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    Personal injury lawsuits may include a wide range of economic and non-economic damages. Depending on your situation and the nature of your case, some of your damages might be subject to statutory caps. Even so, our legal team will help you recover the maximum amount of compensation possible under the circumstances.

    Generally, economic damages are not subject to statutory caps or limitations. Non-economic damages, such as pain and suffering, are also not capped. However, if you file a medical malpractice case or sue a governmental entity, these damages may be limited. Similarly, punitive damages may be available, but only up to statutory maximums. Even if you believe your damages are worth more, they will be limited by these caps.

    Ask our Miami, FL personal injury attorneys for a free, private legal review by calling the Graves Injury Law Firm at (305) 614-2767.

    Are Economic Damages Capped in Florida?

    Economic damages are not capped in Florida personal injury cases. Your claims for economic damages may be as high as necessary. While there are no caps, you may not claim more damages than you actually incurred. If you were injured in an accident and lost a total of $25,000, you may not claim economic damages beyond $25,000.

    Are Non-Economic Damages Limited or Capped?

    General non-economic damages that include, but are not limited to, pain, suffering, humiliation, and emotional distress are not capped. Calculating these damages is often more challenging, as they are usually not connected to a fixed price or value. However, this does not mean plaintiffs may claim extremely high damages. Whatever your non-economic damages are, their value should be based on the magnitude of your injuries and the facts of the case.

    How Statutory Caps Apply to Medical Malpractice Damages

    If your personal injuries are the result of medical negligence by a doctor, your damages may be capped. Exactly how these caps apply depends on who you are suing and the nature of your injuries.

    Standard Caps

    If you sue a practitioner (e.g., a doctor) for medical malpractice, your non-economic damages are capped at $500,000, and no practitioner may be liable for more. If you also sue a non-practitioner (e.g., the hospital), non-economic damages are capped at $750,000.

    Caps for Injuries Resulting in a Vegetative State or Death

    If injuries resulting from medical negligence cause the victim to enter a vegetative state, the statutory caps are somewhat higher. In such cases, total non-economic damages may not exceed $1 million against defendants who are practitioners. If you sue non-practitioner defendants, non-economic damages are capped at $1.5 million.

    Are Personal Injury Damages Capped if You Sue the Government in Florida?

    It may be possible to sue governmental entities for personal injuries under Florida’s Tort Claims Act. The Act explains how governmental defendants may be held liable and when sovereign immunity is waived. It also explains that damages claimed against governmental defendants are strictly capped.

    Governmental entities may not be liable for more than $200,000 in damages per individual plaintiff nor more than $300,000 in damages for a single incident. Additionally, plaintiffs cannot claim punitive damages against governmental entities in personal injury lawsuits.

    Are Punitive Damages in Florida Personal Injury Cases Capped?

    Punitive damages may be awarded in addition to compensatory damages (i.e., economic and non-economic damages) under certain circumstances. These damages are usually awarded to deter especially bad behavior and punish defendants if their actions constitute intentional misconduct or gross negligence. Under Florida law, punitive damages may not exceed three times the value of total compensatory damages or $500,000, whichever is greater.

    What if Awarded Damages Exceed Statutory Caps?

    Generally, jurors are not informed of statutory caps on damages before entering deliberations. Courts do not want limits on damages to affect how jurors decide the final damages award. As a result, jurors sometimes return with an award of damages that exceeds statutory caps. In that case, the court may reduce the damages to the maximum allowable by law.

    Can You Get Around Damage Caps in Florida Personal Injury Cases?

    Statutory caps on damages are hard laws that plaintiffs usually cannot get around even if they firmly believe their damages exceed the caps. However, a plaintiff may get around statutory caps if a specific legal exception applies.

    For example, when suing for medical malpractice, our Coral Gables, FL personal injury attorneys may be able to obtain non-economic damages in excess of the statutory caps if the court determines that failing to award greater damages would be a “manifest injustice.”

    Do Statutory Caps on Damages Ever Change?

    Many caps or statutory limitations on damages awards are updated to keep up with economic factors like inflation and the cost of living. This may be an important factor in your case if relevant statutory caps were recently changed. Usually, if your claims arise before the statutory caps are increased, your claim may have to abide by the previous, lower caps.

    How High Can Damages Be if There Are No Statutory Caps?

    When there are no caps or hard limits on damages, they can be as high as necessary. However, that does not mean that plaintiffs can claim absurdly high damages in a personal injury lawsuit. Damages must always be proportional to the injuries, facts, and evidence surrounding the case. They must also be proven to be awarded. You might claim $10 million in damages, but if you do not have the evidence to back up these claims, you will not be awarded that much compensation.

    How to Determine the Value of Your Economic Damages

    Before we figure out how statutory caps may affect your damages, we need to understand what your damages are actually worth.

    Hospital Bills

    First, we should collect all your hospital bills related to your injuries. In cases of severe or catastrophic injuries, you may have many hospital bills to review, and you may still be incurring new bills.

    Salary and Employment Information

    Many injury cases involve damages for lost income. When injuries prevent you from working, you may lose valuable income at a time you need it the most. Employment records, pay stubs, W-2 forms, and other information about your income can help us establish these damages.

    Credit Card and Bank Statements

    You might incur various costs because of your injuries. Paying for gas to go to the hospital every day, flights to see specialists in other hospitals, the cost of lodging when you travel for treatment, and other costs should be accounted for. We can review credit card and bank statements to assess these costs.

    How to Evaluate Non-Economic Damages

    Non-economic damages may be capped in specific cases, such as medical malpractice cases. These damages are highly subjective and are unique to each plaintiff. To assess the value of these claims, we should consider how your injuries affect your daily life, ability to complete ordinary chores, and your overall quality of life.

    Speak to Our Florida Personal Injury Attorneys About Your Claims

    Ask our Hollywood, FL personal injury attorneys for a free, private legal review by calling the Graves Injury Law Firm at (305) 614-2767.