Glossary · Damages
Noneconomic Damages
Compensation awarded for non-monetary harm such as pain and suffering, loss of consortium, emotional distress, and diminished enjoyment of life, distinct from economic damages like medical bills and lost wages.
Also known as: non-economic damages, general damages, intangible damages
What it is
Noneconomic damages compensate a plaintiff for harms that have no objective market price: physical pain, mental anguish, loss of consortium, loss of enjoyment of life, disfigurement, and emotional distress. They are awarded by the jury (or negotiated in settlement) based on the severity, duration, and visibility of the harm rather than receipts and pay stubs.
Why it matters
In medical malpractice, the noneconomic component often dwarfs the economic component, particularly in cases involving permanent disability, disfigurement, or harm to children and retirees who have limited future earning capacity to anchor an economic claim. Noneconomic damages are also the category most heavily targeted by tort-reform statutes; almost every malpractice damages cap in the United States applies specifically to this category rather than to total damages.
How juries evaluate them
There is no formula. Juries weigh factors like the intensity and chronicity of pain, the visibility of the disability, the impact on family relationships, and the plaintiff's pre-injury quality of life. Skilled plaintiff attorneys present "day-in-the-life" evidence to make these factors concrete; defense counsel argues for proportionality and challenges credibility.
In settlement strategy
Noneconomic damages are where the spread between a well-presented case and a poorly-presented case is widest. They are also where the applicable damages cap (if any) bites first. Modeling the noneconomic component requires both an honest read of jury appeal and a precise read of the cap regime in the venue.
See Also
- Damages Cap — A statutory ceiling on the amount a plaintiff can recover for certain categories of damages, most commonly noneconomic damages, in medical malpractice cases.
- Pain and Suffering — The category of noneconomic damages compensating a plaintiff for physical pain, mental anguish, and diminished quality of life caused by negligent care.
- Loss of Consortium — A noneconomic damages claim brought by a spouse (and in some states a child or parent) for the loss of the injured plaintiff's companionship, affection, services, and intimacy.
- MICRA — California's Medical Injury Compensation Reform Act of 1975, the country's most influential statute capping noneconomic damages in medical malpractice cases.