Medical Malpractice Damages: Economic vs. Non-Economic Explained
In a medical malpractice or catastrophic personal injury case, compensation is generally divided into two "buckets": economic and non-economic damages. While medical bills and lost wages are straightforward to calculate, determining the value of your physical pain and emotional toll is a much more complex process.
In this video, Brian L. Salvi breaks down how juries evaluate non-economic losses like pain and suffering, the loss of a normal life, and the psychological impact of a permanent injury. Learn how your life story becomes the evidence used to seek justice and fair compensation.
Key Topics in This Video:
[00:06] The two types of compensation in malpractice cases.
[00:12] Understanding economic damages: medical bills and lost wages.
[00:24] What are non-economic damages?
[00:42] How juries evaluate pain and suffering and the loss of a normal life.
[01:03] The psychological and emotional toll of catastrophic injuries.
About Salvi, Schostok & Pritchard P.C. Our team of trial lawyers is dedicated to helping individuals and families who have suffered due to medical negligence. We focus on securing the compensation necessary to cover future care and address the profound impact of life-altering injuries.
For more information:
Salvi, Schostok & Pritchard P.C.
161 N. Clark Street, Suite 4700
Chicago, Illinois 60601
https://www.salvilaw.com/
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Transcript
Brian Salvi:
So the damages in any catastrophic personal injury or medical malpractice case really fall into two types of buckets. The first bucket is one that is actually more straightforward in terms of its calculation, and that has to do with your paid medical bills, your future medical care needs, or your lost wages. The second bucket of compensation is noneconomic damages, and there is no calculation for non-economic damages. It's really just a matter of putting on your case, putting on your life in front of a jury, and having a jury assess what this loss means to you. And the way they evaluate those losses is primarily through the lens of a few different categories of noneconomic damages. The first is pain and suffering. Pain and suffering has to do primarily with the physical pain that someone carries with them. You also have loss of a normal life. That has more to do with what the pain and disability limits the person from being able to do, either in their daily life or in their hobbies. And then you have an individual who has physical pain and limitations on their life. There is a psychological and emotional toll that is taken as a result of that.
And so those are the things that are primarily wrapped up in non-economic damages. Despite there being no real calculation for it, the jury is free to decide based on the evidence that they hear.
