Proving Compensatory Damages for Personal Injuries in North Carolina
Compensatory damages in North Carolina are designed to help a harmed individual recover economic and non-economic losses, making them whole again. Depending on the circumstances of your personal injury, you may be eligible to claim several types of damages. North Carolina courts recognize economic, non-economic, and punitive damages, but certain legal requirements must be met before recovering any compensation. First, you must validate your personal injury claim; then, you must show the financial, emotional, and physical toll the event had on your life.
Establishing N.C. Personal Injury Claims
Whether a personal injury claim is for a car crash, birth injury, or nursing home abuse, it must be supported with strong evidence proving certain facts of the case. Proof may include physical evidence, police investigations, witness statements, and sometimes even expert medical testimony. North Carolina courts require personal injury claims to meet these four legal elements:
- Duty: The person owed a duty to exercise caution.
- Violation of Duty: The person drove recklessly, displayed negligence, or acted in a manner that otherwise violated their duty.
- Cause: The violation of duty caused a negative outcome, such as a car or pedestrian accident.
- Damages: The event led to harm, including injury, property damage, or other losses.
Economic Damages for Personal Injury Claims
Economic compensatory damages in North Carolina refer to quantifiable financial losses stemming from your personal injury. A serious car accident or dog attack can result in injuries requiring costly medical care, and a lengthy recovery may bar you from returning to your regular activities, including work. Examples of economic compensatory damages allowed in North Carolina include:
- Past, present, and future medical care
- Lost wages due to missed work
- Diminished earning capacity due to disability
- Vehicle repairs or property losses
Proving Financial Damages
North Carolina places no cap on economic losses, but the courts will require tangible evidence of these hardships in order to prove financial damages. This requires documentation, such as receipts and invoices from medical facilities and check stubs showing lost wages and missed work. Additionally, a healthcare professional may need to opine on future care or diminished earning potential. A knowledgeable personal injury attorney can work with you to determine appropriate compensatory damages to help you make a full recovery.
Non-Economic Personal Injury Damages
Calculating non-economic damages is less cut-and-dried than financial losses and may be challenging to assess without legal assistance. These intangible losses can disrupt every part of a victim’s life, affecting their emotional wellness, personal relationships, and sense of identity. Though non-economic damage amounts aren’t capped in North Carolina, these should still be calculated accurately to ensure the validity of your claim.
Some non-economic losses you can name as compensatory damages for a personal injury in North Carolina include:
- Physical pain and suffering
- Mental and emotional anguish
- Post-traumatic stress and mental health conditions
- Loss of consortium
Evidence of Intangible Damages
Proving non-economic losses from a personal injury may require several types of evidence, from impact statements to a medical professional’s testimony. Keeping a personal injury journal from the time of the accident or medical mistake resulting in malpractice can help you and your attorney substantiate your claim, and testimony of friends and family may be key to establishing the emotional and psychological toll an injury has taken. If you aren’t sure how to begin collecting this evidence, speak to your attorney, who can investigate the damages and gather the necessary documentation.
Claiming Punitive Damages in North Carolina
In North Carolina, certain personal injury claims involving egregious wrongdoing may also qualify for punitive damages. To claim punitive damages, a case must be eligible for standard compensatory damages under North Carolina law, and the wrongdoer must have acted with extreme recklessness while committing fraud, malice, or a willful or wanton act. Most personal injury cases with punitive damages fall under willful or wanton actions, which can include speeding while driving drunk or operating on patients while under the influence.
Punitive damages are capped in North Carolina at three times the compensatory damages in personal injury cases or $250,000, whichever is greater. The elevated penalties are designed to punish the wrongdoer and deter them from future similar behavior.
How Much To Claim for a Personal Injury
There’s no exact number that will be right for everyone. Compensatory damages in personal injury cases should be adequate but not overinflated. Exaggerating these numbers can hurt your credibility and impact your outcome. Ask for an attorney’s guidance to make certain all current and future damages are factored into your personal injury claim and properly substantiated.
A jury bases punitive damages, if any, on how they view the other party’s actions and the necessary civil punishment. In North Carolina, punitive damages caps limit how much you can recover, which makes calculating and proving compensatory economic and non-economic damages even more essential.
If you’ve been harmed by medical malpractice, nursing home abuse, or a car accident, contact the personal injury attorneys at Miller Law Group for help. Our experts can calculate appropriate damages and establish and prove your claim. We’ll work with you every step of the way to make sure your award reflects your medical and financial needs today and in the future.
