In personal injury and wrongful death cases, a jury might award plaintiffs both compensatory and punitive damages. Compensatory damages reflect the plaintiff’s actual damages, such as medical expenses, lost income, pain and suffering, and disability-related damages.
Punitive damages are not a factor in every personal injury or wrongful death case. However, when a defendant has exhibited behavior that qualifies as particularly reckless, a jury may award the plaintiff punitive damages. These damages exceed the actual damages the victim has suffered and explicitly hold the defendant accountable for their egregious negligence. Our Boca Raton personal injury lawyer are here to help you on your case.
What to Know About Compensatory Damages
All plaintiffs in personal injury and wrongful death cases have damages that a jury can measure with a dollar figure. These are known as compensatory damages.
Compensatory Damages Fall Into Two Categories
When someone suffers an injury, becomes sick, or loses a loved one because of another person’s negligence, they may suffer two types of compensatory damages:
- Economic damages: Also known as special damages, economic damages typically have a clear monetary value. Economic damages include medical bills, lost income, diminished earning power, vehicle repair costs, and rehabilitation expenses. These damages are unique to each client, and their value depends on the severity of a plaintiff’s injuries, their unique professional damages, and other case-specific factors.
- Noneconomic damages: Also known as general damages, noneconomic damages do not always have a clear financial value. The most common type of noneconomic damage in personal injury and wrongful death cases is pain and suffering. Because bills and receipts don’t quantify the value of such damages, attorneys use the per diem and multiplier methods to calculate their value.
You must know the exact value of your economic and noneconomic damages. When a lawyer calculates these damages accurately, they can be confident they seek fair compensation for their client.
Compensatory Damages Are Part of Every Personal Injury and Wrongful Death Case
If you file an insurance claim or lawsuit, you will undoubtedly have compensatory damages. While punitive damages are not a certainty, you should expect your lawyer to seek compensation for economic and noneconomic damages.
Compensatory Damages Vary in Their Value from Case to Case
Each personal injury and wrongful death case is unique, so the value of compensatory damages varies from one plaintiff to the next. For this reason, personal injury attorneys evaluate each client’s damages independently.
What to Know About Punitive Damages
Juries award punitive damages to plaintiffs in personal injury and wrongful death cases for specific reasons.
Punitive Damages Punish Reckless and Wanton Negligence
While compensatory damages cover the plaintiff’s damages, punitive damages do not. Instead, punitive damages are a tool for punishing negligent parties and those who intentionally harm others.
There are many cases where a defendant is reckless in a manner that causes harm to others but doesn’t rise to the level of criminal prosecution. In these cases, punitive damages can serve as an alternative to criminal penalties like jail time.
Punitive Damages Are Not as Common as Compensatory Damages
Compensatory damages are a feature of every personal injury and wrongful death case, while punitive damages are less common.
Examples of when a plaintiff might receive punitive damages include:
- A defendant exhibits more dangerous behavior than mere negligence, such as when a medical professional operates without a valid license, or a drug manufacturer knowingly fails to warn about side effects.
- The plaintiff’s attorneys request punitive damages during settlement negotiations or at trial, and liable parties agree to pay them.
- A judge or jury determines the defendant should pay punitive damages.
Because defendants rarely volunteer to pay more than they must, a judge or jury often awards punitive damages following a trial.
Punitive Damages Discourage Egregious Negligence
The term “punitive damages” suggests the purpose of this legal tool—to punish those whose actions were particularly reckless, callous, or damaging to a defendant.
The purpose of punitive damages can include:
- To send the message to the defendant that their actions were beyond the pale of mere negligence.
- To discourage others from engaging in similarly harmful actions
Many states place statutory limits on the amount of punitive damages a jury can award. Additionally, a judge may have the discretion to adjust the value of such awards. Even so, in many cases, plaintiffs receive significant compensation through punitive damages.
You Can Hire a Lawyer to Seek Compensatory and Punitive Damages for You
The topic of damages alone is complicated. Obtaining fair compensation for your damages is even more complex. Rather than trying to determine the value of your damages and convince liable parties (or a jury) to cover those damages by yourself, you can hire a Florida personal injury lawyer to seek the compensation you deserve.
Your personal injury lawyer will:
- Identify every instance of negligence that caused you to suffer injuries, become sick, or lose a loved one.
- Determine liable parties for your damages.
- Secure all available documentation of your recoverable damages (such as medical records and proof of lost income).
- Calculate the exact value of your compensatory damages.
Your attorney will compile all available evidence of the liable parties’ negligence. Thus, should your lawyer request punitive damages during negotiations or at trial, the evidence will justify this request.
Compensatory Damages for Your Personal Injury Losses
Some typical damages that a lawyer seeks compensation for include:
- Medical expenses
- Pain and suffering
- Property-related costs
- Mental health treatment costs
- Lost income
- Diminished earning capacity
You may incur additional damages, as each plaintiff has a different story, leading to different losses. Trust an attorney to document your damages in great detail and fight for every dollar you deserve.
Call Ged Lawyers Today to Have a Lawyer Seek Fair Compensation for You
Ged Lawyers is a law firm with a long, documented history of winning. We have secured compensatory and punitive damages for many clients and will demand fair compensation for all your losses.
Call Ged Lawyers today for a free, no-risk consultation about how we can help you. Please don’t wait, as we often face filing deadlines for cases like yours.
