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What damages could I receive for my slip and fall related injuries?
Accidents involving slip and falls send millions of people to the hospital each year, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Â Slip, trip, and falls can result in a wide array of potentially serious injuries, including broken bones, head trauma, spinal cord injuries, back pain, and more. Â These injuries may result in considerable losses to the injured fall victim. Our Los Angles slip and fall accident attorneys at J&Y Law Firm discuss the potential damages you could receive in a slip and fall accident lawsuit.
Special or Economic Damages
Special damages, also referred to as economic damages, are out of pocket damages that the slip and fall accident victim can document. Â Potential economic damages in your California slip and fall lawsuit might include:
- Medical expenses;
- Property damage (e.g. broken eyeglasses);
- Loss of earnings; and
- Loss of future earning capacity.
Serious slip and fall accidents may result in long term and debilitating injuries, requiring additional economic damages for the costs of physical rehabilitation, vocational rehabilitation, and nursing care. Â Calculating and proving your economic damages is not always an easy task and your slip and fall accident attorney can assist you in documenting these losses.
General Damages
A slip and fall accident victim may also recover for general damages. Â General damages are losses that are intangible. Â These losses could include pain and suffering, mental anguish, and loss of consortium. Â General damages can be quite difficult to calculate. Â Your slip and fall accident lawyer will assist you in attempting to assign a value to your intangible losses by inferring your damages from the facts surrounding the case and your special damages. Â
Punitive Damages
Punitive damages differ from economic and general damages because they are not intended to compensate the slip and fall accident victim, but rather to punish the defendant.  Punitive damages are not awarded in most personal injury cases.  A California court may award these damages if the defendant’s conduct is egregious and punitive damages will deter future such conduct.
The value of any slip and fall case is ultimately driven by the specific facts of your accident, the strength of your case, and your losses stemming from the accident. Â Contact a slip and fall accident attorney as soon as possible after your accident to find out more about your legal rights. Â