What Is Personal Injury?

Personal injury law covers an expansive spectrum of injuries caused by someone else’s negligent or unlawful actions, including medical bills and lost wages as well as intangible losses such as pain and suffering. Claims under personal injury umbrella often encompass expenses like these along with non-tangible losses like emotional trauma.

To succeed with your personal injury case, you must prove the defendant was at fault in harming you – typically by providing evidence in four areas.

Medical bills

Medical bills are one of the more frequently awarded damages in personal injury claims, since they usually stem directly from an accident and can easily be quantified; however, establishing liability can be more complex when dealing with other forms of damages such as pain and suffering or loss of companionship.

Personal injury lawyers can assist victims with understanding how to calculate and claim medical expenses from those responsible, while working with their insurance provider to ensure all medical expenses are covered by subrogation (recovering any payments made from those responsible).

A good personal injury attorney will gather all invoices, receipts and bills associated with their client’s treatment as evidence against medical providers who claim expenses related to an accident and obtain supporting documents such as testimony.

Pain and suffering

As its name implies, pain and suffering damages cover physical and emotional trauma associated with an accident. Physical injuries could include broken limbs, back injuries, concussions and scarring/disfigurement; while emotional distress might include feelings of fear, anxiety, grief depression and other psychological trauma. Furthermore, victims can even recover compensation if they believe an incident or accident made them look foolish – thus recovering compensation for humiliation as well.

Place an approximate value on non-economic damages can be difficult; receipts cannot provide evidence and there is no set dollar figure associated with them.

One way for an individual to substantiate their claim for pain and suffering is by keeping a journal of daily activities, emotions experienced due to injury and how the injury impacts life. Medical records, prescriptions or evaluation reports from psychologists or psychiatrists regarding injuries could also prove valuable evidence.

Lost wages

Personal injuries often leave tangible expenses such as medical bills and pain and suffering behind, but intangible expenses like lost wages or the incapacity to earn may also add up quickly.

Calculating losses requires gathering several documents such as paystubs, employment records, income tax returns and profit-and-loss statements. A skilled personal injury attorney can assist in gathering these records before submitting them as evidence against an insurance provider in support of your compensation claim.

Your settlement should account for any unused sick days, vacation days or paid time off you have lost as a result of an accident, as well as compensation for reduced career progression or lost promotions due to it. A personal injury lawyer will collaborate with forensic accountants and other experts in order to accurately calculate this portion of your compensation package; their assistance in providing this data to an insurance company as you negotiate an equitable settlement offer can also prove invaluable.

Damages

Personal Injury damages, known as compensatory damages, aim to restore victims to their health, finances and emotional well-being before an incident or injury occurred. They fall into two categories – economic damages and non-economic damages.

Economic damages are easy to comprehend as they cover any financial losses caused by injuries sustained. This could include medical expenses, property loss and lost wages as well as additional expenses such as prescription drug costs, travel to appointments or modifications made for permanent disabilities.

Non-economic damages can be more difficult to quantify as they represent pain and suffering for which victims must endure. A personal injury lawyer can assist victims in filing their claim, as well as determine the full extent of damages and negotiate with insurance companies on their behalf, often leading to higher settlement offers than when victims attempt to handle things on their own.