What Is an Injury Settlement?
A settlement agreement is a contract between the defendant and plaintiff to settle the dispute outside of court. It is a fast and effective way to receive compensation.
Unlike special damages, which can be easily calculated, non-economic damages are harder to determine in a precise dollar amount. This includes things like pain and discomfort.
Medical expenses
Medical expenses can make up an important portion of a settlement, based on the degree of the injury. They can include medical visits, prescriptions and surgery. In most cases, these costs are not covered by health insurance and can be very expensive. In addition, in many instances there are ancillary costs associated with injuries, such as home healthcare, adaptive devices, transportation to medical appointments, and more.
Medical bills are usually paid by your private health insurance plan, Medicare, Medicaid or PIP. If you get a settlement with unpaid medical bills, these will need to be satisfied by the settlement funds. Your attorney can work to negotiate with the billing companies and try to get the balances reduced.
Your attorney will also be able to determine the proper amount of damages to compensate for any other non-medical expenses. These include future income loss or pain and suffering and other non-economic damages. Your lawyer will have to present expert testimony and proof of these other damages in order to establish a valid claim.
Loss of wages
In addition to compensation for medical expenses, injured victims may be entitled to lost wage. These damages are determined based on the period that the person was unable to work as a result of their injuries. A personal injury lawyer can help their clients collect the compensation for lost wages in a personal injury lawsuit.
A traumatic brain injury or spinal cord injury for instance, could force you to miss a significant amount of work. You will have to prove that the accident caused you to be absent from work. When proving that you lost wages, it is essential to include any and all sources of income. This includes regular wage, overtime, bonuses, and commissions. You could also include vacation days or sick days.
If your doctor determines that you're able to return work with certain restrictions, your employer must follow these restrictions. This could involve modifying certain aspects of your work or providing beneficial equipment.
A knowledgeable personal injury lawyer can help collect all the evidence needed to support a lost wage claim. They can also assist in cases in which the victim is self-employed or earns an income that is variable. In these cases the insurance company must look at the past and future earnings of the person who was injured and provide a reasonable estimation of the future loss of wages. This will require a full report from the plaintiff's accountant or financial expert.
Non-economic damage
When people think about personal injury damages they typically think of the loss of money due to medical expenses and lost wages. There are other costs that are difficult to quantify in dollars. These are referred to as non-economic damages. They include the more tangible effects of a person's injuries, like suffering and pain, and loss of enjoyment of life.
Economic damages are easy for juries and courts to determine, since they are documented in pay stubs and bills. However, non-economic damages are much more difficult to determine and can be based on subjective factors, like the pain and suffering as well as the emotional trauma caused by the injury.
The pain and suffering could include physical, mental or emotional pain caused by the accident. This may include the inability of someone to engage in their normal social or leisure activities. A jury will examine the effects of the injury on the victim's life.
Other non-economic damages include disfigurement, loss of consortium and loss of enjoyment life. People may experience disfigurement due to an accident that permanently alters their appearance. While this is not a financial loss however, it can be extremely painful to live with the scars and other permanent injuries.
Damages for suffering and pain
Pain and suffering are non-economic damages that pay for the emotional and physical distress caused by your accident. These are subjective damages, which are determined by the jury, not unlike medical bills and auto repairs as well as lost wages. injury law firm davenport has a different opinion on how much compensation for the pain and suffering that they suffer is appropriate in your case.
Documentation can help a juror understand the severity of an injury. Attorneys can collect the medical records of your doctor which detail the severity of your injuries, with photographs and video footage. Testimonies from family and friends can be equally convincing. These testimonies could help create sympathy among the jury, and demonstrate how your injury has affected your hobbies and family activities.
The length of your injuries can also influence the amount of your pain and suffering settlement. Pain and suffering awards are generally higher for serious injuries that are disabling, as opposed to injuries that heal quickly.
Injury claims should reflect the psychological and emotional trauma that can be caused by an accident. An attorney for personal injuries can help you create an effective case and work towards a fair compensation for all of your injuries. Adam S. Kutner and Associates will provide you with an initial consultation if you have any questions about a possible settlement to an injury.