Pain, Suffering and General Damages for Personal Injury Cases

If you've been injured or hurt by the negligence of another, you may seek compensation not only for medical expenses, lost wages and property damage but also for “general damages,” which include non-specific amounts for pain and suffering, mental anguish, loss of enjoyment of life and disability.

Damages are a legal term for financial compensation that a claimant can recover in Louisiana if losses are sustained by the negligent act of another. There are two types of damages—general damages and special damages.

Special damages include such things as lost wages, medical expenses and property loss. Special damages are economic damages capable of being reduced to a specific dollar amount. By example, lost wages are special damages because they can be specifically determined by multiplying the daily wages earned by the number of days missed caused by an accident. General damages are not susceptible of being reduced to a specific amount but are subjective and include categories such as pain and suffering, past and future; mental anguish, past and future; loss of enjoyment of life and disability.

General damages, such as those for pain and suffering, mental anguish and loss of enjoyment of life cannot be easily quantified. Accordingly, subjective amounts are awarded by the judge or jury, which generally consider the severity and length of the injury, the medical expenses past and future and the lifestyle adjustments required because of the accident. In every claim for general damages, expert medical testimony is required in addition to specific testimony by the plaintiff.

Personal injury claims are complicated, involving fault adjudication, assessment of insurance coverage and detailed medical and lost wage documentation. The insurance industry has experienced adjusters and attorneys who regularly attempt to minimize a person’s personal injury claim. Accordingly, the best path to success for any personal injury claimant is to obtain the services of experienced personal injury attorneys. Generally, no fair settlement can be obtained unless your attorney has a track record of successful personal injury trials. Our firm, Anderson Blanda & Saltzman, has more than 75 years of combined personal injury litigation experience specializing in representing personal injury plaintiffs against insurance companies in the Acadiana area. If you have a personal injury claim, please contact us at (337) 233-3366.