Under California personal injury law, pain and suffering in relation to an injury is owed compensation.  You are eligible for pain and suffering damages for both physical and mental injuries. If you have been injured in California and you experienced pain and suffering as a result, an experienced Santa Rosa personal injury attorney can help you get the compensation you rightfully deserve.

Understanding the Basics of Non-Economic Damages

Damages for pain and suffering are classified as a non-economic damages. This is in contrast to something like a hospital bill, which is classified as an economic damage. The difference is important because non-economic damages are inherently difficult to quantify. It is easy to look at a hospital bill, see that it cost four thousand dollars, and determine that those four thousand dollars need to be compensated. But, how do you determine the correct amount of money to compensate ‘pain’? Pain and suffering is very real and it definitely deserves full compensation, but the difficulty of quantifying the pain can make it difficult for injury victims to get what they fairly legally deserve. The subjective nature of non-economic damages makes an experienced personal injury attorney indispensable. You need an attorney who can make a strong case to get you every dollar you deserve.

California Medical Malpractice Pain and Suffering Limits

The California state legislature passed the Medical Injury Compensation Reform Act (MICRA) which limits compensation for pain and suffering in medical malpractice cases to 250,000 dollars. There is no cap on economic damages. But, in a California medical malpractice case, the maximum amount a court can award an injured victim for pain and suffering is 250,000 dollars. This is even true if the actual pain and suffering should be worth more than that amount. That dollar figure probably seems like an arbitrary amount, because in fact, it is an arbitrary amount. There have been attempts in recent years to get the legislature to raise the cap, but they have been unsuccessful thus far.  In 2014, proposition 46, which would have raised the cap, lost at the ballot box. If you have any questions about pain and suffering damages in California, an experienced personal injury attorney can help answer them for you.

Contact An Experienced Santa Rosa Personal Injury Attorney

Getting full and fair compensation for your pain and suffering is deserved. Unfortunately, in certain types of California personal injury cases (medical malpractice) your pain and suffering damages may run up against a legislated limits for damages. An experienced Santa Rosa personal injury attorney at the Teal Law Group can analyze your case and help you recover every penny for pain and suffering that is possible. Your pain and suffering is still eligible for significant compensation regardless of any limits. Contact our offices today to learn more about your legal options.