Pain and suffering is a legal term that applies to the non-economic aspect of a plaintiff’s damages claim in a personal injury case.
It typically includes physical pain, as well as mental anguish, emotional distress, and other emotional damages stemming from a personal injury.
Contact a Lafayette personal injury lawyer today. They can explain more about what qualifies as pain and suffering.
Pain and Suffering Defined
If you suffered injuries in a personal injury accident, such as a motor vehicle accident, you may have the right to compensatory damages. This compensation is to recover all of the losses you suffered as a result of the wrongful conduct of the liable party. Compensatory damages typically include economic damages and non-economic damages.
Economic damages can be more easily quantified, such as the amount of the medical expenses you incurred because of the accident, or the amount of the wages you lost while you were recovering.
Non-economic damages are not as easy to assign a dollar amount. Pain and suffering is often in this category. According to the Pattern Jury Instructions from the United States Fifth Judicial Circuit, these damages may include the following:
- Past and future physical pain and suffering, such as chronic pain
- Mental anguish, emotional trauma, and psychological trauma, both past and future
- Any physical disability or loss of bodily function
- Any inconvenience or hardship due to your physical injuries
- Loss of enjoyment of life/ loss of quality of life, if you can no longer perform daily life activities independently
- Emotional distress due to fear of a loss of future income
A personal injury attorney can help determine what pain and suffering includes in your claim.
Laborde Earles injury was great for me they took care of me very fast and professional. If for any reason I need legal help they will be who I use.
ClientCalculating Pain and Suffering
According to the Pattern Jury Instructions, these damages are intangible, and the injury victim does not have to provide any evidence of the value to them. Instead, the courts determine the appropriate award for pain and suffering.
This compensation should be no more or no less than what is fair, and juries are not to award a higher amount of damages to punish a defendant as part of the compensatory damages award. However, the courts can impose punitive damages for this purpose.
The purpose of compensatory damages is to make the plaintiff whole again after suffering losses from an accident caused by another party’s negligence.
The jury instructions further state that “there is no exact standard” for determining the value of this form of compensation, and any award must be “fair in the light of the evidence.”
Calculation Methods the Court May Use
When awarding damages for physical pain and emotional distress, courts often rely on specific calculation methods to determine a fair amount. Two common approaches are the multiplier method and the per diem method.
The multiplier method involves multiplying the actual economic damages, such as medical expenses, by a number typically ranging from 1.5 to 5, depending on the severity of the pain and suffering. The goal is to account for the non-economic impact of the injury.
The per diem method, on the other hand, assigns a daily monetary value to the plaintiff’s pain and suffering. This value is then multiplied by the number of days the plaintiff is expected to endure the pain or emotional distress caused by the injury.
Both methods aim to provide reasonable compensation for the accident victim’s physical pain and emotional distress, balancing fairness for both parties.
I thank God for Digger & David. I don’t know what we would have done if it hadn’t have been for them.
Rick Smith | ClientHow to Establish Pain and Suffering in a Louisiana Personal Injury Lawsuit
While you do not have to provide evidence of the value of your pain and suffering, you will need to be able to establish the following:
- The defendant’s wrongful conduct caused your damages.
- You actually suffered the damages or are likely to suffer them in the future.
Juries are not to award you speculative damages. Therefore, you must be able to establish these damages by a preponderance of the evidence, meaning that it is more likely than not that you suffered the damages.
The proof you present for your pain and suffering damages can be different in every case. Some forms of evidence of pain and suffering may include:
- Pictures that show the severity of your injuries
- Medical records that show you complained of pain or other effects after the accident
- Imaging results from x-rays, MRI scans, or other tests that show the presence of an injury likely to cause pain or discomfort
- Prescription medications for pain relief or other treatments for your injuries
- Records from a psychologist, psychiatrist, or counselor about your physical or mental injuries
- Testimony from coworkers, family members, friends, or neighbors about how the injuries have limited your ability to perform certain tasks or that you appear to be in pain
- Entries in your pain journal that describe the duration and severity of your pain and discomfort
Our lawyers can help gather documentation to substantiate your pain and suffering and other damages. We will fight for compensation on your behalf.
The reassurance from Digger and his staff gave me that renewed hope that it’s going to be okay down the road.
ClientGet Help for Your Pain and Suffering Claim
If you still have questions about what qualifies as pain and suffering, do not hesitate to contact Laborde Earles for more information.
Our experienced lawyers are ready to assist you with your personal injury claim and seek fair compensation for pain and suffering.
We do not charge for an initial consultation and do not charge you any attorney fees unless we are successful in recovering compensation on your behalf. Call us today for a free consultation.
