What costs did the victim have to bear, in terms of money, in terms of physical problems, and in terms of emotional or mental challenges?

The responsible party pays the damages.

That is why the issue of fault becomes so important, after an accident’s occurrence. In the eyes of the law, the payment of damages is supposed to help the victim become “whole” financially. The injury lawyer in St. Thomas knows that the size of the damage award could be decided in one of 2 ways

—Through a negotiated settlement
—Through proceedings in a courtroom trial, with judge or jury deciding on a verdict

There are 2 types of damage awards

1) Compensatory: Intended to compensate the victim

It covers the economic losses that includes medical costs, lost income, property losses, while another aspect that is covered is non-economic losses such as pain and suffering and emotional disturbances, loss of enjoyment of life and loss of consortium

2) Punitive damages: This is a punishment that gets directed at the defendant’s pocketbook.

What factor contributes the largest amount of influence, during a determination of the damages’ worth?

That would be the size for a total of the medical expenses

—The sum of the total from each doctor’s bill
—The cost of a treatment program
—The cost of medications
—The amount charged by any hired physical therapist
—The amount charged by an occupational therapist
—The money spent on adding adaptive fixtures and devices for the home

The nature of the victim’s injury would determine the size of the medical expenses.

Someone that had suffered catastrophic injuries would need more in the way of adaptive fixtures and devices. If the treating doctor had mentioned likelihood for a recurrence of the injury, or for development of complications, then that would add to the damages’ estimated value.

The options opened to an injured victim would also determine the size for the total of economic damages. A professional might be able to set up an independent business, if he or she was unable to handle the demands of a normal workplace. For instance, a lawyer might be able to set up his or her own office, one that contained special equipment.

No symptoms of any kind, immediate or delayed, would be of any value, if the victim had failed to seek medical attention during the 24-hour span that followed the reported accident. In the absence of an early report, regarding the victim’s condition, the damages’ worth would be small. The insurance company would have no proof of the tie between the policyholder’s actions and the eventual development of physical problems. In the absence of that proof, the victim could not expect an award.