Common Mistakes Defendants Make Regarding Damages in Personal Injury Cases: Deposing Key Witnesses and Lack of a Damages Expert

Dr. Patrick Gaughan,  a forensic economist with Economatrix, reveals  ten common mistakes  that the defense may make during the damages portion of a personal injury case. This week, we examine two of these ten mistakes each day in a series of five blogs.

Mistake #3: “Deposing Key Witnesses on Liability Only.”  Defense attorneys may depose plaintiffs in regard to the liability portion of a claim but may fail to bring up a plaintiff’s employment and compensation history, including any periods of unemployment. The plaintiff’s side should have full knowledge of all this information, even if the defense does not bring it up in court.

Mistake #4: “Not Getting a Damages Expert On Board Early Enough.”  Insurance companies demand that defense attorneys save money wherever they can. As a result, defense lawyers may not call in a damages expert in the hopes that the case will settle. But if the case does not settle and goes to trial, the defense may call a damages expert too late to allow time for a full discovery.

No matter what the defense side may do, the plaintiff’s attorneys in a  personal injury case  should always be properly prepared. A vocational expert can be an important part of a plaintiff’s or defendant’s case. Vocational experts can testify to matters such as how a plaintiff can expect to be able to perform at work after an injury,  what type of work the plaintiff can perform,  how the injuries impact the injured persons’ vocational capacity and work-life expectancy.

Information from a vocational expert can help the court make more informed choices about the number of damages to award to a plaintiff in a personal injury case.

Occupational Assessment Services, Inc. (OAS) is one of the top companies providing vocational expert and  life care planning services  in the United States for plaintiff and defendant attorneys. We have extensive experience documenting the case damages in Personal Injury cases.   Contact  OAS at  800-292-1919  to discuss how we can help with your case.