Personal injury is a complicated process to go through, including and especially actually filing the lawsuit itself. The good news about a personal injury lawsuit is that it is easier to succeed in one than a criminal trial, as there is a lower burden of proof involved — namely, you need to prove that it is more likely than unlikely that the defendant committed a crime. One question you may have, however, is just what kinds of expenses you can be reimbursed for through such a lawsuit. This may vary from state to state, so it is important that you know exactly what you can sue for before you dive in head first into the process.
What expenses can be sued for in a personal injury lawsuit?
There are a lot of different kinds of expenses that can be accrued as a result of an injury, but not everyone is going to know what can be covered expense-wise, as well as if there is a limit on how much you can sue for from certain expenses. One of the more common expenses that people may seek to sue for are medical expenses incurred from an injury by a person or persons. Ultimately, the exact answer to this question is that one can theoretically sue for any expenses, it is just a matter of how successful that will be in court. Suing for frivolous reasons, even if you also sue for legitimate reasons, however, may cause your overall case to be viewed negatively by the judge or a jury, so we at Wapner Newman Attorneys at Law suggest you avoid doing anything you feel like you cannot justify.
Medical expenses, if shown to be due to the defendant in the personal injury case, should be covered in its entirety. This includes all past and future costs, including costs associated with recovery from the injury. Mind you, medical expenses do not necessarily only cover physical injury; if it is found that you suffered mental anguish as a result of the injury, you may be able to get compensation for that suffering, as well as money towards therapy, both past and present. This may be more difficult to demonstrate in court, as such injury is an invisible one, and there are people who hold biases that lead them to not believe that mental anguish is not real, or at least having an extremely high standard for believing it. Despite that, this is not a new thing to sue for mental anguish, and historically it has happened in many countries going back millennia. Personal injury lawsuits that deal with mental anguish typically happens in cases involving medical malpractice, assault, and/or battery.
Next up is to touch upon lost wages as a result injury, where you were unable to work due both to the injury and the recovery. If you are unable to return to your previous job and are thus required to seek a lower-paying job as a result, the defendant will be on the hook for the difference in pay. Suing for lost wages can range from a relatively small sum to much larger, depending on the overall severity of the situation. For instance, if you suffer from long-term or even permanent disability that prevents you from returning to work, it can be a much larger sum, which is based on how much you have earned on average up until this point and by how many years the average person works until (roughly around their mid 60s).
Not all compensation sought is due to injury to the self, however. If any of your property is found to have been damaged as part of the injury, the defendant will be required to compensate you with either a repair, a replacement, or the cost of either if you have already taken care of the costs yourself. This may include your home, your car, valuables such as jewelry, and others. On the other hand, you can even sue for punitive damages. This will be in the event that the defendant, when they caused the injury, was acting with wanton disregard for others or as a result of intentional wrongdoing (such as if someone is injured while the defendant committed a crime). Attorney fees and court costs are somewhat complicated. For example, in a Texas personal injury lawsuit, there is a chance you can get attorney fees covers; however, whether this is the case will depend on whether there exists a specific statute to cover them, but for the most part, you cannot sue for attorney costs, even if the defendant is found to be liable for the injuries incurred. There are also some costs incurred as part of making your case, such as video editing for evidence or the case presented, expert witness costs, and others. These kinds of expenses can cause both parties to agree to a settlement in order to avoid these kinds of costs, as both plaintiff and defendant are going to incur expenses from this, and the longer it goes, the longer it will cost. Although personal injury lawyers will take the cost out of the compensation rather than over time, making it easier to get through the process without as much financial burden.