How Are Damages for Pain and Suffering Measured in New Jersey?
Injuries from car accidents, slip and fall accidents, medical malpractice, and all other types of accidents affect victims physically and emotionally. Traumatic brain injuries, broken bones, spinal cord damage, burns, and other injuries affect a victim’s ability to work, function, and enjoy life on a daily basis. Some victims live with chronic pain for the rest of their lives.
Often, the pain and suffering part of your damage claim is the biggest part of your claim. Our Cherry Hill personal injury lawyers will help you obtain compensation for all your medical bills, lost income, property damage, and all your pain and suffering.
What is pain and suffering?
Pain and suffering damages include compensation for an accident victim’s:
- Physical pain: Physical pain and suffering includes the pain associated with a person’s actual physical injuries. The pain includes agony, discomfort, inability to sleep, loss of bodily function, or anything that hurts due to your injuries. Our personal injury lawyers work with your doctors to verify your injuries, the type of medical care you need, the pain you will have going through various procedures such as surgeries and physical therapy, and the complications that may worsen your pain. Documentation of physical pain should include doctor’s notes, any diagnostic testing, medical bills, and even a journal of your physical pain after the accident.
- Emotional and mental pain. The category of damages includes every moment of frustration, anxiety, crying, depression, inability to enjoy life’s pleasures, negative emotions associated with an injury, and post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). In addition to your doctors, we work with you, your family members, and other people in your life to show just how much your injuries are causing you emotional trauma. Emotional suffering also includes your worries about whether you will be able to return to work, how your injuries are affecting your family, and your ability to pay your bills.
What factors affect pain and suffering in New Jersey accident claims?
Insurance companies and juries should consider the following issues when considering how much to award for your pain and suffering:
- The types of injuries you have
- The types of medical care you need
- How long you will need medical help
- What types of doctors are treating you
- The types of treatments you need
- The insurance adjuster’s or jury’s impressions of you
- Your credibility
- How your pain and suffering compares to other accident victims who have the same or similar injuries
- All the activities you could do before your accident that you cannot do now
How do our lawyers value pain and suffering?
Generally, we file claims against one or more responsible defendants. In some cases, your own UM/UIM carrier (in car accident cases) may have to pay your claim. We review the amount of liability insurance that each defendant has. After we review your medical care and conduct discovery of the witnesses, we can prepare a formal demand letter where we state what we think the overall value of your claim is.
Our value is based on the strength of your liability claim, our conversations with your doctors (and possibly with our networks of doctors), conversations with you and your family, discussions with life planners if you have a permanent or catastrophic injury, and consultations with your employer.
Insurance companies for each defendant will propose their settlement amounts. If the amount of your claim (including the pain and suffering amount) is more than the policy limits, then it’s likely your case will settle for the policy limits.
Where there is enough insurance coverage to pay your claim in full, we negotiate with the insurance companies to try to reach a settlement. Generally, our bottom line evaluation is based on what we think a jury will award. If there is no settlement, the jury will decide the overall value of your claim. You, the client, have the final say on whether to accept or reject any settlement offers. Some clients accept offers that are lower than what a jury might award because different juries can award different amounts.
At Ferrara & Gable, we have an impressive record of verdicts and settlements – many for millions of dollars. We fight to obtain the maximum amount New Jersey personal injury law permits.
If you or a loved one suffered damages due to the negligence of another in a personal injury accident, do not hesitate to speak with our experienced accident attorneys, who can help you understand and assert your rights. Contact Ferrara & Gable today to schedule an initial free consultation.