When medical device companies produce defective products, a lawsuit can be a path toward holding those companies accountable and helping improve the quality of medical care for all.
For the individuals who suffer the day-in and day-out consequences of those mistakes, the goal of a lawsuit is more immediate and personal: to recover financial compensation to help pay for medical expenses and other costs associated with the medical error.
Damages add up
One of the major parts of any damages calculation in defective medical device litigation is accounting for compensatory damages. These damages are sought to cover the plaintiff’s direct and indirect costs caused by the defendant’s negligence.
As mentioned above, medical expenses typically make up a huge part of the total amount of damages, but there are other costs that add up as well. These can include lost wages. If you must miss time at work due to the effects of a defective medical device, then you will be missing out on earned income. Such deficiencies can be part of the total damages calculation.
Besides the medical costs that you have already incurred, what about your potential future medical costs in the months and years to come? Just because a lawsuit is successful doesn’t mean that your medical needs have ended. Calculating potential future medical costs is also a crucial part of putting together the entire picture of the plaintiff’s damages in a defective medical device case.
Just like all other parts of the case, damages must be proven by the plaintiff as a key element of the litigation. If you believe you have a defective medical device claim, be sure to get the right information in order to correctly calculate the full amount of your potential damages.
