Personal Injury Terms and Definitions

General damages Better known as "pain and suffering" damages, which include the emotional trauma from physical injuries, pain, humiliation, etc. Punitive damages Also called exemplary damages, which are designed to punish a defendant whose behavior in causing the plaintiff's injuries was especially egregious. Managed care Any system that manages healthcare delivery with the aim of controlling costs. Managed care systems typically rely on a primary care physician who acts as a gatekeeper through whom the patient has to go to obtain other health services such as specialty medical care, surgery, or physical therapy. Quadriplegia Complete paralysis of the body from the neck down, usually caused by damage to the spinal cord. Liable Legally responsible. For example, a person may be liable for a debt, liable for an accident due to careless behavior, liable for failing do something required by a contract or liable for the commission of a crime. Occupational Disease An illness resulting from long-term employment in a particular type of work, such as mesothelioma (a type of cancer) from workers exposed to asbestos. Alternative Dispute Resolution An arbitration is a legal hearing, less formal than a trial, in which each side in a lawsuit or dispute offers evidence and testimony to a neutral hearing officer (the arbitrator). The arbitrator is typically an experienced attorney or a retired judge. Soft Tissue Injury Injury to the ligaments, tendons and fibers of the body that connect the skeletal bones. Asbestos Lawsuit Asbestos has been shown to cause a form of cancer called mesothelioma and this has produced many lawsuits agains manufacturers and users of asbestos. Burden of proof A party's job of convincing the decisionmaker in a trial that the party's version of the facts is true. In a civil trial, it means that the plaintiff must convince the judge or jury "by a preponderance of the evidence" that the plaintiff's version is true -- that is, over 50% of the believable evidence is in the plaintiff's favor.

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	Did You Know?
	Every 15 seconds someone suffers a brain injury Brain injury patients that have experienced permanent brain injury symptoms can sometimes learn to compensate for the lost functioning with the proper brain injury treatment. This brain injury treatment can be costly and emotionally upsetting, in addition the brain injury may have limited the brain injury victim's previous work and social activities.