- What are damages?

Hi, I’m Kanon Clifford and thank you for tuning in this week to ask a lawyer. This week I’ll be speaking to you about damages. Personal injury lawsuits are filed against a person or entity that causes a loss or injury through negligence. Gross negligence, reckless conduct, intentional misconduct or in some cases on the basis of strict liability in a common law legal system. Damages are a remedy in the form of a monetary award paid to a claimant for compensation for that loss or injury. To put it more simply, damages are the amount awarded to a successful plaintiff.

Generally damages are designed to compensate the plaintiff for all aspects of their injury and to return the plaintiff into their original position that is the position he or she would have been in had the injury not occurred accordingly. There are many kinds of damages to account for. There are many different facets of an injury and these can by physical, emotional, psychological. In all former laws damages are categorized as either special or general. In torts special damages are measurable costs which can be itemized and this can be things such as medical expenses, lost income, home care and home upkeep cost. Future care costs and property damage, general damages on the other hand include less measurable costs such as pain and suffering, loss of family relationships, the effects of defamation and emotional distress.

Personal injury torts may result in the claims for both special and general damages. Depending on your jurisdiction there may even be damages awarded for options of family members claims. So it would be best to check with your lawyer if you have an injury law question. Leave a comment below and we’ll do our best to answer it in the next videos.

Thanks for tuning in I’m Kanon Clifford with Bergeron Clifford Injury Lawyers.