Compensation if Seriously Injured from an Accident

Compassionate Counsel and Zealous Representation for Myrtle Beach Injury Victims

A common question your Clinton personal injury lawyers at Joye Law Firm receive from clients is this: “How much compensation will I get from my lawsuit?” In other words, it is quite common for South Carolina injury victims to want to know upfront the amount of money they can receive if their lawsuit is successful. The reason this question gets asked so often is simple: in nearly every case, the victim has incurred a substantial amount of expenses in treating his or her serious injury. His or her personal and family finances are often strained and stretched, and he or she needs sufficient compensation to be able to put his or her life back together.

The Precise Amount of Compensation Available in Any Clinton Personal Injury Case is Difficult to Predict

Before discussing the general categories of expenses and losses for which you may be able to obtain compensation, if must be stated that no attorney (regardless of experience or knowledge) can predict with 100 percent accuracy the exact amount of compensation you will receive for your serious injury accident. The amount of compensation you will obtain will depend in part on your (or your lawyer’s) ability to document your injuries, losses, and expenses and convince a judge or jury that such injuries, losses, and expenses are attributable to the defendant’s negligence or recklessness.

In general, compensation is usually available for the following losses and expenses incurred by an injury victim:

• Medical bills and treatment costs: This includes expenses such as ambulance transportation costs, emergency room expenses, the costs associated with your hospital stay, evaluation and treatment costs you have already incurred, and all medical expenses that you are likely to incur in the future as a result of your injury. This category also includes the costs of prescription drugs you are prescribed, in-home rehabilitative or therapeutic services you require, and assistive devices you may need.
• Lost wages: Compensation is available for time you have missed from work as well as time you are likely to miss from work in the future as a result of the accident. For example, if you are successful in your injury lawsuit while you are still physically recovering from your injuries and your doctor believes you will need to be off of work for another six months, you may be able to obtain compensation for those additional six months’ worth of work you will miss. If you are permanently disabled as a result of your injuries, or if you cannot return to your former job but must accept a less demanding – and less-paying – job, you may be able to obtain compensation to cover the difference between the wages you might be expected to earn over your working career had you not been injured and the wages you will likely receive.
• Mental pain and suffering: A serious injury incident in Charleston can cause severe mental injuries and trauma as well. You may not be able to visit the location where the injury occurred, ride in a motor vehicle, or participate in activities you once enjoyed without suffering emotional and mental stress. While these types of injuries and scars are not visible, they are nonetheless very real and very debilitating. These scars can negatively impact your quality of life for years, even after your physical injuries have healed.
• Punitive damages: Punitive damages are typically only available in cases where the defendant deliberately caused your injury or acted with recklessness in causing your injuries. Punitive damages are not meant to compensate you for any loss but are awarded where the court feels the defendant needs to understand his or her behavior was unacceptable and/or where the court believes other individuals or entities need to be discouraged from engaging in the same sort of behavior in which the defendant engaged.

Securing Adequate Compensation Takes the Skills of a Resourceful South Carolina Personal Injury Lawyer

Your Myrtle Beach catastrophic injury lawyer is best-suited to help you quantify your losses and expenses as well as locate the documentation and supporting evidence you will need to prove you did, in fact, suffer those injuries and losses. This can be a long and complicated process, but it is one that your resourceful South Carolina injury attorneys at Joye Law Firm have been doing for years and can assist you in completing. The sooner you contact our office or reach out to our firm online, the sooner we can help you get started on obtaining full and fair compensation.