What Is an Injury Settlement?
An injury settlement is a contract between the plaintiff and defendant to settle a dispute outside of court. It is a good method to obtain compensation quickly.
Contrary to special damages that can be easily calculated however, non-economic damages are more difficult to determine in a precise dollar amount. They include things like suffering and pain.
Medical expenses
Medical expenses can make up an important portion of a settlement based on the severity of the injury. These can include doctor's visits as well as medications, surgery and other procedures. Often, these expenses are not covered by health insurance and can be very expensive. In addition, in many cases there are ancillary expenses associated with injuries such as home healthcare, adaptive devices, transportation to medical appointments, and many more.
Medical bills are usually paid by your private health insurance, Medicare, Medicaid or PIP. If you receive a settlement with unpaid medical balances, they must be paid with the settlement funds. Your attorney can work to negotiate with the billing companies and attempt to reduce the amount due.
Your lawyer will also be able to determine the appropriate amount of damages you should pay to be used to cover other non-medical expenses. These include future income loss along with pain and suffering and other non-economic damages. Your attorney must provide expert testimony and documentation of these other damages to support your claim.
Lost wages
In addition to compensation for medical expenses the injured victim may also be entitled to lost wage. These damages are calculated in relation to the amount of time the victim missed from work due to injuries. A skilled personal injury attorney can assist clients in recovering the compensation for lost wages in a personal injury case.
You may miss a significant amount of work if you suffer a traumatized brain injury, spinal cord injury or both. This means you will need to prove that the time you were absent was directly connected to the accident. In proving the loss of wages, it is crucial to include any and all sources of income. This includes regular wages overtime, bonuses, and commissions. Include any unused vacation days or sick leave.
If your doctor has determined that you can return back to work, but with certain restrictions, then the employer must respect these restrictions. This might involve changing certain aspects of your job, or even providing helpful equipment.
A personal injury lawyer who is well-versed can help you gather the evidence needed to prove your claim for lost wages. They can also help in a case where the injured party is self-employed or receives an income that is variable. In these cases an insurance company must examine the earnings of the past and the future of the person who was injured and provide a fair estimate of the lost wages to come. This may require a detailed financial report from the plaintiff's accountant or financial professional.
Economic damages
When people think of personal injury claims they typically think of the money lost due to medical expenses and lost wages. There are other costs that are difficult to quantify in dollars. These are known as non-economic damages. These damages cover the intangible effects of a person's injury such as suffering, pain, and loss of enjoyment of life.
Bills and pay stubs can be used to establish economic damages for courts and juries. However non-economic damages are more difficult to quantify and may be determined by subjective factors, such as the pain and suffering as well as the emotional trauma caused by the injury.
The pain and suffering can include any mental, physical or emotional distress caused by the accident. It can also refer to the inability of a person to participate in their usual social or hobbies. A jury will consider the extent to which the injury affected the victim's quality of life.
Other non-economic damages include disfigurement loss of consortium, and loss of enjoyment life. For instance an individual may be suffering from a disfigurement as a result of an accident that permanently alters their appearance. It's not a huge expense, but it can be painful to live with scars or other permanent injuries.
injury lawyer huntsville for suffering and pain
Pain and suffering is a category of non-economic damages that compensate for the physical pain and emotional distress you have endured from your accident. In contrast to medical bills, auto repair costs and lost wages, these are more subjective damages that have to be determined by a jury. Each juror will have a different opinion on the amount of compensation for the pain and suffering that they suffer is appropriate in your particular case.
Documentation can help jurors comprehend the severity of an injury. Attorneys can collect written documents from your doctors that describe the severity of your injuries along with photographs and video footage. Testimonies from relatives and friends are also persuasive. These testimony can help to create empathy among jurors, and also show how your injury affected your hobbies and family activities.
The length of your injuries can affect the amount of your settlement for pain and suffering. Severe, disabling injuries typically warrant higher pain and suffering settlements than injuries that heal faster.
The claims for injury should reflect the psychological and emotional trauma that is caused by an accident. Your personal injury lawyer can help you construct an effective case and help you negotiate a fair settlement for all of your injuries. Adam S. Kutner and Associates can provide you with a consultation if you have any questions about a possible settlement for an injury.