How a Lawyer "Values" Your Personal Injury Case

If you’ve been injured due to an accident or someone else’s negligence, you may be entitled to compensation for your losses. But what exactly goes into determining the value of your personal injury claim? The answer is complicated and depends on several factors, but understanding how a lawyer values a personal injury case can help you get the best possible outcome from any potential lawsuit.

The attorneys at Morgan & Morgan have decades of experience valuing personal injury claims and will do everything possible to ensure you get the compensation you deserve.

If you need help, contact Morgan & Morgan today for a free, no-obligation case evaluation.

Determining the Value of Your Personal Injury Case

If you’ve been injured in an accident caused by someone else’s negligence, you may be wondering what factors go into determining the value of a personal injury case. The answer is that there are many variables that can affect a settlement amount. Here are some factors that affect the value of your claim:

The Extent of Your Injuries

The severity and extent of your injuries are obviously important factors in determining the value of your case. The more severe and lasting your injuries, the greater the potential for a higher settlement amount.

Medical Bills

Another major factor in determining the value of a personal injury case is medical expenses. These include any costs associated with medical treatment related to the injury, such as hospital visits, medication costs, physical therapy expenses, and other out-of-pocket costs incurred as a result of your injury. It’s important to keep all receipts and documentation related to these expenses because they will be used by your attorney when calculating damages.

Impact on Your Life

It’s also important to consider how your injuries have impacted your quality of life. For example, if an injury has left you with permanent disability or disfigurement, pain and suffering damages could be substantial. The same holds true if you have had to make lifestyle changes due to injuries sustained in an accident, such as having to give up certain activities or hobbies due to physical limitations or emotional trauma from the incident.

The At-Fault Party’s Insurance Coverage

Another factor that will impact the value of your claim is how much insurance coverage is available from the at-fault party’s policy (if any). Generally speaking, higher limits mean higher settlements, so it is important to know what kind of coverage they have before filing a lawsuit or making any demands for compensation.   

How Do Lawyers Calculate a Fair Settlement?

If you’ve been involved in an accident, you may be wondering how much money you can get as a settlement. The truth is that it’s impossible to say what a fair settlement would be without knowing the details of your case. However, there are some basic steps that lawyers use to determine what constitutes a fair settlement for their clients.

Calculating Damages

The first step in calculating a fair settlement is determining the total amount of damages and losses sustained by the plaintiff (the person filing the lawsuit). This includes both economic and non-economic damages such as medical bills, lost wages, pain and suffering, emotional distress, and other losses related to the accident. In some cases, punitive damages may also be awarded if it has been determined that the defendant acted with malicious intent or gross negligence.

Calculating Medical Expenses

Medical expenses associated with an injury caused by a car accident are usually fairly straightforward to calculate since they are based on bills from hospitals and doctors’ offices. However, medical expenses also include any additional costs associated with treating the injury such as prescriptions, home healthcare costs, medical equipment rentals, travel expenses related to treatments not available locally, and more. It is important that you keep all receipts related to your medical care so that you can accurately calculate these costs.

Calculating Lost Wages

Lost wages due to missed work should also be included in your car accident claim calculation. This includes any income lost due to being unable to work or having limited capacity at work due to your injury as well as any bonuses or commissions lost due to missing workdays or being unable to complete job duties at full capacity. Additionally, any vacation days that were used up should also be factored into this calculation since those days would have been saved up had it not been for the incident resulting in injury.  

Calculating Pain and Suffering

Pain and suffering is often one of the most difficult aspects of calculating damages in a car accident claim since it is based on subjective factors like emotional distress and quality-of-life changes rather than objective facts like medical bills or lost wages. The most common way of calculating pain and suffering is by multiplying your total economic losses (medical bills + lost wages) by a number between 1-5 depending on the severity of your injuries and emotional distress experienced as a result of the incident.

This number can vary greatly depending on individual circumstances so it is important that you consult with an attorney who specializes in personal injury law before making any assumptions about what kind of compensation you may be entitled to for pain & suffering damages.     

Negotiations

Once all the damages have been calculated, your lawyer will then begin negotiations with the defendant's insurance company or legal team. During these negotiations, both sides will present their arguments for what constitutes a fair settlement amount and attempt to negotiate an agreement that is satisfactory for both parties. It's important to note that during this stage of negotiations it is common for parties to come back with counteroffers until they reach an agreement.