What is Pain and Suffering?

Pain and suffering is not just what you feel you’re entitled to for listening to political advertisements on TV, radio, and social media. In the context of a personal injury lawsuit, pain and suffering (the physical and mental anguish caused by an injury) is an element of damages aimed to make an injured person whole after an accident. In addition to lost wages and the cost of medical bills, you will also experience non-economic (and more subjective damages) damages, such as pain and suffering and loss of a normal life. Despite all the promises you hear by politicians, it is impossible to rewind time and prevent an accident from occurring in the first place. However, an award for pain and suffering helps provide compensation for enduring certain things that would not have been necessary if not for the accident or injury.

Assigning an amount of pain and suffering can be difficult since there is no mathematical formula or pain and suffering calculator to use. Factors that may go into a jury’s calculation of your pain and suffering include the nature and duration of the injuries, inability to perform your usual activities, physical pain and emotional suffering, and aggravation of a pre-existing injury. These usual activities can range from the inability to lift groceries, to mowing the grass, or as devastating as not being able to hold your grandchildren. Since there is no pain and suffering calculator to determine the amount of your compensation, it must be evaluated on a case-by-case basis, but can include:

• The nature and extent of your injuries
• Impact the injuries have had on your activities of daily living (sleeping, exercising, lifting)
• Impact the injuries have had on your work (necessary accommodations, restrictions, modifications)
• Hindrance of your ability to perform hobbies and recreational activities (sports, sewing, building)
• Duration of your recovery
• Pain and discomfort

Although listening to political puffery is oftentimes painful, it is hopefully only temporary. However, if you are in an accident, you may sustain permanent injuries, both physical and emotional. Physical pain and mental suffering resulting from an accident or injury can have a devastating effect on your life. If you are injured through the fault of another, you are entitled to pain and suffering, past and future, based on the extent of your physical and emotional injuries.

If you are in need of a free legal consultation, please call our Personal Injury Attorneys in Belleville, IL at Katzman & Sugden, LLC.