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What Is an Injury Settlement? An injury settlement is an agreement between the plaintiff and defendant to settle a matter outside of court. This can be a quick and efficient way to get compensation. Non-economic damages are more difficult to quantify in dollars. They include things like suffering and pain. Medical expenses Medical expenses can make up an important portion of a settlement based on the severity of the injury. These costs can include doctor visits, medications and even surgery. These expenses are usually not covered by insurance, and can be expensive. In many instances, there are other expenses that are associated with the injury, such as home health care or adaptive devices, transportation to medical appointments and much more. Medical bills are typically paid by a private health insurance provider, the government's Medicare or Medicaid or PIP coverage. If you receive a settlement with unpaid medical balances, these will need to be satisfied by the settlement funds. Your attorney can negotiate with billing companies in order to reduce the balances. Your lawyer can also determine the appropriate amount to cover any other losses that are not medically related. These include loss of future income along with pain and suffering and other damages that are not economic. To make a claim, your attorney will need to submit documentation and expert testimony on these other damages. Loss of wages In addition to the compensation for medical expenses, injured victims may be entitled to compensation for lost wages. These damages are calculated based on the amount of time that the person was absent from working due to their injuries. An experienced personal injury attorney can help their clients recover the compensation for lost wages in a personal injury claim. It is possible to miss a significant amount of work if you suffer a severe brain injury, a spinal cord injury or both. This means you will need to prove that the amount of time you were absent was directly related to your accident. In order to prove lost wages, it is essential to include all sources of income. This includes regular pay, overtime, bonuses and commissions. You could also include vacation days or sick days. If your doctor has determined that you are able to return work in a certain way, but with specific restrictions, your employer must comply with these restrictions. This could mean changing some aspects of your job, or even providing helpful equipment. A knowledgeable personal injury lawyer can assist you to collect all the data needed to support a wage claim. injury lawyer maine can also assist in situations where the person who is injured is self-employed, or receives a variable wage. In these instances the insurance company will need to look at the past and future earnings of the injured party and provide an accurate estimate of the loss of future wages. This will require a complete declaration from the plaintiff's accountant or financial professional. Economic damages When people think of personal injury-related damages they typically think of loss of money due to medical expenses and lost wages. There are other costs that are hard to quantify in dollars. These are known as non-economic damages. They are the more tangible consequences of injuries sustained by a victim, like suffering and pain, and loss of enjoyment of life. Economic damages are simple for courts and juries to determine, since they are documented in invoices and pay stubs. Non-economic damages, on the contrary are more difficult to calculate and may be based upon subjective factors such as pain, suffering, and emotional distress. The pain and suffering can include physical, mental or emotional distress caused by the accident. It could also include the person's inability to engage with their social or hobbies. A jury will consider the consequences of the injury to the victim's life. Other non-economic losses include disfigurement, loss of consortium and loss of enjoyment of life. For instance an individual may suffer from disfigurement after an accident that permanently alters their appearance. While this is not a financial loss, it can be very painful to live with scars and other permanent injuries. Damages for suffering and pain Pain and suffering is a class of non-economic damages for emotional and physical suffering you've endured as a result of your accident. These are subjective damages, which must be decided by the jury, not unlike medical bills, auto repairs and lost wages. Every juror will have a different opinion on the amount of pain and suffering compensation is appropriate for your case. One way to help a jury recognize the extent of your injuries is to provide documentation. Attorneys can collect written documents from your doctors that describe the severity of your injuries along with photographs and video footage. Testimonies from relatives and friends can be equally convincing. These testimony can help inspire sympathy from the jury and demonstrate how your injury has impacted aspects of your life, such as hobbies and family activities. The severity of your injury can also affect the amount you receive for suffering and pain. Compensation for pain and suffering is typically higher for severe and disabling injuries than injuries that heal faster. The claims for injury should reflect the emotional and psychological trauma that is caused by an injury. A personal injury lawyer can help you build a strong case and help you negotiate an equitable settlement for all of your injuries. Adam S. Kutner and Associates can provide you with the opportunity to meet with us for any questions regarding a possible settlement for an injury.