Individual circumstances drive the analysis
An injury-related economic loss assessment begins with the individual’s work history, education, compensation, and circumstances. Envision Economics evaluates the financial consequences identified in the assignment and distinguishes documented losses from projections that depend on assumptions about the future.
Lost earnings and earning capacity
Past earnings losses can be evaluated using employment and compensation records and other relevant evidence. Future earning capacity requires a supported assessment of the person’s likely earnings absent the injury and the earnings capacity described by the evidence after it. Economic analysis uses relevant medical and vocational inputs rather than substituting an economist’s opinion for those disciplines.
Benefits, growth rates, and present value
Employment benefits can form a material part of compensation. Future loss calculations also depend on assumptions about earnings growth, the duration of losses, and discounting. Those assumptions should be explicit and internally consistent so that counsel and the factfinder can understand what drives the estimate.
Examining an opposing damages analysis
Review may focus on the earnings baseline, projected work history, benefits assumptions, growth and discount rates, and possible duplication among claimed losses. A useful critique identifies the effect of a disputed assumption and the evidence needed to resolve it.
Expert reports and testimony
Dr. Chapman has provided expert reports concerning personal injury damages and expert testimony at depositions and in federal court. His experience includes injury damages arising from alleged medical malpractice in federal matters in Alaska and Guam. His litigation CV identifies the assignments and the role performed in each.
Questions about personal injury damages
Does an economist determine a person’s medical limitations?
The economic assessment relies on relevant medical and vocational evidence concerning limitations and capacity. The economist evaluates the financial consequences using those inputs and identifies any assumptions needed for the calculation.
What records are useful for an initial assessment?
Employment and earnings records, tax returns, benefits information, and relevant medical or vocational assessments can help frame the analysis. Counsel should first provide party names for a conflicts check before sending confidential case materials.