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Mississippi Personal Injury And Workers’ Compensation Overview

Answers to two key questions should determine the outcome of your car accident or other personal injury case:

  • Were you injured through someone else’s negligence?
  • How serious were your injuries and related losses?

When Haug, Farrar & Franco, PLLC, represents you after a serious accident, we will leave no stone unturned in documenting your case fully. Contact us today at (228) 872-8752.

We will look carefully at what happened, what caused the crash, explosion or animal attack. We will carefully investigate and document what you need to recover as well as you can after an accident such as a/n:

We can also represent you after you have experienced financial or reputation losses through libel or slander.

Types of Available Damages in a Mississippi Personal Injury Case

In personal injury claims, there are three main types of compensation you might be entitled to:

Economic Damages

Economic damages include quantifiable damages based on your actual losses as a result of the injury, which can include the following:

  • Medical expenses: The cost of all the medical treatments related to the injury, such as doctor’s appointments, medication, physical therapy, and even ongoing or future treatments.
  • Lost wages: If you miss work due to your injury, you may be reimbursed for the wages you would have earned during that time. This may also cover future lost earnings if you can’t perform your job effectively anymore.
  • Property damage: If the injury resulted in damage to your belongings, you could be reimbursed for the repairs or the replacement costs.

Economic damages are usually simple to calculate as they consist of clear financial losses, and the court seeks to make you “whole” again by reimbursing these costs.

Non-Economic Damages

Non-economic damages, on the other hand, are intangible losses that are harder to quantify. They include:

  • Pain and suffering: This is monetary compensation for the physical distress you’ve experienced due to the injury. The court will consider factors such as the severity of your injury, your age, and how the injury has affected your daily life.
  • Loss of consortium: In cases where the injury impacts the relationship between spouses, compensation can be awarded to cover the loss of companionship, love, and sexual relations.
  • Emotional distress: This entails the mental anguish and emotional pain that someone endures as a result of the injury. In some cases, psychological trauma may result, such as post-traumatic stress disorder.

Punitive Damages

Lastly, punitive damages are meant to punish the defendant for their malicious or reckless behavior and deter them from repeating their offenses. Punitive damages are awarded when there is clear and convincing evidence that the defendant committed actual fraud, acted with actual malice or gross negligence, or showed willful, wanton, or reckless disregard for the safety of others.

While punitive damages can lead to sizable awards, they are also more challenging to prove and are not awarded in all personal injury cases.

The Statute of Limitations for Personal Injury Lawsuits

In Mississippi, the statute of limitations for personal injury claims is three years from the date of injury. This deadline applies to a wide range of claims, including car accidents, slip-and-fall incidents, medical malpractice, and product liability cases. If you fail to file a lawsuit within this time frame, you risk losing the opportunity to recover damages for your injuries.

In some cases, the statute of limitations might be extended. Mississippi law permits the statute of limitations to be extended to three years from the date when the injury was, or should have reasonably been, discovered:

“(1) All actions for which no other period of limitation is prescribed shall be commenced within three (3) years next after the cause of such action accrued, and not after. 

(2) In actions for which no other period of limitation is prescribed and which involve latent injury or disease, the cause of action does not accrue until the plaintiff has discovered, or by reasonable diligence should have discovered, the injury.”

Who Will Compensate You?

In many cases, the person who caused your injury is insured and his or her insurer will pay the damages determined through a settlement or verdict. Your own insurance or your employer’s workers’ compensation company may be responsible. After an injury on the job, your employer’s workers’ compensation coverage will apply. Regardless of the source of your compensation, the paying entity will become your legal opponent.

Our workers’ compensation and personal injury attorneys in Gulfport have ample experience overcoming obstacles and odds on behalf of our clients who face tough challenges recovering after an accidental injury such as a/n:

Whether through taking depositions or presenting arguments in settlement conferences or in court, our lawyers bring well-polished skills to the table. Fighting for timely, maximum available compensation for you is our goal.

Get the conversation started about how to pursue the best outcome attainable in your case after an injury in or around Ocean Springs, Gulfport or anywhere in Mississippi.

We Are Ready To Advocate For You; Are You Ready To Talk?

Initial consultations are free at Haug, Farrar & Franco, PLLC. Contact us to schedule a conversation with a Mississippi attorney after a personal injury or workers’ compensation injury. We are available to meet with you in our office or at your home or hospital.