A Look at Damages in Personal Injury Cases

When considering a personal injury lawsuit a common question arises, “What is my case worth?” Each case is unique because of individual factors but the answer comes down to damages- determining what your injuries have cost you monetarily, physically, mentally, and, in some cases, whether the defendant’s actions were severe enough to warrant additional punishment.

In a personal injury case, damages are paid to the injured person (known as the plaintiff) by the person or company who is found to be legally responsible (known as the defendant or insurer). Damages can be awarded in a couple of different ways: an award can be agreed upon after a settlement negotiated by the parties involved, insurance companies, or attorneys. Or, an award may be granted by a judge or jury following a court trial.

Compensatory Damages in Personal Injury Cases

Most personal injury damages are considered “compensatory”. This type of damage award is meant to make the injured plaintiff “whole again” from a monetary standpoint. In some cases compensatory damages are easy to determine such as when a car is damaged in an accident, for example. But, other injuries are harder to place monetary value on, like pain and suffering or the inability to enjoy hobbies because of long-term accident-related injuries.

There are many types of compensatory damages. Here is a short explanation of the more common types in a personal injury case.

• Medical Treatment: Personal injury cases almost always award the cost of medical care associated with the accident, reimbursement for treatment already received, and compensation for any future medical care that will be needed as a result of the accident.
• Income: You may be entitled to compensation for the accident’s impact on your wages. Not only are you entitled to income you have already lost but also potentially money you would have been able to earn in the future had it not been for your injuries. This is known as “loss of earning capacity”.
• Property Loss: You will likely be entitled to reimbursement for any items that were damaged or compensation for the fair market cost of an item if it is lost.
• Pain and Suffering: You may be entitled to compensation for pain and serious discomfort caused to you as a result of an injury.
• Emotional Distress: These damages may be awarded if a person suffers any psychological impact including fear, anxiety, and sleep loss as a result of an accident or injury.
• Loss of Enjoyment: when injuries keep you from enjoying day-to-day activities like hobbies, exercise, or other recreational activities, you may qualify for loss of enjoyment damages.

Punitive Damages in Personal Injury Cases

Punitive damages result when a defendant has acted extremely poorly and compensatory damages are not considered enough of a punishment. Punitive damages can be awarded to a plaintiff in addition to compensatory damages and are intended to punish the defendant further in order to deter any future similar behavior.

How Plaintiff’s Actions (or Inaction) Can Affect a Lawsuit

In some situations an injured person’s role in the accident, or inaction after being injured, can lower the amount awarded in a personal injury case.

If you are even partially at fault in the accident that caused your injuries, most likely your award will be lessened as most states follow a “comparative negligence” standard that links damages to degree of fault. A few states follow a “contributory negligence” standard for personal injury cases, which means you may not be able to recover any damages at all if you are found to be partially to blame for the accident.

If you fail to mitigate the financial impact of the harm caused by an accident you may be awarded significantly less in damages for your case. This means, if an injured plaintiff fails to get necessary immediate medical treatment which in turn makes the injuries worse, the damage award can be greatly reduced.  

For more information and specifics about your personal injury case contact us at (800) 272-LAWS (5297)

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The United States is full of bizarre lawsuits that range from ridiculous to fictional nonsense. Perhaps you have heard the famous McDonald’s hot coffee lawsuit where a woman in 1994 was awarded $160,000 in damages after spilling coffee on her. Or, the more recent but even more absurd story where a South Carolina prison inmate filed a lawsuit against Michael Vick for $63 billion after Vick supposedly “…stole his pit bulls and sold them on eBay to buy missiles from Iran.” Of course, the Vick lawsuit was thrown out, but a jury actually awarded a woman $160,000 for her own clumsiness!

We have collected a list of the top 4 most ridiculous court cases of last year from Findlaw.com showcasing some of the most outrageous lawsuits of 2011.

4. ‘Bad Mothering’ Lawsuit: Kids Sued Mom over Empty B-Day Card

Attorney Steven A. Miner helped his kids file a lawsuit against his ex-wife for being a “bad mother.” The kids said that they were subjected to empty birthday cards, clothing budgets, seat belts, and their mother’s “forgetfulness.”

3. Man Sues to Recreate Wedding Photos of Failed Marriage

New Yorker Todd Remis sued his wedding photographer for missing out on the last fifteen minutes of his nuptials. He sought damages to recreate his wedding. The kicker: he was already divorced. He also didn’t know where his ex lived.

2. Man Killed by Train is Sued: Flying Body Parts Injured Woman

Illinois woman Gayane Zokhrabov filed suit against the estate of a deceased man. The deceased 18-year-old had died after getting hit by a train. After he was hit, parts of his body went flying — injuring Zokhrabov. She sued over her injuries.

1. Kidnapper Sues Hostages for Breaching ‘Contract’ to Hide Him

The most outrageous and strangest lawsuit to come out of 2011 might be this one. A convicted kidnapper inColoradosued his former hostages for breaching an oral contract to hide him when he was a fugitive. He sought damages to compensate him for injuries incurred during his arrest.

For further details on these specific bizarre cases read more here

Two weeks ago we asked you to give us your opinion on which one of these Arizona laws is real? View the blog post here

• Arizona Law: Walking on the left side of the street is illegal after dark.
• Maricopa County Law: It is illegal to water plants during the summer.
• Maricopa County Law: No more than six girls may live in any house.

Check back for more trivia questions to see if you can guess the right answer (without using Google of course!) and let us know your answers on Twitter @PhillipsAndLyon

A lien is essentially the right to keep control of an asset that belongs to someone else until the debt is either paid or released. In the case of personal injury claims, a lien is placed against the accident case by an entity such as Medicaid or a health insurance company when the service performed by a hospital or doctor has not been fully paid. With Phillips andLyon’s 35 years of experience, it is possible to negotiate and reduce a lien.

• A “lien” is placed on an accident case by other entities such as Medicaid or Medicare who are trying to seek part of your settlement.
• Entities that may put a lien against you include but are not limited to medical providers, health insurance companies, or worker’s compensation.
• In the state ofArizona, health insurance companies do not automatically have the right to get money back; however, this does not stop them from filing a lien.
• Liens are often filed when doctors are not fully paid for the service they provide, or when a hospital has an outstanding bill.
• Health Insurance companies may file liens if they have a clause in their policy stating that if a policyholder is injured due to someone else’s negligence, then the negligent party needs to pay for the damages.
• Health Insurance companies often file liens when you are given a settlement on a claim that they paid for. They believe that they should be reimbursed for the amount of the claim; however this may not be valid.
• With over 35 years of experience, Phillips and Lyon has negotiated countless liens with hospitals and other entities, resulting in reduced liens for their clients. This gives the client more money in their pocket!

Motorcyclists need to be aware of not only the regular rules of the road, but also distinctive laws made just for them.  After a motorcycle accident, determining the fair market value of your motorcycle is more complicated than simply one number.  The points below are the highlights of Greg Lyon’s motorcycle accident information.

• Greg Lyon, a senior partner at Phillips and Lyon, is an avid motorcyclist. Because of this, he is aware of the types of defenses that insurance company lawyers may use to avoid paying a claim.
• Motorcycle accident claims represent different issues than those of a car accident case.
• Knowledge of helmet laws, the geometry of a motorcycle, and the way modifications affect the handling of a bike are a few of the areas of expertise that are often times used in the handling of these claims.
• Philips and Lyon knows which doctors can and will await payment until after the case is over.
• Phillips and Lyon are not only experienced attorneys; they also care about their clients and want to see them receive the most compensation for their injuries.