What Is a New York Injury Case Worth?

It is the question everyone asks first, and the one no honest lawyer can answer on the first call. The value of an injury case depends on facts that take time to develop. What we can explain on day one is how New York law measures a claim.

The two kinds of compensation

Economic loss is the money the injury has cost you and will cost you: medical bills, future medical care, lost earnings, and loss of the ability to earn in the future. These are proved with records, bills, and often the testimony of doctors and economists.

Pain and suffering compensates for the physical pain, the limitations, and the loss of enjoyment of life the injury has caused and will cause. There is no formula. A jury decides what is fair, and its decision can be reviewed by the courts.

New York places no statutory cap on these damages in personal injury or medical malpractice cases.

What moves the number

• The injury itself. How serious it is, whether it is permanent, and whether it required surgery.
• The medical proof. Consistent treatment and clear records from the start matter more than almost anything else.
• Fault. In most New York cases, if you were partly at fault, your recovery is reduced by your share of the fault (CPLR 1411). Motor vehicle cases now have their own, stricter rule.
• Insurance. A judgment is only as good as the ability to collect it. The amount of insurance coverage available often sets the practical ceiling.
• Who the defendant is. Claims against public bodies have short deadlines and special rules.

Rules that can reduce an award

Several rules work in the background that most people have never heard of:

• Collateral sources. After a verdict, the court may reduce an award for economic loss by amounts that have been or will be paid from certain other sources, such as health insurance (CPLR 4545).
• Review by the courts. An appellate court can reduce or increase an award that "deviates materially from what would be reasonable compensation" (CPLR 5501(c)).
• Payment over time. In a personal injury case, when future damages exceed $250,000, the part above that amount may be paid in installments over years rather than in one sum (CPLR article 50-B). Medical malpractice awards have their own periodic-payment rules (CPLR article 50-A).

Punitive damages, meant to punish, are available only for conduct far worse than ordinary carelessness, and are rare.

Why early offers are usually low

An insurance company's first offer often arrives before anyone knows how the injury will heal. Once you accept a settlement and sign a release, the case is over, even if you later need surgery. That is the main reason not to settle before the full extent of the injury is known.

What the lawyer is paid

Injury cases are almost always handled on a contingency fee: the lawyer is paid a percentage of the recovery and nothing if there is no recovery. In most New York personal injury cases the fee is one-third of the net recovery. Medical malpractice cases are governed by a different, sliding scale set by statute. You are entitled to a written retainer agreement that explains the fee and how expenses are handled.

The honest answer

Anyone who quotes you a figure in the first conversation is guessing. A responsible evaluation comes after the records are gathered, the injuries are understood, the responsible parties are identified, and the insurance is known.

Prior results do not guarantee a similar outcome. If you would like an evaluation of your own situation, call the office. For more, see Personal Injury.