You or someone you love has been injured in an accident. What’s more, you’re confident that the other party’s fault can be proven, whether that be in a settlement negotiation with the other party’s insurance company, or, if necessary, in litigation. But what does that actually mean in terms of actual compensation? In the end, what’s in a personal injury settlement?
Compensation Issues a Personal Injury Settlement Should Address
The simple explanation is that a personal injury settlement ought to compensate the injured party for their financial expenses, along with their pain and suffering. That means considering the following…
Medical Bills
It starts with the basics. How much was the hospital bill or the emergency room care? Even if you have excellent health insurance coverage, your own carrier shouldn’t bear financial responsibility. We all know who ends up paying for that in the long run anyway. A fair personal injury settlement begins with complete compensation covering all medical expenses. This is easy enough to establish, through the bills that get sent out.
Lost Income
If any time had to be spent in the hospital, that quite likely came at the expense of being at work. That missed time also has to be paid for. The amount necessary is something else that’s fairly easy to document. Employees have W-2 forms, independent contractors get 1099 forms and small business owners have their own tax returns, all of which clearly establish how much income was lost through each day of missed work.
Rehabilitation
Simply because the patient has left the hospital doesn’t mean the recovery period is over, or that the medical bills will stop coming. There may be outpatient visits necessary for rehabilitation. In the case of catastrophic injuries, like spinal cord damage or brain trauma, this can go on for a very long time. The personal injury settlement must reliably project how long the rehab will take and what it will cost. Expert witness testimony from a medical professional may prove valuable in establishing the final dollar amounts.
Interrupted Career Arc
A severe injury can do more than just cost someone a few weeks, or even months, at work. It might interrupt, and potentially derail an overarching career goal. Let’s say a person is working hard to move up the corporate ladder, putting in overtime and taking on extra projects. Or maybe they’re going to night school to get an MBA or something else that will significantly enhance their earning power. The more serious the injury, the more of a crimp is put in these plans. The person that’s started their own business faces their own loss of long-term earning power. They may even lose their entire business.
This all adds up to the loss of income that a person could reasonably have been expected to earn. This is another area where outside testimony—from expert witnesses in the injured plaintiff’s chosen field, to supervisors and colleagues—may help shape a reasonable projection of future lost earnings.
Trauma Recovery
The damage done to a human being isn’t just their physical injuries. Psychological damage, starting with post-traumatic stress disorder is very real. A particularly severe injury can lead to depression. All of this calls for therapy, and therapy sessions cost money. That money is properly included in any fair personal injury settlement.
The Loss of Joy
To this point, the damages we’ve focused on are tangible and measurable. Even the costs that involve some sort of projection are still based on actual dollar calculations. The loss of joy is something different. Take the trauma recovery mentioned above—we can reasonably project how much it will cost to go to therapy. But what’s the cost of not being able to sleep because of nightmares? What’s the cost of not being able to do the activities you’ve always loved to do? What’s the cost of dealing with ongoing depression? What’s the cost of not being able to simply enjoy time with family and friends?
The answer is that no amount of money can truly make an injured plaintiff whole in this regard. But the difficult reality is that money is all the legal system can offer. Simple justice calls for some level of compensation to be included in the settlement to deal with the loss of joy, or pain and suffering. Testimony from family and friends may be relied on to help a court or a negotiator from the insurance company understand just how much the injured plaintiff has lost.
Punitive Damages
All damages thus far, deal directly with costs incurred by the victim. Even the loss of joy deals with the intangible costs of the injuries. Punitive damages are different. These can be added into the personal injury settlement to send a message to society. The message is that the defendant’s negligence is simply unacceptable, and they will pay out additional money as punishment.
Punitive damages will not apply in every case. Not every case of a car driver acting negligently necessarily calls for additional money to be tacked on to everything else. But if that same driver was also extremely intoxicated, a court might conclude that punitive damages are in order. Punitive damages are also commonly used in cases where injuries result from corporate malfeasance, or other cases where the defendant is a wealthy organization. The state of Ohio caps punitive damages at twice the value of all the compensatory damages that come before it, up to $350,000.
The Role of Contributory Negligence
It’s not uncommon for both parties to share fault for an injury. This doesn’t mean that the blame is equal, and it doesn’t mean the defendant isn’t primarily to blame. The state of Ohio addresses this reality through the use of modified contributory negligence. This means that the injured plaintiff can collect damages in proportion to the defendant’s fault for the accident.
Here’s a real-world example—the plaintiff was injured in a car crash where the other driver clearly had primary fault. But perhaps it’s concluded that the plaintiff wasn’t paying as close of attention to the road as they could have been. They are assigned 10 percent of the responsibility for the accident. This means they can collect 90 percent (the defendant’s share of fault) of the final damage award. So, if the final amount settled on is $500,000, the plaintiff will actually collect $450,000—90 percent of the final figure. If the plaintiff’s share of blame rises to over 50 percent, they are not able to collect anything.
The importance of good legal counsel is seen throughout the personal injury settlement process, but contributory negligence helps illustrate just how important the role of the lawyer can be. The movement of even 1 percent of fault means the moving of dollars. In our example above, 1 percent of blame has a dollar value of $5,000. And it’s not uncommon for personal injury cases to have settlements worth substantially more money.
That means your attorney must be detail-oriented, painstakingly investigating all facets of your injury and developing a thorough understanding of just how much it cost you. A lawyer then has to shift from diligent researcher to ferocious advocate and savvy negotiator, passionately pushing their client’s case at the negotiating table and potentially in the courtroom.
Fighting for Fairness
Bridges, Jillisky, Weller & Gullifer, LLC has a reputation as real fighter and built up a track record of success. We want to help you next. Call our office at
You or someone you love has been injured in an accident. What’s more, you’re confident that the other party’s fault can be proven, whether that be in a settlement negotiation with the other party’s insurance company, or, if necessary, in litigation. But what does that actually mean in terms of actual compensation? In the end, what’s in a personal injury settlement?
Compensation Issues a Personal Injury Settlement Should Address
The simple explanation is that a personal injury settlement ought to compensate the injured party for their financial expenses, along with their pain and suffering. That means considering the following…
Medical Bills
It starts with the basics. How much was the hospital bill or the emergency room care? Even if you have excellent health insurance coverage, your own carrier shouldn’t bear financial responsibility. We all know who ends up paying for that in the long run anyway. A fair personal injury settlement begins with complete compensation covering all medical expenses. This is easy enough to establish, through the bills that get sent out.
Lost Income
If any time had to be spent in the hospital, that quite likely came at the expense of being at work. That missed time also has to be paid for. The amount necessary is something else that’s fairly easy to document. Employees have W-2 forms, independent contractors get 1099 forms and small business owners have their own tax returns, all of which clearly establish who much income was lost through each day of missed work.
Rehabilitation
Simply because the patient has left the hospital doesn’t mean the recovery period is over, or that the medical bills will stop coming. There may be outpatient visits necessary for rehabilitation. In the case of catastrophic injuries, like spinal cord damage or brain trauma, this can go on for a very long time. The personal injury settlement must reliably project how long the rehab will take and what it will cost. Expert witness testimony from a medical professional may prove valuable in establishing the final dollar amounts.
Interrupted Career Arc
A severe injury can do more than just cost someone a few weeks, or even months, at work. It might interrupt, and potentially derail an overarching career goal. Let’s say a person is working hard to move up the corporate ladder, putting in overtime and taking on extra projects. Or maybe they’re going to night school to get an MBA or something else that will significantly enhance their earning power. The more serious the injury, the more of a crimp is put in these plans. The person that’s started their own business faces their own loss of long-term earning power. They may even lose their entire business.
This all adds up to the loss of income that a person could reasonably have been expected to earn. This is another area where outside testimony—from expert witnesses in the injured plaintiff’s chosen field, to supervisors and colleagues—may help shape a reasonable projection of future lost earnings.
Trauma Recovery
The damage done to a human being isn’t just their physical injuries. Psychological damage, starting with post-traumatic stress disorder is very real. A particularly severe injury can lead to depression. All of this calls for therapy, and therapy sessions cost money. That money is properly included in any fair personal injury settlement.
The Loss of Joy
To this point, the damages we’ve focused on are tangible and measurable. Even the costs that involve some sort of projection are still based on actual dollar calculations. The loss of joy is something different. Take the trauma recovery mentioned above—we can reasonably project how much it will cost to go to therapy. But what’s the cost of not being able to sleep because of nightmares? What’s the cost of not being able to do the activities you’ve always loved to do? What’s the cost of dealing with ongoing depression? What’s the cost of not being able to simply enjoy time with family and friends?
The answer is that no amount of money can truly make an injured plaintiff whole in this regard. But the difficult reality is that money is all the legal system can offer. Simple justice calls for some level of compensation to be included in the settlement to deal with the loss of joy, or pain and suffering. Testimony from family and friends may be relied on to help a court or a negotiator from the insurance company understand just how much the injured plaintiff has lost.
Punitive Damages
All damages thus far, deal directly with costs incurred by the victim. Even the loss of joy deals with the intangible costs of the injuries. Punitive damages are different. These can be added into the personal injury settlement to send a message to society. The message is that the defendant’s negligence is simply unacceptable, and they will pay out additional money as punishment.
Punitive damages will not apply in every case. Not every case of a car driver acting negligently necessarily calls for additional money to be tacked on to everything else. But if that same driver was also extremely intoxicated, a court might conclude that punitive damages are in order. Punitive damages are also commonly used in cases where injuries result from corporate malfeasance, or other cases where the defendant is a wealthy organization. The state of Ohio caps punitive damages at twice the value of all the compensatory damages that come before it, up to $350,000.
The Role of Contributory Negligence
It’s not uncommon for both parties to share fault for an injury. This doesn’t mean that the blame is equal, and it doesn’t mean the defendant isn’t primarily to blame. The state of Ohio addresses this reality through the use of modified contributory negligence. This means that the injured plaintiff can collect damages in proportion to the defendant’s fault for the accident.
Here’s a real-world example—the plaintiff was injured in a car crash where the other driver clearly had primary fault. But perhaps it’s concluded that the plaintiff wasn’t paying as close of attention to the road as they could have been. They are assigned 10 percent of the responsibility for the accident. This means they can collect 90 percent (the defendant’s share of fault) of the final damage award. So, if the final amount settled on is $500,000, the plaintiff will actually collect $450,000—90 percent of the final figure. If the plaintiff’s share of blame rises to over 50 percent, they are not able to collect anything.
The importance of good legal counsel is seen throughout the personal injury settlement process ,but contributory negligence helps illustrate just how important the role of the lawyer can be. The movement of even 1 percent of fault means the moving of dollars. In our example above, 1 percent of blame has a dollar value of $5,000. And it’s not uncommon for personal injury cases to have settlements worth substantially more money.
That means your attorney must be detail-oriented, painstakingly investigating all facets of your injury and developing a thorough understanding of just how much it cost you. A lawyer them has to shift from diligent researcher to ferocious advocate and savvy negotiator, passionately pushing their client’s case at the negotiating table and potentially in the courtroom.
Fighting for Fairness
Bridges, Jillisky, Weller & Gullifer, LLC has a reputation as real fighter and built up a track record of success. We want to help you next. Call our office at (937) 403-9033 or contact us online to set up a consultation.