How do they calculate pain and suffering?
There is no calculation. Non-economic damages — pain, suffering, inconvenience, loss of enjoyment of life — are assigned by a jury based on the evidence, with no statutory formula and no arithmetic.
What actually influences the figure. The severity and permanence of the injury. How much treatment was required, and whether surgery was involved. How the injury affects daily life in concrete terms. The claimant's credibility. The venue. And how well the effect on the person's life was documented and presented.
That last item is doing more work than people realize. "My back hurts" is worth less than testimony from a spouse about what the person can no longer do, a coach describing a season missed, or a supervisor describing changed work capacity.
What insurers use. Software and internal valuation models keyed to diagnosis codes, treatment duration, and prior claims history. Those produce a range that becomes the negotiating position, not a legal ceiling.
Document what you can't do anymore, specifically. That's what this turns on. ---
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