What Are Damages?
Damages are compensation, usually in monetary form, awarded in a civil court case for an injury or loss caused by another person’s negligence.
What Are Damages?
According to the American Bar Association (ABA), damages are tangible and non-tangible losses that can be quantified and documented, providing direct financial assistance to an injured party. Examples of damages can include medical bills, lost wages, pain and suffering, and property damage.
Damages are important in restoring the injured party to the position they would have been in had the wrongdoing not occurred. This concept is fundamental in both tort and contract law, where it addresses breaches of duty or contract, provides a financial measure of reparation, and is even more important in personal injury cases where the injured party receives compensatory damages for medical bills and pain and suffering.
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NJ Man Awarded $4 Million in Overdose of Drug at Party
A New Jersey man has been awarded more than $4 million after he suffered permanent nerve damage when he took the drug Xanax that was obtained illegally from a Ridgewood, NJ pharmacy. The drug was given to him at a 2007 party by a former employee of the pharmacy.
According to NJ.com, the lawsuit was filed against the pharmacy, several guests of the party where the then 17-year-old was given the drug, the party’s host, and the host’s mother. The drug was stolen from the pharmacy.
After the man took the drug he fell into a coma. However, the guests did not call 911 and waited a while before finally driving him to the hospital. The man’s nerve damage has impaired his ability to walk and talk, and he is now homebound trying to recuperate. According to his lawyer, he has been declared incompetent. […]
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Four Men Die in Christmas Day Car Crash
Police suspect speeding during suboptimal conditions to be the cause of crash
Deadly Maine Accident Leaves Four Dead
A tragic Christmas Day car crash in Palermo, Maine, left four men dead – two brothers in one vehicle, and a man and his father-in-law in another. The Bangor Daily News reports the two brothers were traveling on Route 3 in an SUV that apparently lost control and skidded sideways into the path of the other car, which struck the SUV broadside. All four men died at the scene. Police are continuing to investigate, but believe the SUV was traveling too fast for conditions after a light snow dusted the roadway. The brothers were aged 18 and 21-years-old. The two men were 64 and 83-years-old.
Two Teens Die in Florida Accident
Two teenagers, both 18-years-old, died in a Sunday evening car crash in Bradenton, […]
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Segway to Pay $10 Million to Connecticut Man
A Connecticut man was awarded $10 million in a lawsuit against Segway Inc. after the man fell from a Segway he was riding in Sept. 2009 and suffered a traumatic brain injury. Lawyers for the man claimed Segway staff should have supplied the man with a helmet.
The then 23-year-old man was riding in “the Segway Challenge” during a fundraising event at Southern Connecticut State University for the Special Olympics. The man rode the obstacle course, that was set up by Segway employees, with a blindfold on. He fell backwards off the Segway, hitting his head on the floor.
Segway employees are asked to wear helmets, however, the employees did not have any helmets available for those participating in the event. The man’s lawyer claimed that as a result of his brain injury, the accident victim had to drop out of college and has not been able to pursue his dream of becoming a police officer. […]
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Lawsuits Filed in the Indiana State Fair Stage Collapse
According to CBS News, lawsuits in the Indiana State Fair stage collapse on August 13, 2011, are now moving forward. In addition to Sugarland, the band that was to perform that evening, producers, stage riggers and others were named in the suits. Wind gusts over 60 mph caused the stage to collapse prior to Sugarland taking the stage killing seven people and injuring over 40 others.
As bad weather approached the area, fairgoers remained in their seats anticipating Sugarland’s performance. No word was given as to whether the show would go on. CBS News reports Sugarland’s contract specified the act had the final say on whether to cancel the concert due to weather.
One joint lawsuit seeks unspecified damages for 44 survivors and family members of four people who died. Nearly 20 law firms across Indiana, Ohio and Kentucky are representing the interests of the plaintiffs. […]
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Car Accident Round-Up – PA Woman Dies in Crash
Woman was ejected from the car in the single-car accident
Florida Woman Rescued When Car Plunges into Canal
A Palm Beach County deputy saved a woman from drowning after she crashed her car into a 20-foot-deep canal. The woman was driving home after working the night shift at Target on Black Friday. The 36-year-old woman who apparently fell asleep at the wheel near Muck City Road and Conners Highway in Pahokee, FL awoke in the canal and called 911. She is not able to swim and the deputy arrived in time to pull her to safety. She was treated at a local hospital and released.
Fatal NC Accident
An SUV traveling westbound on N.C. 211 unexpectedly slowed and attempted to make a U-turn when it was struck by a tractor-trailer Monday morning. The driver of the tractor-trailer, traveling behind the SUV, swerved to miss the vehicle but ended up striking the driver’s door sending the vehicle up a 20-foot embankment. […]
