What Can I Recover From A Personal Injury Lawsuit?

If you have been injured in an accident, whether a car crash, public transportation or rideshare accident, an animal attack, a slip and fall, or another traumatic event, you likely have questions. Do I have a right to compensation? Who is responsible? How much can I recover? How much should I even ask for?

All too often, accident victims face an uphill battle when seeking recovery. Insurance companies are rarely motivated to accept claims and will fight to protect their bottom lines. Nonetheless, the law entitles you to pursue compensation for your injuries, medical expenses, lost income, reduced earning capacity, and other losses resulting from a serious, life-altering injury. As such, it is worthwhile to consult a personal injury attorney to discuss your options.

Seeking Compensation For Your Injuries

When you choose to pursue compensation for a personal injury, California law requires you to prove a few elements:

• The at-fault party violated a duty of care he or she owed you;
• This violation of the applicable duty of care caused an accident; and
• The accident caused you substantial physical, emotional, and/or financial harm.

In building your case, an experienced San Diego personal injury lawyer will investigate the cause of your accident and gather evidence of liability. In many cases, this involves collecting medical records, hiring expert witnesses to offer an opinion on the monetary value of your claim, and collecting physical objects involved in the accident - like torn rugs in a slip and fall or broken chains in an animal attack case.

What Can I Recover from a San Diego Personal Injury Lawsuit?

Damages in California personal injury cases include compensatory damages and, in some cases, punitive damages.

Compensatory Damages

Compensatory damages are meant to compensate you – make you whole – for your injuries and financial losses. The goal is to restore you to your pre-accident condition financially, physically, and emotionally. This type of damages award includes economic damages, like medical expense reimbursement, payment for lost wages, and property damage compensation, and non-economic damages, which involve intangible losses like reduced quality of life.

Economic Damages

Economic damages are concrete and calculable. Generally, they include items like:

• Medical expenses
• Lost income
• Reduced earning capacity
  

Non-Economic Damages

Non-economic damages are harder to calculate, as they are intended to compensate you for intangible losses. Items that may be considered in a non-economic damages calculation include, among others:

• Diminished quality of life
• Emotional or psychological distress
• Loss of consortium  

Punitive Damages

If a California judge or jury determines that the liable party acted recklessly or maliciously, you may be entitled to an award of punitive damages. These are damages designed to punish defendants, rather than to simply compensate you. Your attorney can help you determine whether you have a viable claim for punitive damages.

San Diego Personal Injury Attorney

If you have been injured, call San Diego personal injury attorney Anthony Laureti for a free consultation. It is critical to act quickly to protect your rights, to prevent your case from being barred by the statute of limitations, and to ensure that you are treated fairly by any liable parties and their insurers.