When a person is injured due to someone else’s negligence, the immediate concern often revolves around the financial impact of the injury. Medical bills, rehabilitation costs, and lost wages can quickly add up, creating a sense of urgency to seek compensation.
However, at Finney Injury Law, we take a unique approach to personal injury cases: we do not claim lost wages. This might seem surprising, and at times, can even feel upsetting for some of our clients. But there’s a very deliberate and strategic reason behind this decision—one that ultimately serves our clients better in the long run.
The Focus on Human Damages Over Monetary Compensation
While many firms prioritize the monetary aspects of a personal injury claim, we focus on the human damages. Of course, there is a monetary component to every claim—medical expenses, therapy costs, and other tangible losses are vital aspects of a case. However, there is an equally important, yet often overlooked, component of human damages that goes beyond mere dollars and cents. These are the non-economic damages that profoundly affect a person’s quality of life—things that cannot be easily quantified with a price tag.
Non-economic damages include the pain and suffering endured by the injured person, the emotional distress caused by the injury, the loss of enjoyment of life, and the inability to engage in activities or hobbies that once brought joy. These damages are deeply personal and unique to each individual. They represent the real, human impact of an injury, and as such, they are the primary focus of our strategy when advocating for our clients.
The Difference Between Economic and Non-Economic Damages
To understand why we prioritize human damages over lost wages, it’s important to distinguish between economic and non-economic damages. Economic damages are the quantifiable financial losses resulting from an injury. They include medical expenses, property damage, and lost wages. Economic damages are straightforward and easy to calculate because they have a clear dollar value.
Non-economic damages refer to the intangible losses that don’t have a specific monetary value. Pain and suffering, emotional distress, loss of companionship, and reduced quality of life fall under this category. Non-economic damages are more subjective and can vary widely from one case to another.
Our approach is to emphasize non-economic damages because we believe that quality of life should always take precedence over lost wages. The emotional and psychological toll of an injury often outweighs the financial losses, and we aim to ensure that our clients receive compensation that reflects the true extent of their suffering.
Why Quality of Life Should Take Precedence
One of the key reasons we don’t claim lost wages is because we believe that focusing on the broader picture of a client’s quality of life will ultimately result in greater compensation. Lost wages are, in many ways, low-hanging fruit. They are relatively easy to calculate and prove, but they only represent a small portion of the overall impact of an injury. By focusing on the human damages, we are able to advocate for a more comprehensive settlement that truly reflects the gravity of our clients’ losses.
For example, consider a client who has suffered a catastrophic injury. This individual may no longer be able to work or contribute financially to their family. In such cases, we might address the loss of income as part of a life care plan, which outlines the long-term financial and medical needs of the client. However, the primary focus would still be on how the injury has impacted the client’s ability to enjoy life—whether that means they can no longer pursue their passions, play with their children, or participate in activities they once loved.
The Challenges of Proving Lost Wages
Another reason we steer away from claiming lost wages is the inherent difficulty in proving them, especially in today’s diverse economy. For those who work in gig-based or service-oriented industries—such as taxi drivers, Uber or Lyft drivers, and hospitality workers—their income is often variable and dependent on tips or fluctuating demand. Proving exactly how much they were making, and therefore how much they have lost, can be challenging.
Self-employed individuals face similar difficulties. Income for the self-employed can vary widely from year to year, making it hard to establish a clear baseline for lost wages. What they earned last year may not accurately reflect what they would have earned this year or next, further complicating the claim.
Our Client-Centric Approach
At our firm, we take a client-centric approach to personal injury claims. We are committed to advocating for our clients’ best interests, which means focusing on the aspects of their case that will have the most significant impact on their lives. By emphasizing human damages and quality of life, we are often able to secure larger settlements than if we had simply focused on lost wages.
In the end, our goal is to ensure that our clients receive the compensation they need to rebuild their lives and move forward after an injury. While lost wages are important, they are only one piece of the puzzle. By prioritizing the human element of each case, we can help our clients achieve a sense of justice and closure that goes beyond mere financial recovery.
Posted Under: Personal Injury