How to get paid for lost work in a Personal Injury Case
This is the final post describing the details of the three types of Special Damages you can recover: Property Damage, Medical Damages and Loss of Earnings Damages.
Today, I elaborate on LOSS OF EARNINGS DAMAGES. Loss of Earnings Damages include the amount of money you lost from missing work directly due to your injuries.
To prove this element of Special Damages, you need:
- Medical documentation authorizing time off from work: You are only entitled to compensation for time missed from work due to an personal injury traffic accident if that time was authorized by a medical professional. Note that there is typically a “reasonable amount of time off” one can be expected to take after an accident, but medical documentation is the best support to ensure you are compensated for the lost earnings.
- Financial documentation showing a pattern of earnings: There needs to be documentary proof of your earnings before the accident which shows your rate of pay and your typical work schedule, so that you can be compensated. This is easiest to prove if you receive a regular paycheck, but self-employed individuals can recover these damages as well. They just need to make sure to provide documentation of a pattern of earnings before the accident. Typically a tax return from the year before the accident will do the trick. Note that even if you receive sick leave pay from your employer, you are entitled to compensation for time missed from work due to the accident.
If you have any questions about a particular personal injury case, please submit your case for review by the experienced personal injury team at Sally Morin Personal Injury Lawyers. We are top-ranked personal injury attorneys with offices in San Francisco, Los Angeles, Oakland, and San Jose.
This video and accompanying text is not intended to be a source of legal advice for any purpose. Prior results do not guarantee a similar outcome. The information in this video and text does not constitute a guarantee, warranty or prediction regarding the outcome of your case.
