Personal Injury Terms and Definitions

Soft Tissue Injury Injury to the ligaments, tendons and fibers of the body that connect the skeletal bones. Trauma Any injury, whether physically or emotionally inflicted. "Trauma" has both a medical and a psychiatric definition. Medically, "trauma" refers to a serious or critical bodily injury, wound, or shock. Paraplegia Complete paralysis of the lower half of the body including both legs, usually caused by damage to the spinal cord. Joint Pain Joint pain can be caused by injury affecting any of the ligaments, bursae, or tendons surrounding the joint. Injury can also affect the ligaments, cartilage, and bones within the joint. Compensation Compensation is defined as a recompense for loss. If you suffer an injury, either physical or psychological as the result of an accident that was not your fault, then you may be able to claim a financial award to cover any loss of income, the cost of medical bills, or any other costs that you have incurred as a result of the injury or accident that you would not normally have incurred. Ambulatory Surgery Ambulatory surgery refers to previously scheduled surgical and nonsurgical procedures performed on an outpatient basis in a hospital or freestanding ambulatory surgery center's general or main operating rooms Acute condition Type of illness or injury that ordinarily lasts less than 3 months, was first noticed less than 3 months before the reference data of the interview, and was serious enough to have had an impact on behavior. Burden of proof A party's job of convincing the decisionmaker in a trial that the party's version of the facts is true. In a civil trial, it means that the plaintiff must convince the judge or jury "by a preponderance of the evidence" that the plaintiff's version is true -- that is, over 50% of the believable evidence is in the plaintiff's favor. Eggshell skull A hypothetical medical condition used to illustrate the idea that if you are at fault when you injure someone, you are responsible for all the consequences, whether you could have foreseen them or not. Liable Legally responsible. For example, a person may be liable for a debt, liable for an accident due to careless behavior, liable for failing do something required by a contract or liable for the commission of a crime.

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	Did You Know?
	The term "bodily injury claim" usually refers to a "personal injury claim". Economic damages" would include, but aren't limited to: Lost wages, Medical bills, Rental car expenses, etc. General damages include: Pain, Suffering, Humiliation, Distress. If you settle your bodily injury claim, it must include all the types of damages available to you, or you'll likely lose your right to recover for those losses.