Personal Injury Economic Damages Expert in Oklahoma

By Christopher Skerritt, M.Ed., MBA, Chief of Economic Services · Published · Reviewed

KW Economics prepares economic damages analyses for personal injury cases venued in Oklahoma: the components the loss claim consists of, the records that drive them, and a present value built to Oklahoma's damages rules and venues. Plaintiff and defense.

A personal injury economic claim consists of the earnings and fringe benefits the injury has taken away, the household work the person can no longer do, and the present value of the future care the record supports, each tied to the person's own records. Read the full personal injury analysis guide.

Oklahoma courts and expert standards

Oklahoma trial judges act as gatekeepers for expert testimony and ask whether the economist is qualified, whether the method is reliable and accepted in the profession, and whether it was applied reliably to the facts of the case. An economic damages report answers that inquiry by stating its assumptions and citing the data behind each one.

Where these cases are heard

Highest court: Oklahoma Supreme Court. Federal venues: N.D. Okla., E.D. Okla., W.D. Okla. Court system: oscn.net.

Outside the civil courts, wage-loss disputes in workers' compensation matters proceed before the Oklahoma Workers' Compensation Commission.

Damages framework

Oklahoma's wrongful death action gathers the survivors' loss of support and companionship, grief, the decedent's pain and suffering, and medical and funeral expenses into a single recovery, and the courts have struck down a general legislative limit on noneconomic damages. Recovery is barred once the plaintiff's fault exceeds the combined fault of the defendants, evidence of medical expenses is limited to the amounts actually paid or owed, and prejudgment interest on a personal injury award begins to run only after a defined period following the filing of the suit.

How the analysis is built

The same four steps apply to a personal injury case venued in Oklahoma; the damages framework above decides which components enter the total.

  1. Establish the but-for earnings and fringe benefit base from the tax, wage, benefit, and personnel records, or from occupational data for a career still in training.
  2. Project the base over a statistically expected worklife with a stated wage growth rate and compare it with the post-injury path the record supports.
  3. Value household services from time-use data and local replacement rates, and price the future care in the life care plan item by item with medical cost growth.
  4. Discount every future stream to present value at a stated rate and show the sensitivity of the total to the contested assumptions.

Attorney guides for personal injury cases

Other case types in Oklahoma

Frequently asked: personal injury cases in Oklahoma

Which Oklahoma courts hear personal injury cases?

Personal Injury cases venued in Oklahoma are heard in the District Court (General jurisdiction; 26 judicial districts; all civil and criminal matters). Final appeals run to the Oklahoma Supreme Court. Matters within federal jurisdiction proceed in the United States District Courts for the Northern District of Oklahoma, Eastern District of Oklahoma, and Western District of Oklahoma.

How does Oklahoma's damages framework shape the economic analysis?

Oklahoma's wrongful death action gathers the survivors' loss of support and companionship, grief, the decedent's pain and suffering, and medical and funeral expenses into a single recovery, and the courts have struck down a general legislative limit on noneconomic damages. Recovery is barred once the plaintiff's fault exceeds the combined fault of the defendants, evidence of medical expenses is limited to the amounts actually paid or owed, and prejudgment interest on a personal injury award begins to run only after a defined period following the filing of the suit. Oklahoma trial judges act as gatekeepers for expert testimony and ask whether the economist is qualified, whether the method is reliable and accepted in the profession, and whether it was applied reliably to the facts of the case. An economic damages report answers that inquiry by stating its assumptions and citing the data behind each one.

More questions about personal injury analysis

References

Request a consultation on personal injury cases in Oklahoma or call (201) 343-0700. Plaintiff and defense counsel.