Know The Difference Between Pecuniary And Non-Pecuniary Damages

The law is complex, any personal injury lawyer will inform you of that. In addition, civil law is broad and includes many variants of damages you can file a lawsuit for in court and win monetary awards in a settlement against the defense. One of the main types of damages in civil law is compensatory damage that can be further divided as pecuniary and non-pecuniary damages.

What is a compensatory damage?

An explanation of pecuniary and non-pecuniary damages from your lawyer will fall on deaf ears if you have no idea what compensatory damage is. You sustain compensatory damage whenever you are involved in an incident (not necessarily an accident) which causes you bodily injury and/or property damage, or other similar losses. They must all be connected to the incident that has caused you substantial grief in order to be considered compensatory damages.

What is a pecuniary damage?

Once you know what compensatory damage is, your Injury Lawyer in Barrie can explain what pecuniary damage is. This type of damage can be measured in monetary or financial terms. In other words, it is quantifiable. It is because of this status that they are the subject of most cases. These are:

● Any medical expenses
● Lost income/wages
● Cost of future care if you are partially or permanently disabled
● Physical damage that includes bodily injury and property damage

You will need the compensation to tide over this difficult time in your life and that is why keep all documents pertaining to the accident safe.

Non-pecuniary damage

Your personal injury lawyer will inform you that non-pecuniary damage is qualitative damage or damage which can’t be clearly measured in monetary or financial terms but still cause you financial damage, such as:

● Pain and suffering – a good example would be the depression and mental illness you suffered which cost you your job
● Emotional trauma which includes any anxiety you may have endured because of the incident
● Disabilities that affect personal/professional relationships. This includes any loss of mental or cognitive facility which may result from the long-term effects of brain damage. Impairment of life can also lead your spouse to leave you
● Effect on mental and/or physical abilities. You can lose your ability to walk, use your hands, or think clearly because of your illness
● Lost future income or wages. This can cause you to go into substantial debt and may even force you to declare bankruptcy.

You can win a civil lawsuit. Though complex, civil law is not impossible to navigate provided you hire a good lawyer and are aware of the information mentioned above.