When a victim is injured in a personal injury case, there are different categories of damages that a personal injury attorney will demand require compensation: property damage, medical bills, future medical bills, lost wages, lost future income, permanent scarring, permanent disability, and pain and suffering. Each of these categories of damages must be proven by your personal injury attorney. When calculating pain and suffering in a personal injury case these damages can be difficult to prove because they are considered “non-economic” damages. This means that you are not being reimbursed for actual monetary losses but for your personal pain and suffering. You will need an experienced personal injury attorney who will advocate aggressively for the compensation you deserve for your past, present, and future pain and suffering. Georgia courts have also identified several factors that are to be considered by a jury in arriving at a fair value for a pain and suffering award. In Food Lion v. Williams, 219 Ga. App. 352 (1995), the leading case on pain and suffering damages in Georgia, the factors are noted as:
- Interference with normal living;
- Interference with enjoyment of life;
- Loss of capacity to labor and earn money;
- impairment of bodily health and vigor;
- The fear of extent of injury;
- Shock of impact;
- Actual pain and suffering;
- Past and future pain and suffering;
- Mental anguish;
- Past and future mental anguish; and
- Consideration of limitations on normal activities.