By Dan Noll on August 28th, 2023 in Car Accident
Understanding Damages in Illinois: Experienced Car Accident Lawyers in Springfield Explain What Are Non-Economic Damages in a Car Accident
Motor vehicle accidents often result in a range of physical, emotional, and financial harm for victims and their families. Illinois law allows for victims and their families to recover compensation for these losses, which are known as “damages.” There are different types of damages under Illinois law, including economic and non-economic damages. The difference between these two types of damages is significant and important, particularly because most victims often suffer significant non-economic damages in a motor vehicle wreck. Given this, it is important that victims understand what non-economic damages are in a car accident in Springfield and that they consult with an experienced car accident lawyer for help.
The Noll Law Office understands this, which is why their experienced car accident lawyers offer free consultations. Unlike other personal injury law firms, there is no upfront cost to get a case evaluation, there is no obligation to sign up, and there is no limit to the number of questions that you may ask. If you hire their bodily injury law firm and if they accept your case, they pay the upfront costs of litigation which are only reimbursed after they recover your compensation for your case. Their legal bills are also not due until they make such a recovery, and their bills are a percentage of the total recovery – meaning that you don’t owe out-of-pocket expenses for their help. To learn more about how they can help you and your family after a motor vehicle accident in Illinois, call their experienced car accident lawyers in Springfield at (217) 414-8889 to schedule your free appointment.
What are Damages in a Car Accident Injury Case?
A party to a lawsuit seeks “damages” from an at-fault or liable party. This is a type of “relief” that can be obtained in a legal action. In cases involving bodily injury or wrongful death, under Illinois law, 735 ILCS 5/2-1115.2 provides that victims and their families may recover “economic damages” or “non-economic damages.” Illinois law further provides that the sum of economic and non-economic damages is called “compensatory damages” or “actual damages.”
What Are Economic Damages in a Car Accident?
Personal injury victims often have economic damages. This type of harm is the actual, tangible losses that can be readily calculated. That includes medical bills, lost wages, lost future earnings, property damage, and other losses that often have a bill or set price. Generally, economic damages in motor vehicle accident cases are less often contested because there are concrete figures.
What Are Non-Economic Damages in an Accident Claim?
All personal injury victims have non-economic damages. That’s because non-economic damages are for intangible harm, such as conscious pain and suffering, agony, disfigurement, permanent injury, aches, discomfort, loss of consortium, loss of society, and other harms caused by a car crash. Unlike economic damages, non-economic damages do not come with a bill or receipt. That means they are much harder to calculate and, therefore, are often hotly contested in personal injury lawsuits.
Examples of Non-Economic Damages in a Car Accident
There are many different examples of non-economic damages in a car accident in Springfield, which include the following:
- Past pain and suffering
- Future pain and suffering
- Emotional injuries, including anxiety, PTSD, depression
- Loss of consortium
- Loss of society
- Permanent disability or disfigurement, and
- Other harm from physical or emotional injuries caused by a motor vehicle accident that the car accident lawyers in Springfield at the Noll Law Office can fight to recover compensation for you.
How are Non-Economic Damages Determined in a Car Accident in Illinois?
Since there is no receipt to establish non-economic damages, it is often hard to determine what is fair and reasonable compensation for personal injuries sustained in a car accident. Generally, non-economic damages contain a subject and objective element in valuing a case.
Subjectively, the harm that a victim sustains is to be considered by a trier of fact (a judge or jury). This includes what the victim felt, such as pain, agony, prolonged recovery, surgery, and other experiences related to the accident. Take a broken bone as an example. For some individuals, a broken bone may be painful and take weeks to recover. Whereas for other individuals, the same broken bone may be extremely excruciating, cause nausea or vomiting, and take months to recover but still have some residual pain for life. In considering the subjective pain, the second individual appears to have a better claim.
However, the subjective component is not infinite. There is also an objective component to valuing personal injury cases. This includes a review of the following:
- What other victims with similar injuries have received in a settlement, arbitration, or verdict
- The “going rate” in the county/venue for similar injuries
- Comparing the age, gender, and life expectancy of the victim with other victims who had similar injuries
- What has been determined as reasonable compensation by appellate courts for similar injuries to similar victims
- Considering expert testimony as to the extent of the injury, future disability, and likely pain and suffering, and
- Other factors that could increase or decrease the value of a case.
Can Well-Settled Non-Economic Damages Be Reduced in My Case?
Yes, even where there is a well-settled precedent of your non-economic damages, the amount you may be entitled to recover can still be reduced. That is because, under Illinois law, a victim’s comparative fault may proportionately reduce the total recovery. For example, if it is well settled that a victim with a certain type of broken bone requiring a specific type of surgery generally recovers $100,000 to $150,000 in the county of the lawsuit, a victim who was 20% at fault for his accident may have his recovery reduced by 20%.
Is There a Cap on Non-Economic Damages in Illinois?
Although the Legislature had previously enacted a $500,000 cap on non-economic damages in personal injury and wrongful death cases, this statute has been found to be unconstitutional in the two separate cases of Best v Taylor Machine Works and Lebron v Gottlieb Memorial Hospital. Although there have been continued efforts by defense law firms, insurance carriers, and medical providers to continue to lobby for other types of caps on damages in personal injury or wrongful death cases, so far these efforts have been defeated. The current law of Illinois is that there are no caps on non-economic damages that are fair and reasonable compensation to a victim and his or her family.
Were You Injured in a Vehicle Wreck in Illinois? Ask the Car Accident Lawyers in Springfield at the Noll Law Office What are Non-Economic Damages in a Car Accident Case and How They Can Help
Damages in a personal injury case can be difficult to determine, particularly non-economic damages. There are many variables that could affect how much compensation a victim may be entitled to under Illinois law. Victims of motor vehicle accidents in Illinois should contact experienced car accident lawyers in Springfield at the Noll Law Office for help. Their bodily injury law firm can answer your questions about what are non-economic damages in a car accident, and what you may be entitled to.
To learn more about your rights to compensation under Illinois law and to schedule a free case evaluation, contact the Noll Law Office today.