How Can You Calculate Pain and Suffering in a New Jersey Settlement?

How Can You Calculate Pain and Suffering in an NJ Settlement?

Because New Jersey law does not have one standardized formula to calculate pain and suffering, attorneys, insurance companies, and courts can use their discretion when determining the value of a victim’s non-economic damages. Two of the most common and widely recognized methods are as follows.

The multiplier method:

The multiplier method begins by totaling the victim’s economic damages, meaning their medical bills, lost wages, property damage, and any other losses that have an actual monetary value. This number is then multiplied by a factor, typically a number between 1.5 and 5, based on the severity of the injury. The outcome of this multiplication equals the value of the individual’s non-economic damages.

For example, suppose your injury is extremely severe, so the chosen multiplier is 5. If your medical expenses are $10,000, your damages for pain and suffering could equal $50,000.

The per diem method:

The per diem method assigns a daily dollar amount to the victim’s pain and suffering depending on the severity and permanence of the injury. The daily rate is then multiplied by the number of days that the victim is expected to suffer.

For example, suppose based on the severity of your injury and its impact on your life, your daily rate is $100. Your recovery is expected to take about one year or 365 days. In this case, your pain and suffering compensation would total $36,500.

How Can I Prove Pain and Suffering?

Because non-economic damages are intangible and do not have an obvious price tag, providing evidence of your pain and suffering is crucial in protecting your right to compensation. Important evidence includes:

• Medical documentation: Doctor notes, diagnostic tests, ongoing treatment information, prescriptions, and more can provide objective proof that your injuries are real, cause physical suffering, and are lasting.
• Personal journals: Keeping a daily journal of your experience during recovery can offer firsthand insight into your pain levels, emotional struggles, events that you have missed, and more to create a picture of your suffering.
• Testimonials: Testimony from friends, family, and coworkers can help provide outside perspectives on how your injury has affected your everyday life, ability to participate in social events, personal relationships, and more.
• Expert witnesses: Having experts speak to your condition, like a psychologist explaining how your trauma has manifested or a vocational expert testifying about how your injury has impacted your ability to work, can help establish your damages.

Providing these types of evidence will be beneficial to your case and help more accurately calculate your pain and suffering. Reach out to a skilled attorney for more information during your case.