Denver Pedestrian Accident Damages
Denver pedestrian accident damages are no different than in any other personal injury accident, whether it is caused by a motor vehicle or something else. Damages are those losses that can be proven that the victim or the plaintiff incurred. It is usually split up between economic and non-economic damages, so the medical bills, the pain and suffering, wage loss, out-of-pocket expenses, anything like that. For more information on the type of compensation you could possibly recover, speak with an established pedestrian accident lawyer.
Defining Contributory Negligence
Denver pedestrian accident damages could be reduced by the percentage of fault if the pedestrian is considered to be contributorily negligent. This means, if someone is found to be 30 percent contributorily negligent, they are only going to receive 70 percent of their damages.
Types of Damages to Seek Following a Pedestrian Accident
A person can seek economic Denver pedestrian accident damages which include medical bills, past and future, out-of-pocket expenses, wage loss and anything else that would pertain to that specific case. There are the non-economic damages which includes pain and suffering, emotional distress, inconvenience, loss of enjoyment of life, things like that, permanent impairment. Then there are punitive damages that can be requested or awarded in certain cases as well.
Possibility of Having a Cap on RecoverableDamages
The general cap for non-economic damages in Colorado is $468,010. This cap can be increased up to $936,030 by the court if the court is convinced of the merit of such an increase by clear and convincing evidence. A way to sidestep the cap on these non-economic damages is to persuade a jury to place damages in a separate category under permanent physical impairment.
In most cases, there is no cap on Denver pedestrian accident damages for permanent impairment in Colorado so that would allow an attorney to give the attorney room to argue for the award of permanent impairment damages that would be in addition to the non-economic damages.
If the pedestrian accident results in death and a family member brings a wrongful death claim, the cap on non-economic damages associated with grief, solace and loss of a loved one is different. That cap is $436,070.
Difference From a Wrongful Death Case
The cap on non-economic Denver pedestrian accident damages does not apply in a wrongful death case if the court finds that the circumstances of the death constituted a felonious killing. Felonious killing in these circumstances in a civil case does not require the defendant to actually be charged with a felony or have a criminal conviction; they have to prove by a preponderance of the evidence that the defendant killed the victim under circumstances that amounted to felonious conduct. Usually, if someone is charged with reckless driving or drunk driving, they could face charges for something related to felonious killing, without a cap for damages.
