How Much is a Personal Injury Case Worth?
by
Bruce L. Freeman on Sep. 26, 2016
Accident & Injury Personal Injury
Summary: How Much is a Personal Injury Case Worth?
Before filing a personal injury lawsuit, it’s natural to wonder how much a personal injury claim can potentially be worth. Unfortunately, contrary to popular belief, there are many factors that affect the value of a personal injury claim and not all of them are created equal. In order to help streamline the process and give you a better idea of how a personal injury lawsuit is settled, this guide will look at a few of the major determining factors in the ultimate value of a case.
There are primarily two forms of damages granted to plaintiffs: compensatory and punitive. Through compensatory damages, the goal is to pay back the plaintiff for what was lost in an accident. For medical bills or property damage, the amount owed is relatively simple, but more complex cases can start putting abstract emotions such as emotional stress into concrete numbers.
In a contrast to compensatory damages, punitive damages are owed when the defendant is found guilty of being involved in an accident through negligence. Instead of trying to help the plaintiff recover, punitive damages are instead intended to punish the defendant monetarily. Due to their design, punitive damages can award the plaintiff with very large sums of money, to the point that many states have introduced a maximum limit on the amount that can be awarded.
While we’ve looked at the various ways a plaintiff can win money from a case, there are also ways that the plaintiff can actually lessen the amount owed to them. Many states have laws that compare levels of negligence between the plaintiff and defendant, to ensure that any damages awarded are fair and reflective of whose actions influenced the accident. In fact, some states have introduced laws that prevent a person from collecting any damages if they are found to be even partially at fault for their accident. Finally, if the plaintiff does not reasonably attend to injuries that resulted from an accident, then there is a chance that the damages awarded to them will be reduced.
