Solicitors Personal Injury

Solicitors Personal Injury

Solicitors Personal Injury

Posted on: January 09, 2012 - 6:26 pm
by Admin

People who feel they have been injured through the fault of someone else often seek the advice of personal injury attorneys with a goal of getting compensated for their injuries. Personal injury compensation can take the form of compensatory damages, nominal damages or punitive damages. The term "damage" refers to monetary payments awarded by a judge or jury or given in settlement for personal injuries.

Compensatory Damages in a Personal Injury Claim

Compensatory damages are the most common form of monetary award in successful personal injury lawsuits. This is true because most personal injury lawsuits are based on negligence. As a general rule, plaintiffs in simple negligence cases may recover only compensatory damages. Compensatory damages are monetary payments intended to make the plaintiff "whole." That is, they are awarded to compensate the plaintiff for actual losses he or she has suffered or will incur in the future because of the defendant's conduct.

Compensatory damages cover both economic losses and non-economic losses. Economic losses include actual out-of-pocket expenses the plaintiff has paid or will pay in the future because of the defendant's wrongdoing. An example of an economic loss would be the costs associated with repairing one's damaged car following an automobile accident. Non-economic losses are commonly referred to as pain and suffering damages. They include compensation for such things as embarrassment, humiliation or grief.