KW Economics prepares household services analysis for workers' compensation cases venued in New Mexico: what the loss claim consists of, the records that drive it, and a present value built to New Mexico damages rules and venues. Plaintiff and defense.
The compensation system does not pay for lost household services, but a third-party action arising from the same work injury can reach them. The economist measures the hours of household work the injury has removed by category from the household's account and time-use data, apportions the loss using the work-capacity and medical restrictions already in the compensation record, and prices each category at the local replacement wage over the period of limitation or life expectancy. The component is presented alongside the earnings loss so the third-party claim is complete and the compensation lien and offset questions can be addressed from one set of numbers.
Replacement-cost valuation of the household production an injured or deceased person can no longer provide: meal preparation, cleaning, home and vehicle maintenance, shopping, child care, and care of other household members. The hours are drawn from national time-use data adjusted to the person's household composition and pre-injury role, and each category is priced at the local wage for the occupation that would replace it, then projected and discounted over the period of loss.
In a settlement, the present value of a long stream of indemnity payments is the central figure, and the discount rate and the claimant's life or worklife expectancy control it. In a third-party action the exposure resembles any personal injury claim, with the added task of identifying the benefits already paid so the lien and offset questions counsel raises can be answered from the same numbers. Where the benefit turns on earning capacity, the gap between pre-injury wages and what the person can now earn is the contested figure, and the post-injury wage level is the assumption that moves it.
New Mexico courts ask the trial judge to act as gatekeeper for expert testimony, examining 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. A damages report answers those questions by stating its assumptions and citing its sources.
Highest court: New Mexico Supreme Court. Court system: nmcourts.gov.
Federal venues: District of New Mexico.
Compensation forum: New Mexico Workers' Compensation Administration. Third-party actions arising from the same injury proceed in the civil courts listed above, and the report separates what the compensation system pays from what the civil claim adds.
New Mexico measures wrongful death by the worth of the decedent's life from the decedent's own standpoint, a recovery that belongs to the estate and includes lost earnings, the value of the decedent's life apart from earnings, and the decedent's own pre-death damages, with loss of consortium brought separately by close family. Pure comparative fault reduces the award in proportion, the common-law collateral source rule applies, and prejudgment interest is discretionary and weighs each party's settlement conduct.
We issue the final report and provide deposition and trial testimony and rebuttal of opposing household services opinions.
The compensation system does not pay for lost household services, but a third-party action arising from the same work injury can reach them. The economist measures the hours of household work the injury has removed by category from the household's account and time-use data, apportions the loss using the work-capacity and medical restrictions already in the compensation record, and prices each category at the local replacement wage over the period of limitation or life expectancy. The component is presented alongside the earnings loss so the third-party claim is complete and the compensation lien and offset questions can be addressed from one set of numbers.
New Mexico courts ask the trial judge to act as gatekeeper for expert testimony, examining 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. A damages report answers those questions by stating its assumptions and citing its sources. Workers' Compensation claims in New Mexico proceed before the New Mexico Workers' Compensation Administration, and third-party actions arising from the same injury are heard in the District Court (General jurisdiction; 13 judicial districts; all civil, criminal, and domestic matters) and the Bernalillo County Metropolitan Court (Largest limited jurisdiction court; covers Albuquerque), with final appeals to the New Mexico Supreme Court. Matters within federal jurisdiction proceed in the District of New Mexico.
New Mexico measures wrongful death by the worth of the decedent's life from the decedent's own standpoint, a recovery that belongs to the estate and includes lost earnings, the value of the decedent's life apart from earnings, and the decedent's own pre-death damages, with loss of consortium brought separately by close family. Pure comparative fault reduces the award in proportion, the common-law collateral source rule applies, and prejudgment interest is discretionary and weighs each party's settlement conduct. The report presents past and future amounts separately, states every rate and table with its source, and shows the result under the alternatives the other side is likely to argue, so counsel can apply the New Mexico rules to a documented figure.
Request a consultation on Household Services or call (201) 343-0700. Plaintiff and defense counsel.