Maybe a drunk driver swerved into your car on the freeway, or maybe a friend accidently shot a gun that sent a bullet through your leg. Maybe you slipped on a messy spill at a grocery store, or were sexually abused by a doctor or co-worker. No matter what your case, if you were injured by another party and the accident could have been prevented if safety measures were taken, then you might have a personal injury case. When you have a case, you can sue for negligence and gain compensation for your damages. But often lawyers are vague as to what compensations you can actually obtain. When you win a lawsuit you are gaining damages. These are payments that are affixed values for certain expenses that you had to pay. There are three different types of damages that you may be able to obtain.

First, there are economic losses to date. These are medical expenses that you had to pay because of your injury, and any costs for over-the-counter or prescription drugs. Your expenses can also include any lost wages that you have had to deal with because you had to take off time at work for recovery. If you had to pay for additional child care or home maintenance because you were not able to keep up these responsibilities on your own, then you might be able to sue for this as well. Even the gas money for trips to and from the hospital and any expenses for parking can be added into your economic losses. You will want to add up all of these costs while you pay for them so that you can present your defendant with all of the expenses on an organized spreadsheet. Anything that you had to pay for as a result of the injury will be eligible for compensation.

Second, you can sue for future economic losses. These are things like future medical bills that you will have to pay for reconstructive surgeries, or future medication prescriptions. In this category is the loss of future earning capacity as well. This type if damage estimates how much you were capable of earning at your job in your lifetime before your injury and how much you are capable of making now that you have been injured. For example, if you are a construction worker by profession, and then injure your leg so that you will always have a limp and have to rest without standing on your feet much during the day, this could decrease your wages significantly. To figure out your future loss of earning capacity, you may want to involve a doctor and a vocational expert. The doctor can tell you which physical activities you will not be able to do as efficiently, or will not be able to do at all, as a result of your injury. Then, a vocational expert can look at your resume and see what you were capable of before the accident and what you are able to accomplish now.

The third type of damages is the compensations for the injury itself. These are called non-economic damages. These aren’t as easy to put a dollar amount on, but you should certainly seek for compensation for your injury if you were gravely injured. If you have been permanently disabled or disfigured from the accident, or lost social and educational experiences because of the accident, then you need to factor these into your lawsuit. For example, if you missed school or had to forego a long-planned vacation, you can gain compensation for the losses. If you have emotional damages like stress, embarrassment, or depression, then you need to factor these in as well. A lot of times a mother who is no longer able to take care of her children or has added stress over an unborn child will sue for emotional damages. If you have a personal injury lawsuit, then consider what compensation you deserve and seek damages.