Every set of injuries is unique, therefore no two cases will have the same settlement. For the most part, your take-home will be affected by two main factors: the seriousness of your injuries and the quality of your attorney. If there are little to no injuries, the compensation isn’t going to be substantial. However, the more severely you are hurt, the more opportunities you will have to collect other forms of compensation. 

Generally speaking, damages are classified as either compensatory or punitive. Punitive damages are extremely rare, as less than 10 percent of cases will even discuss them. A helpful way to remember them is to switch out the word damages with either “fines” or “fees,” as these are purely meant as a punishment for exceedingly negligent behavior. Generally, these are reserved for instances in which a large number of people have been injured by a certain defendant or defendants.  

On the other hand, compensatory damages represent all the ways in which a person’s life has been affected by their injuries, such as: 

• Medical costs
• Property damage
• Lost wages, damage to future earnings
• Disability 
• Loss of enjoyment 
• Pain and suffering 
• Loss of companionship

Any damages that can be easily calculated–such as medical expenses, property damages, or lost income–are easier to successfully argue because you can point to exact figures. Conversely, non-economic damages like loss of enjoyment and pain and suffering are harder to recover because of their inherent subjectivity. These are heavily dependent on evidence, but with a skilled attorney from Van Law Firm by your side, that is not an issue.