Calculating damages in a lawsuit can be tricky. There is no specific, preset formula to calculate damages as they are usually determined based on the actual expenses of the victim and compensation for their pain and anguish. Compensation should make the injured person “whole” again.
Burger Law is here to help you. Our personal injury attorneys never settle for less than your case is worth.
Putting a dollar figure on some damages, such as medical bills and out-of-pocket expenses, can be relatively easy, as there are bills, statements and receipts. But quantifying more subjective damages, such as physical pain, emotional distress, or loss of life enjoyment, can be challenging. Calculating damages means finding out what your case could be worth through the following types:
- Compensatory Damages
- Economic Damages
- Medical Expenses
- Wage Losses
- Property Damage
- Non-Economic Damages
- Pain and Suffering
- Emotional Distress
- Loss of Life Enjoyment
- Loss of Consortium
- Punitive Damages
Missouri does not impose a cap on economic or non-economic damages in most personal injury cases, unless it is based on medical negligence, where non-economic damages currently cannot exceed $442,574. If the medical malpractice case involved a catastrophic injury or wrongful death, non-economic damages cannot exceed $787,671. Under Senate Bill 239, these limits increase by 1.7 percent every year.
Illinois currently does not have any law setting damage caps on personal injury compensation, however punitive damages are not rewarded for medical malpractice suits.