How Does a Personal Injury Attorney Value a Settlement?
Often the biggest motive in pursuing a personal injury lawsuit is the monetary reward as opposed to simply punishing the negligent guilty. Personal injury lawsuits can lead to substantial settlements and case awards, and attorneys value cases based on the total amount of damages involved, past settlement amounts for similar lawsuits, and several other possible factors.
While personal injury attorneys & car accident lawyers should never guarantee an amount, they can offer a range based off your unique accident and subsequent injuries, past cases and experience, and various other factors.
Past Case Valuation and State Law
Depending on the situation that led to the lawsuit, there may be an existing precedent for how much the case is worth. If a similar lawsuit occurred in recent years, the plaintiff’s attorney may use the settlement amount as a starting point for valuing the current case. In some situations, state law may determine how much a case is worth or how much a plaintiff may claim in certain types of damages. For example, some states limit the amount of money a plaintiff may win for pain and suffering compensation. Most states have limits on how much a plaintiff may receive in a lawsuit against the government.
Total Cost of Damages
The most important factor in determining a personal injury lawsuit’s total value is the measurable cost the defendant’s actions had to the plaintiff. Damages in civil claims seek to compensate a plaintiff’s economic losses as well as provide relief from a traumatic or painful experience. After gauging the lawsuit against past similar cases and determining the limits for the lawsuit prescribed by state law, a plaintiff’s attorney will then turn to records of the plaintiff’s economic burden to value the claim.
Damages in personal injury claims typically include medical expenses, pain and suffering, lost income, and property damage. A plaintiff should be able to provide proof of his or her medical expenses following the injury in question in the form of hospital bills, invoices, insurance reports, and any other documentation that proves how much an injury cost a plaintiff. Next, the plaintiff should be able to secure proof of lost income if his or her injury prevented work for an extended time. If the plaintiff’s injury occurred on the job, there should be an incident report about the injury, and the plaintiff’s employer should be able to provide accurate information concerning the plaintiff’s pay and missed time. If a plaintiff’s lawsuit involves property damage, the plaintiff’s attorney will look for receipts for repairing or replacing the damaged property.
Pain and Suffering
In most personal injury claims, pain and suffering damages are some of the most substantial. The justice system recognizes that the experience of suffering an injury is often worse for victims than dealing with the result and therefore allows plaintiffs to claim pain and suffering damages in civil claims. Pain and suffering damages exist to compensate plaintiffs for the physical pain, emotional distress, and mental anguish suffered due to the defendant’s actions.
Most attorneys will first consider the odds of winning a case before proposing a value. If a case seems weak, lacking evidence, or otherwise seems unwinnable, the attorney may advise the plaintiff to drop the claim to avoid paying unnecessary legal fees. If an attorney believes a case is strong enough to go to trial, he or she will likely estimate the total value of the case during the plaintiff’s initial case evaluation. Ultimately, it is up to the plaintiff to decide the value of a case and whether it is worth the effort to pursue a claim.
For all the answers to your personal injury law questions, give us a call.