional damages.

Loss of wages

In addition to the compensation for medical expenses, injured victims may also be entitled to compensation for lost wages. These damages are determined by the length of time that the injured person was unable to work as a result of their injuries. A personal injury lawyer can help their client collect lost wages in a personal injury claim.

A brain injury that is traumatic or spinal cord injury, for instance, could force you to miss large amounts of work. You must prove that the accident caused you to be absent from work. When proving lost wages, it is important to include any and all sources of income. This includes regular wages and overtime, bonuses and commissions. Include any unused vacation days or sick leave.

If your doctor concludes that you're able to return work in a certain way, but with specific limitations, the employer has to follow these limitations. This could involve modifying certain aspects of your job or providing useful equipment.

A skilled personal injury lawyer will help you collect all the data needed to support a wage claim. They can also assist in cases where the injured party is self-employed, or receives a variable salary. In these cases the insurance company will have to examine the earnings of the past and the future of the injured party and provide an accurate estimate of the lost wages to come. This will likely require a detailed financial report from the plaintiff's accountant or financial professional.

Non-economic damage

When people think of personal injury damages the first thing they think about is the loss of money due to medical expenses and lost wages. There are other expenses that are difficult to quantify in dollars. These are referred to as non-economic damages. These damages cover the intangible consequences of an injury to a person, like suffering, pain and loss of enjoyment of life.

Economic damages are easy for juries and courts to determine, since they are documented in bills and pay stubs. However non-economic damages are more difficult to quantify and could be determined by subjective factors, like the pain and suffering as well as the emotional distress caused by the injury.

The suffering and pain could include physical, mental or emotional stress caused by the accident. This can include the inability of someone to engage in their normal social or leisure activities. A jury will consider the impact of the injury on the victim's life.

Other non-economic losses include disfigurement, loss of consortium and loss of enjoyment life. A person may suffer disfigurement due to an accident that permanently alters their appearance. While this isn't a financial loss, it can be very painful to bear scratches and other injuries that will last forever.

Compensations for pain and suffering

Pain and suffering is a category of non-economic damages to compensate for the emotional and physical suffering you've experienced as a result of an accident. These are subjective damages, that are the responsibility of the jury, not unlike medical bills, auto repairs and lost wages. Each juror has a different opinion on what amount of compensation for suffering and pain is appropriate for your case.

Documentation can help a juror understand the extent of the injury. Your lawyer can gather written records from your doctor that detail the severity and extent of your injuries. He can also gather photos and video footage. The testimony of family and friends can be persuasive. These testimonies could help create empathy among jurors, and demonstrate how your injuries have affected your hobbies and activities with your family.

The duration of your injuries may also affect the amount of your pain and suffering settlement. Injuries that are severe and disabling typically require higher pain and suffering awards than injuries that heal faster.

Injury can cause a lot emotional trauma and stress, and a successful claim for injury should reflect the severity of the injury. A personal injury lawyer can help you build an impressive case and negotiate a fair settlement for all your injuries. If you have any questions about the possibility of settling your injury contact Adam S. Kutner & Associates to arrange a meeting.