Obviously, due to the extremely varied nature of personal injury cases, the average personal injury claim and the attendant personal injury award or settlement depends greatly on the circumstances surrounding the specific personal injury.  Determining factors for personal injury claims include the extent and severity of the personal injury; required initial and ongoing personal injury treatment; any permanent or long-lasting disabilities relating to the personal injury; lost wages and amount of time off work required for rehabilitation and recovery following the personal injury accident; whether a full recovery is possible, allowing the person to resume prior work duties or whether a work reassignment necessitates retraining and redeployment.

Personal injury awards can take two forms: awards for actual damages and awards for punitive damages.  Actual damages from a personal injury accident are usually the easiest to substantiate, although not all personal injury losses are easy to quantify.  A good personal injury attorney can prove invaluable in helping assign value to specific losses associated with the personal injury.  Punitive damages relating to personal injury lawsuits are more difficult to attain and are much less likely to be awarded, unless the severity of the personal injury and the circumstances surrounding the personal injury warrant an award of this type. For example, if negligence on the part of an employer or other party can be proven, this may result in a high personal injury award with a punitive damage component.

Many personal injury cases are settled out of court for a monetary amount that is agreed to by both parties.  Extensive legal action relating to the personal injury case, including things like personal injury attorney fees and court costs relating to the personal injury lawsuit make personal injury lawsuits extremely expensive and burdensome.  Average out of court personal injury settlements range from less than $1,000 to several hundred thousand dollars – and in some extreme cases, much more.

Obviously, the intent of the personal injury claim should be to make the injured party whole.  This is not always possible, and it is certainly not always possible quickly.  In the case of an uncooperative or combative employer the odds of escalating the personal injury case to a legal forum, including a personal injury lawsuit increase dramatically.  Most employers realize that personal injury jury awards typically are larger, on average than settlement amounts.  The incentive is for the employer to settle the personal injury case out of court.  As a general rule, no one wins when the personal injury case goes to court.  A good personal injury attorney should be able to assist in a reasonable out of court settlement that can be agreed to by both parties.

Many personal injury attorneys will work on a strictly contingent basis. That is, they get paid only if and when a personal injury settlement is reached and paid, or when a personal injury award is made and paid.  However, it should be noted that the fees are typically a percentage of the total personal injury award or settlement, and these fees can be quite high. Plan on at least 30% to 50% of the total award amount.  This can be very onerous. It pays to shop around in evaluating possible personal injury attorneys to represent a personal injury case.  In many, if not most cases, an insurance company adjustor will be involved in any personal injury settlement and award discussions.  It is often best to allow the personal injury attorney to work directly with the personal injury insurance adjustor.