A Guide To Punitive Damages In California
Accidents can bring you a lot of financial losses. You might need to pay for medical bills, rehab, and car repairs. You might lose income and miss work while you're recovering. So, what about losses that can't be quantified? What about trauma and other emotional consequences of your injuries?
Let's talk about non-economic damages, as they're often handled by our pre-screened El Monte Personal Injury Attorneys in California.
Serious injuries result in a great deal of discomfort and difficulties. Personal injuries can result in property damage as well as a slew of financial consequences, including lost wages while you recover, hospital fees, and even the inability to return to work. According to California law, you have the right to sue the person who caused your injuries to receive compensation for your losses.
However, economic damages are often easy to prove. If you just make sure you have records and receipts of all the losses you sustained in an accident, you won't have much trouble arguing for a specific amount.
But what about the consequences of your injuries that have nothing to do with your bank account? The non-financial (or non-economic) losses you've suffered are just as deserving of recompense as the monetary losses you've suffered.
While you may replace tangible objects, your mental and emotional wellness is irreplaceable. As a result, in California, non-economic damages are just as essential as economic damages.
What Exactly Is a Non-Economic Damage?
The term "non-economic damages" refers to a wide range of issues. Non-economic damage could include despair, anxiety, disfigurement, or discomfort as a result of your injury. You may have been in a serious vehicle accident that rendered your arms paralyzed.
For example, being unable to hold your newborn as a result of these injuries would come under the broad category of non-economic damages.
Other non-economic harms that could include the following:
Trauma, either emotional or mental
Disfigurement of the body
Being unable to engage in your favorite pastime
Being unable to progress in your career
The inability to travel
Being unable to engage in physical activity
If you can show that the other party's actions have had a detrimental impact on your life, you may be able to recover compensation through a personal injury claim. A pre-screened El Monte Personal Injury Lawyer can assist you in building a case.
Is There A Limit On Non-Economic Damages?
In California, there is no cap on the amount of compensation you can get for non-economic damages. When it comes to medical negligence, however, California's non-economic damages are capped at $250,000.
To know more about possible limitations on your non-economic damages, contact a pre-screened El Monte Personal Injury Lawyer near you.
Other Important Non-Economic Factors In Personal Injury Cases
If you've read up on California personal injury claims and non-economic damages, you might have encountered some of the common phrases below:
Non-economic losses include pain and suffering, mental distress, loss of pleasure of life, and loss of consortium, all of which affect your quality of life.
Emotional distress can leave a victim unable to live life to the fullest, finding it difficult to focus, keep a job, or build relationships.
2. Loss Of Consortium
Injuries and the trauma associated with them can lead to a person's personal relationships (i.e., to a spouse or a partner) degrading.
For example, if the financial and emotional losses you've sustained in the accident directly contributed to divorce.
When the severity of the injury elicits sadness, emotional distress, dread, or anxiety, you are entitled to compensation. Not to mention, some injuries might cause lasting difficulties and damages to you even after you've fully healed, causing more distress.
Injuries have a detrimental impact on your life that is difficult to overcome. You may be entitled to compensation if your injuries result in depression.
Bottom-line
Victims can still experience the effects of an accident way after they've paid off their hospital bills. These effects could have an impact on your job and family life. That's why it's so important to make sure these non-quantifiable damages are considered in a personal injury claim.
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