Victims and families affected by personal injury face a multitude of physical, mental, emotional, and financial struggles. When the injury is the result of malice, negligence, or criminal activity of someone else, it’s understandable that many of them seek financial compensation. Unfortunately, it’s oftentimes complicated to figure out what level of compensation they can fight for.
There are two types of compensation that a personal injury law firm Hillsborough County can seek from the liable party on the injured person’s behalf: compensatory damages and non-compensatory damages. Compensatory is further broken down into pecuniary and non-pecuniary damages
Compensatory Damages
These types of damages are considered to be a direct result of the claimant’s injury for which the liable party is at fault. these types of damages are divided into two sub-types: pecuniary and non-pecuniary
Pecuniary
Pecuniary damages have a defined and quantifiable monetary value. These include medical expenses, lost wages, property damage, and future long-term care costs if the claimant was left temporarily or permanently disabled by the injury.
Non-Pecuniary
Non-pecuniary damages are still a direct result of the injury but are not quantifiable and are usually decided based on precedent. These are things like pain and suffering, mental and emotional distress, and loss of quality of life.
Non-Compensatory Damages
Non-compensatory damages are also referred to as punitive damages. They are, in accordance with Restatement of Torts, Second ยง 908(l), “are damages assessed in order to punish the defendant for outrageous conduct and/or to reform or deter the defendant and others from engaging in conduct similar to that which formed the basis of the lawsuit.” They are awarded in cases of gross negligence, gross recklessness, or criminal activity that directly resulted in personal injury. Punitive damages are not awarded for the express purpose of compensating the claimants, however, the claimant does receive a portion if not all of the award.