For a typical personal injury, calculating the damages the patient deserves is somewhat straightforward. Medical costs can be totaled alongside the cost of wages missed for being out of work. Additional damages might not even be sought if the injuries are capable of healing readily.
In a catastrophic injury claim, however, the situation is much different due to the permanent or extensive damage caused in such cases. Totaling the amount of compensation deserved by the plaintiff is much more difficult since the “price” of a catastrophic injury goes beyond financial measurements.
Loss of Enjoyment of Life & Other Serious Issues
By definition, a catastrophic injury is one that causes a lifelong disability or condition, or immediately jeopardizes the life of the injured. Brain injuries, spinal cord injuries, burn injuries, and the like will all make a permanent impact. The compensation won through a settlement or jury verdict has to account for this permanence.
Many injury claims will cite non-economic damages, or a damage granted to the plaintiff that cannot be traced back to a receipt or wages. For a catastrophic injury, the non-economic damages should include the loss of enjoyment of life, the loss of mobility, and so forth. So long as the plaintiff is suffering physically or emotionally from the catastrophic injury, they should be given fair compensation. The money cannot replace what they have lost but it can help bring peace of mind.
Calculating Non-Economic Damages in Serious Injury Claims
How can you put a price on someone’s pain and suffering, especially when they might be experiencing such negative consequences for the rest of their life? A common method in injury claims for calculating non-economic damages is totaling the economic damages and multiplying that amount by a number that seems “fair.” The less serious the injury, the lower the number. In a catastrophic injury claim, the non-economic multiplicative could be upwards of 10, 12, or even 20 times the real damages, or up to the insurance cap of the defendant.
Our San Jose catastrophic injury lawyers from Habbas & Associates are here to help you fight for your rights and a maximized compensation amount after you suffer a serious injury due to the negligence of a third party. We bring more than 200 years of combined legal experience to each case we take, arming our clients with excellent representation in the face of great challenges. To learn more about our law firm, including our contingency fee agreements, please feel free to contact us at any time to request a consultation.
