My law partner Brian Russell sent me an article recently about a study finding that “participants who felt invalidated in their pain experienced greater shame, and in turn, greater symptoms of depression.”
This is of great importance for us because in all the years we’ve been exclusively handling personal injury cases, it happens in every case. No matter how great or small the injury, the attorney or insurance company for the negligent defendant will always claim that the personal injury victim is exaggerating or faking their pain.
Here are a few ways in which at-fault lawyers or insurance carriers invalidate a PI plaintiff’s pain:
Objective vs. Subjective.
Defense lawyers and insurance companies go to great lengths to establish that pain is subjective. They go to such lengths to inject doubt in the jury’s minds that the plaintiff is telling the truth about their pain. They probably won’t call the plaintiff an outright liar, but will subtly suggest that the plaintiff is manipulating their pain ratings.
We all live with pain.
Another way a defense lawyer or insurance company will try to invalidate a PI victim’s claims is by saying everyone feels pain, so yours isn’t special or deserving of recognition, and certainly no compensation.
The number of doctor’s visits.
If you have even the slightest gap in your medical treatment, no matter the reason, the defense will use that against you. They will argue that since you didn’t go to the doctor regularly or more often, then you must not be that hurt. They will use this to cast doubt on your injuries and your pain level.
These are but a few of the ways we have seen defense lawyers and insurance companies invalidate personal injury victims’ pain. Thankfully, through many years of handling such cases, and through education and focus groups, we have learned ways to combat these things. Meyerkord, Russell & Hergott brings this experience to bear in your case if you have been hurt because of someone else’s negligence. Contact our office to learn more by calling (816) 867-8611.