New Jersey Injury Lawyers BlogAssigning Value to Non-Economic Damages
In a personal injury case, there are essentially two types of damages that may be awarded: compensatory and punitive. Punitive damages are rare and awarded only as punishment for malicious, intentional or reckless behavior when gross negligence can be proven. Compensatory damages, on the other hand, are meant to reimburse the injured party for actual expenses and losses incurred because of their injury.
Compensatory damages fall into two categories: economic and non-economic. Economic damages are reimbursements for out-of-pocket expenses – medical bills, lost wages, lost earning capacity, and the like. These expenses can be objectively measured and are supported by such evidence as invoices, pay stubs, and repair estimates. The gray area comes in assessing the value of non-economic damages
Non-economic damages refer to intangible injuries, including:
- Pain and suffering – discomfort, chronic pain, physical limitations
- Emotional distress – anxiety, fear, depression, post-traumatic stress (PTSD)
- Loss of enjoyment of life – inability to participate in activities previously enjoyed such as sports and hobbies
- Loss of consortium or companionship – awarded to the spouse or family of the injured for loss of support and/or intimacy
Since non-economic damages do not have an exact dollar amount associated with them, assigning value is not as straight forward as it is with economic damages.
While economic damages are usually uncapped because they represent actual debt incurred by the injured party, many jurisdictions will cap non-economic damages, thereby limiting allowable payouts. New Jersey, however, does not apply statutory caps on non-economic damages.
Our attorneys will convey the severity and extent of your injuries to the insurance company so that you are fairly compensated for your non-economic damages.
However, if a settlement cannot be reached, the case would go to trial, and a jury would have final say in determining the value of non-economic damages based on the evidence and testimony presented regarding how the injured party’s life was altered.