Spinal Cord Injury Economic Damages Expert in Missouri

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

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

A spinal cord injury economic claim brings together lost earnings and benefits, the household work the person can no longer do, and the present value of a lifetime care plan dominated by attendant care and equipment replacement cycles. Read the full spinal cord injury analysis guide.

Missouri courts and expert standards

Missouri courts screen expert testimony for reliability: the judge asks whether the economist is qualified, whether the opinion rests on sufficient facts and reliable principles and methods, and whether those methods were reliably applied to the case. A damages report meets that inquiry by stating its assumptions and naming the source of every rate and table.

Where these cases are heard

Highest court: Missouri Supreme Court. Federal venues: E.D. Mo., W.D. Mo. Court system: courts.mo.gov.

Outside the civil courts, wage-loss disputes in workers' compensation matters proceed before the Missouri Division of Workers' Compensation.

Damages framework

Missouri pairs a wrongful death action for the survivors' pecuniary losses, services, companionship, and the decedent's pre-death suffering with a survival action where death resulted from another cause, and the value of medical treatment is proved by the amounts actually paid or still owed rather than the amounts billed. Pure comparative fault reduces the award in proportion, the common-law collateral source rule otherwise applies, and prejudgment interest in tort turns on a written settlement offer that the judgment then exceeds.

How the analysis is built

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

  1. Establish the but-for earnings path from the person's history and occupational data, and project it over a worklife expectancy with stated wage growth.
  2. Compare that path with the post-injury path the work-capacity opinions support, whether no earnings, reduced earnings, or earnings after retraining.
  3. Value fringe benefits and household services, and price the care plan item by item with the cost growth rate and replacement interval appropriate to each category.
  4. Discount every future stream to present value at a stated rate and present home-based and facility-based care scenarios when the plan offers both.

Attorney guides for spinal cord injury cases

Other case types in Missouri

Frequently asked: spinal cord injury cases in Missouri

Which Missouri courts hear spinal cord injury cases?

Spinal Cord Injury cases venued in Missouri are heard in the Circuit Court (General jurisdiction; 46 judicial circuits; all civil, criminal, domestic, and probate matters). Final appeals run to the Missouri Supreme Court. Matters within federal jurisdiction proceed in the United States District Courts for the Eastern District of Missouri and Western District of Missouri.

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

Missouri pairs a wrongful death action for the survivors' pecuniary losses, services, companionship, and the decedent's pre-death suffering with a survival action where death resulted from another cause, and the value of medical treatment is proved by the amounts actually paid or still owed rather than the amounts billed. Pure comparative fault reduces the award in proportion, the common-law collateral source rule otherwise applies, and prejudgment interest in tort turns on a written settlement offer that the judgment then exceeds. Missouri courts screen expert testimony for reliability: the judge asks whether the economist is qualified, whether the opinion rests on sufficient facts and reliable principles and methods, and whether those methods were reliably applied to the case. A damages report meets that inquiry by stating its assumptions and naming the source of every rate and table.

More questions about spinal cord injury analysis

References

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