What types of damages can I claim in a personal injury case?

Personal injury damages fall into two broad categories. Economic damages are objectively calculable losses: past and future medical expenses, lost wages and lost earning capacity, property damage, rehabilitation costs, home modification expenses, and other out-of-pocket costs directly resulting from your injury. Non-economic damages compensate for subjective, hard-to-quantify losses: physical pain and suffering, emotional distress, mental anguish, loss of enjoyment of life, loss of consortium (impact on spousal relationship), and disfigurement or permanent disability. In cases involving egregious conduct — such as drunk driving, deliberate harm, or a company knowingly selling a dangerous product — punitive damages may also be available to punish the wrongdoer. Most states impose caps on certain non-economic or punitive damages, but many high-value cases involve substantial awards in all three categories when supported by strong evidence.