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JFINAWRD FINAL AWARD FROM JURY AFTER CONT. NEG. 174 182 F9 -9 DON'T KNOW -8 NOT APPLICABLE JPUNDAM PUNITIVE DAMAGES AWARDED 166 173 F8 -9 DON'T KNOW -8 NOT APPLICABLE 1. General /compensatory damages: these are the damages awarded for actual financial losses (medical costs, lost wages, lost future earnings, property damages). 2. Pain and Suffering: this type of award is usually listed separately in the verdict; it includes any award for physical or emotional pain or disfigurement. 3. Punitive Damages: in a small percentage of cases, the jury will award punitive damages against defendants who acted maliciously or recklessly; the punitive damages are a punishment for the outrageous behavior. 4. Other Costs or Fees: The jury (or court) might add on other litigation costs (filing fees; jury trial fees) to the award; separate these from the other award types if possible. In some courts, the judgment will itemize what proportion of the award is owed to the plaintiff's attorney, the hospital, or other creditors. DO NOT SUBTRACT THESE TYPES OF COSTS FROM THE AWARD. [Includes attorney fees.] 5. Total Award: This should be the sum of the subcategories of the award (1-4). Again, do not subtract any amounts owed by the plaintiff to his or her attorney or other creditors. NOTE: If you are unable to separate one or more of the various categories of awards, but you know there was a subcategory in the total award, please note this situation on the back of the coding form. For example, you might know that there was an award of punitive damages (or pain and suffering), but the verdict only shows the total award. Write the award amount next to "Total Award," then write "Yes" next to the subcategory and write in the margin that you were "unable to itemize damages." NOTE: If interest is awarded on some part of the award, just write in the amount of the basic award and write "plus X% interest for X years" in the margin next to the award amount. 6. Final Award: In states that have adopted a comparative negligence policy, the amount of total award may reduced by an amount equal to the proportion of the blame for the injuries that the jury placed on the plaintiff for those injuries. For example, if the plaintiff was found to be 25 percent responsible for her injuries in the car accident, the total award of $100,000 would be reduced by 25 percent, so the final award would be $75,000. You should enter both the total award and the final award in the spaces provided. If the total award and the final award are the same, you may write in "same" next to final award. [Similar treatment of reduction for settlement with one or more of the defendants before trial or verdict.] NOTE: The final award (for our purposes) is not the amount that appears in the final judgment (which might be the amount that the plaintiff settled for, which might be less than the amount awarded by the jury). We are not asking you to obtain the amount in the final judgment filed; we want to know what the jury awarded.Identified Problem
Punitive damage information is incomplete for four counties: Palm Beach County, FL Wayne County, MI Allegheny County, PA Philadelphia County, PA Data on reduced final awards were unavailable for three counties: Alameda County, CA Marion County IN Fairfax County, VA