Finishing Personal Injury

1
Finishing Personal Injury

• And Wrongful Death

2
DEC Wilburn (536)

• What was injury? Job before/after?
• What was evidence of DEC?
• What did jury award?
• To establish injury caused DEC, plaintiff must
  produce evidence __________ that his ______ have
  __________________________________________
• Was that met here?
• Amount must be ___________________________
• Whats the BoP and who bears it?
• Isnt this all just a jury WAG?
• Look at Athridge on 541 and tell me thats not a
  WAG.

3
DEC

• If plaintiff gets his old job back, does that
  mean no DEC was caused?
• If jury finds plaintiff will be out of work for
  six months after trial, is that lost future
  income or DEC?
• Plaintiff has no job when injured. No DEC?
• What do we do about saved expenses?
• Does that square with the rule that if a
  defendants breach of contract saves a plaintiff
  money, plaintiffs reliance damages are reduced
  by that amount?

4
Reasonable Medical Expenses

• Past
• Usually a matter of math How much were the
  bills?

• Future
• Usually expert testimony
• Whats cost of future medical care?
• Whats inflation?
• How long will treatment be needed?
• How long will plaintiff live?

5
Medicals Related Healy (544)

• The bar exam questions often force you to figure
  out which plaintiff could sue to recover what
• A digression on essay structure.
• Facts?
• What did Brian seek? Dad?
• Why is dad suing for those monies, and not Brian?
• What did jury award each?
• Was dads award proper? Why not?

6
Medicals and Realities of Life (548)

• What if experts agreed that only 10 of people
  with Brians injury had epilepsy past 16, but it
  turns out that Brian is one of them? Or, what if
  the testimony is 55, but at 12 hes cured.
• Should we re-open the judgments?
• A word about the impact of the single action
  rule
• Limitations v. causation of unmanifested injury

7
Pain Suffering

• Past
• Whats the jury instruction say about how
  calculate?

• Future
• How calculate?

8
Loss of Consortium White v. DuPont (557)

• Facts? Was H physically touched by D? W?
• How much did H get? W?
• To establish loss of consortium a plaintiff must
  prove
• (1)
• (2)
• And if proven, what damages does plaintiff get?
• Tangible
• Intangible
• When will a court overturn a LoC award?
• What result here and why?

9
Filial and Parental Consortium

• Child compensated for loss of parent?
• Step child?
• What if the child is an adult?

• Parent compensated for loss of child?
• Grandparents?
• Cousins?
• Good friends?

10
Wrongful Death

• History
• Today
• Statutory
• Who can sue over whos death?
• Who cant

• Damages PJI 66.304
• Economic
• What is it
• How calculate?
• Reduce to PV?
• Intangibles
• What is it
• How calculate?
• Reduced to PV?

11
Brock (Handout)

• Facts?
• Whose point of view are intangible damages
  measured from?
• Why?
• Issue?

• What is result of case?
• Re life expectancy what foundation was missing
  for the doctors testimony?

12
Miller (Handout)

• Facts
• What was jury award for loss of life? For
  decedents pain suffering before death?

• What is measure of damages of PS for jury?
• What is SOR on review?
• Result here?