Types of Personal Injury Damages

What Are Legal Damages in Personal Injury Cases?

            When you or a family member has suffered severe physical injuries because of the negligence of a business or an individual, you and your family may be entitled to legal damages. This means victims may be entitled to recover money from the wrongdoer to compensate the victim and the family for the harms and losses caused by the physical injuries and aftermath of life-changing injuries. Below we provide a brief summary of the types of damages available in a Texas personal injury case.

            Physical Pain and Suffering

            Texas law allows a personal injury victim to recovery money for past and future physical pain resulting from the injuries caused by a negligent party. This includes pain from broken bones, torn ligaments, herniated discs, severe headaches from a traumatic brain injury, or any other type of physical pain. The personal injury victim has the burden to prove with evidence the nature, duration, and severity of the physical pain. Common evidence of physical pain and suffering consist of the injured victim’s testimony, medical records, family and friends’ testimony, and photos. Future physical pain requires a reasonable probability the injury will continue to cause future pain. This usually requires a medical doctor’s expert opinion about the injury and the future pain. Testimony of family and friends offering stories of physical pain, future medical procedures, and medical records are common evidence offered to prove future pain and suffering.

            Mental Anguish

            Texas law allows personal injury victims to recover money for past and future mental anguish caused by the injuries and trauma of the event. Mental anguish damages in personal injury cases can be difficult to prove in court because there is no objective test like an x-ray shows a broken rib. Mental anguish evidence consists of oral testimony from friends and family members; psychiatric experts or other medical doctors; testimony from the victim; or medical documents. Successful plaintiff lawyers must be creative in developing mental anguish damages because often the injury victim has unique triggers for mental anguish and they struggle to communicate these emotions. Whatever method is used, the evidence presented must show the injury victim suffered a substantial disruption in daily routine. The evidence must also establish the nature, duration, and severity of the of the victim’s anguish. Texas law attempts to distinguish mental anguish from more common anxiety or embarrassment.

            In addition to the mental anguish evidence presented, the plaintiff lawyer should provide some method for the jury to calculate an amount that represents the facts and evidence presented at trial. This method of calculation is often overlooked by plaintiff lawyers and if not properly documented at trial, the Supreme Court of Texas will erase the award. Without discussing the many methods to use to assist the jury in calculating anguish damages and complying with Texas law, the skilled plaintiff lawyer must connect the evidence at trial with a calculation for mental anguish damages. Moreover, the Supreme Court of Texas offers little guidance of the calculation it requires. Instead, the Court makes clear lawyers cannot reference items not in the evidence.

            Notwithstanding the difficulties in mental anguish damages, these damages are many times the largest of all the damages. This risk-reward dynamic makes your choice of plaintiff lawyer all the more important.

            Disfigurement

            Texas law allows injury victims to recover money for past and future disfigurement such as a scar. Disfigurement damages are separate from physical pain or mental anguish. This personal injury damage is designed to compensate an injury that impaired the beauty or symmetry of a person. This damage model is focused on something that others can see and is embarrassing to the victim. Disfigurement usually arises in injuries resulting in scars, burns, or amputations. Proving disfigurement requires witness testimony about how the injury victim has changed and showing the extent of the damage to the jury.

            Physical Impairment

            Texas law allows injury victims to recover money for past and future physical impairment caused by the injuries. Physical impairment should not include the pain from the injury but focused on the loss of enjoyment of life. Evidence of impairment includes proof that the injury victim can no longer participate in sports; physical outdoor activities like swimming, hiking, or gardening; hobbies; and losing everyday independence to shop, perform household chores, or properly care for family. This comes in the form of testimony from witnesses that have knowledge of the impairment and the emotional trauma caused by the physical impairment.

            Medical Expenses

            Texas law allows injury victims to recover money for past and future medical care cost caused by the injury event. Although this legal damage should be simple to prove as victims should be able to use the medical bills generated from the medical care cost made necessary because of the injury event. However, the medical care industry has been in chaos as the government continues to invade the private medical industry through Medicare and Medicaid. The chaos occurs because the medical billing industry does not have transparent pricing for medical procedures and government programs force medical facilities to accept low payments. When medical facilities are forced to accept depressed payments from the government, the medical facilities inflate the cost to private payors to make up the difference. With the pressure from ever growing government medical welfare that drains medical resources the medical billing facilities have become greedy and aggressive towards private payors. This disparity in pricing allows defendants in personal injury cases to create confusion among the jury by offering defense evidence that shows the government paid only $200 dollars for the same MRI the private payor bill shows $4,000 dollars. Here the jury cannot decide which medical bill is reasonable without providing context of the mechanics of how the medical billing industry operates.

            One strategy to defeat the defendant’s confusion tactic is it omit the medical bills so that the jury is not debating or arguing over medical care cost. The reason to omit medical care cost in a personal injury trial is so that the jury focuses on the physical pain, mental anguish, and physical impairment as these damages usually greatly exceed medical care cost. This strategy should only be attempted by a skilled and talented trial lawyer, but when deployed properly can result in significant wins.   

            Obtaining money for future medical care cost has slightly different challenges as it requires a medical doctor to testify that the future medical care is medically reasonable and necessary. It also requires that the plaintiff to convince the jury that the plaintiff intends to get the medical procedure done with the recovered money. When a plaintiff requires lifelong medical care the plaintiff lawyer should use an economist to offer an expert opinion about the present value of the future medical care cost.    

            Loss of Earning Capacity

            Texas law allows injury victims to recover money of past and future loss of earning capacity caused by the injury. Loss of earning capacity is a damage award that measures the plaintiff’s diminished ability to earn money because of the injuries. Trial lawyers can present many forms of evidence here such as past earnings, lost opportunities, witness testimony about the plaintiff’s work ethic or special work talents, or doctor testimony about the plaintiff’s disabilities. Again, this is a case-by-case assessment regarding the proof and focus on loss of earning capacity at trial. Trial lawyer Holland DeKeyzer is a former Certified Public Accountant and has used this experience to successfully present evidence of loss of earnings and with his financial background is able to explain the calculations to the jury.

            Loss of Consortium

            Texas law allows certain family members to recover money for past and future loss of consortium which means the loss of love, affection, protection, emotional support, companionship, and care. This damage is intended to compensation the spouse, children, or parents of the injured victim for their loss. This requires the harmed family member to join the lawsuit as a plaintiff with the injury victim. This type of claim is termed derivative as the family member’s damages come from the injury victim. Loss of consortium has several limitations on who and what can be recovered. Despite the challenges, this can be a power claim and requires a delicate approach not suitable for all cases. Attorneys Meagan and Holland DeKeyzer, as a husband-and-wife team, understand the delicacies and the proper approach to loss of consortium damages.

            Loss of Services

            In a personal injury case, a spouse or a parent may recover money of past and future loss of services of the injured plaintiff. Services refers to the performance of household and domestic duties. Loss of services is separate from loss of consortium but is still considered a derivative claim and requires the family member to join the lawsuit as an additional plaintiff. Evidence used to prove this damage includes testimony of the services the injured victim would perform before the injury but can no longer perform because of the injuries and limitations.   

            Conclusion

            Personal injury lawyers Meagan and Holland have been focused on personal injury litigation for the past decade and can help determine which measures of damages best fit your case. Contact DeKeyzer Law at (713) 904-4004 for a FREE consultation on your Personal Injury or Wrongful Death case.