I was suprised at how low these are
I was part of a mock jury where one person died in an accident, the jury only awarded less than $1 million for the death
i guess i has somehting to do with it being a person instead of corporation being sued but still was low

what would i get if i were to slip and fall in a walmart
or get hit by a company vehicle and break a leg

7/1/2008 12:32:44 AM

ooop,. please move to the lounge

7/1/2008 12:39:27 AM

damnit, omar badu moved it to chit chat
whats wrong with that fool

7/1/2008 12:39:54 AM

this was moved from the lounge...

did you know that you can edit posts within 30 minutes of posting them instead of repeatedly posting

[insert the more you know picture]

wild and crazy speculation on what someone might receive from randomly selected jurors is hardly anything worth a shit

for your first question i'll go $65,000.01 and for the second let's say $85.912.29

7/1/2008 12:39:54 AM

why

7/1/2008 12:40:35 AM

you should only get medical bills paid for and compensated for whatever time you're out of work in my opinion.

7/1/2008 12:52:13 AM

this thread is a D-

7/1/2008 2:27:46 AM

definition of success

7/1/2008 9:36:11 AM

whats wrong with yall, this is a great thread, it just needs intelligent people to post in it

7/1/2008 10:19:46 AM

They needed John Edwards as their lawyer.

7/1/2008 10:20:38 AM

you should only get medical bills paid for and compensated for whatever time you're out of work in my opinion

7/1/2008 10:22:57 AM

^you're crazy, some asshole runs a stop light, crashes into you breaking your leg, and all you want is your medical bills and your lost week paycheck from mcdonalds?

ridiculous

7/1/2008 10:24:42 AM

and again, i dont know why this was moved to chit chat
there are clearly no intelligent people here

7/1/2008 10:25:13 AM

^^ Think of it this way. Say you own a business and it's raining outside. Let's also say that the front entrance to your store is slick because a few people just came inside from the wet outside. Now let's say that someone comes in, slips on the slick floor, and breaks their leg. Should they be able to sue you for 6-7 figures? If so, why?

7/1/2008 10:39:26 AM

no thats totally different, thats an accident that could've been cause by anything
im talking about someone being negligent, like in a car accident, or a company buidling something that falls down on top of you
if its clearly their fault then they should pay for your medical, work, plus pain and suffering

7/1/2008 10:47:52 AM

What about the cost of legal fees? That would eat away any reparations in your scenario, darkone

7/1/2008 10:53:26 AM

^ You file for such things under a separate set of motions and proceedings in the US civil justice system. Thus, I don't consider when talking about damages. That's for the lawyers to squabble about amongst themselves.

^^ Do you differentiate between simple negligence and willfully or malicious negligence?

[Edited on July 1, 2008 at 10:56 AM. Reason : more info]

7/1/2008 10:55:28 AM

Quote :

"you should only get medical bills paid for and compensated for whatever time you're out of work in my opinion."

yep, only in america is there an attitude that you should be rewarded or given another lifestyle because you were involved in an accident.

7/1/2008 10:56:21 AM

^^i think unless someone put oil on the floor then people should be responsible in most cases for walking and not falling
but some things are obviously the fault of someone else, perhaps that should be decided by a jury

7/1/2008 11:02:19 AM

you should be compensated for more than your immediate medical bills

a truly crippling injury damages your future quality of life

7/1/2008 11:06:03 AM

^ And thus you can factor in the impact on earning potential. Sadly we live in a world where people want to sue for getting their feelings hurt.

7/1/2008 11:08:04 AM

i hate stupid lawsuits also, but i wonder what its like in other countries
if people get away with BS like here

7/1/2008 11:16:52 AM

Quote :

""you should only get medical bills paid for and compensated for whatever time you're out of work in my opinion.""

This is pretty much right. You can't sue for punitive damages in NC. So that means none of this pain and suffering crap. However, if you were to lose a limb, or a finger, or your hearing or something of that nature, there is a set "value" associated to that. So, typically you'll get medical expenses and compensation for work missed, and then awarded a sum based on any permanent damages. If it's not permanent, you don't get it. Lawyers take their fee out of the last portion.

7/1/2008 11:22:44 AM

^like i told you i was part of a mock jury that awarded a girl hundreds of thousands for death
so obviously you're wrong

7/1/2008 11:23:46 AM

No, I'm not wrong. Death is on that list of things that are permanent. Therefore, it's got a value associated to it. You can't sue for punitive damages in the state of North Carolina.

7/1/2008 11:25:00 AM

^ Explain this mock jury thing.

7/1/2008 11:25:13 AM

Quote :

"No, I'm not wrong. Death is on that list of things that are permanent."

made me laugh.

7/1/2008 11:26:40 AM

Typically, attorneys will stage a mock jury before going to trial to see how much average people would award their case. It helps them to know what they can expect to get, and if they should settle before trial. It's not official by any means.

7/1/2008 11:26:50 AM

yes but if there is a set price why were we debating on how much to award, they said it was up to the jury to award the money, so obviously there is no set price

7/1/2008 11:30:50 AM

so you think that the rules of the mock jury match 100% to the rules in court?

7/1/2008 11:32:03 AM

^yeah, thats the point of having one, they follow all the rules of the court to get the idea of a real jury

7/1/2008 11:32:42 AM

There is a maximum amount you can award. Like I said, there's a range of values attributed to a permanent injury. Then at that point, if you choose not to settle before a case, you leave it up to the jury. In NC it's capped at three times the value previously alluded to, or $250,000... whichever is higher. This is above and beyond economic expenses, that is for permanent damages.

To answer your previous questions: Slip and falls do not award high values, because they're difficult to prove. You have to prove negligence, that the company or person responsible knew about the problem, and that it was not fixed. If there was a sign up saying it was wet, or if the people didn't know they had a spill, then you wont win that kind of case.

If you were hit by a company vehicle (I'm assuming the one you're working for) then it's typically easier to prove. Depending on the sequence of when you visited the doctor, how long you were out of work, and how permanent the injuries were, you can win a case like that. Those typically never go to court and the insurance agency settle with your attorneys pretty soon.

[Edited on July 1, 2008 at 11:39 AM. Reason : ]

7/1/2008 11:35:07 AM

Quote :

"Death is on that list of things that are permanent."

hahahaha

7/1/2008 11:45:37 AM

here's the NC statute on punitive damages with the definition of that and compensatory damages (general damages..."pain and suffering" is usually included--you can't state you are trying to claim P&A, but you are usually awarded more than your medical bills and lost wages which compensates for that P&A)

http://www.ncga.state.nc.us/gascripts/Statutes/StatutesTOC.pl?Chapter=0001D

here's an article on the cap in NC

http://www.insurancejournal.com/magazines/southeast/2004/05/03/features/42275.htm


the point of a mock jury isn't just to see how your trial may fair in court, but also to see how your witnesses do when you're questioning them on the stand. you also ask your mock jury (well in what i've seen) questions about what they felt about your witness or client. for example, in a mock jury i participated in we had a mock juror notice the client (who was suffering from post traumatic stress) who "was so upset she couldn't leave the home" had a manicure. simple observation, but that one thing made our mock juror not believe the client was "suffering."

[Edited on July 1, 2008 at 12:04 PM. Reason : ]

[Edited on July 1, 2008 at 12:06 PM. Reason : and]

7/1/2008 12:00:47 PM