When a jury finds that a wrongdoer is responsible for the victim’s injury, then the Judge will ask the jury to decide how much money will compensate the victim for his injuries. The law refers to the compensation award as “damages” and has divided them into two categories: economic and non-economic.
Economic injuries/damages include:
· Past medical expenses — the reasonable cost of reasonably necessary medical care related to the victim’s injury.
· Future medical expenses — the reasonable cost of reasonably necessary medical care for the victim’s medical care in the future
· Loss of earning capacity – Past and future loss of – the reasonable value of the victim’s loss of the ability to earn money as a result of the injury
Non-Economic injuries/damages include:
· Pain and suffering as previously discussed here.
· Loss of consortium — loss of a spouse’s companionship and services discussed in more detail here.