KW Economics prepares life care plan costing for motor vehicle accident cases venued in Arizona: what the loss claim consists of, the records that drive it, and a present value built to Arizona damages rules and venues. Plaintiff and defense.
After a catastrophic crash the present value of the life care plan can exceed the earnings loss, and the attendant care, equipment, and future surgery items in the plan drive the total. The economist reduces the plan to present value with category-specific medical cost growth over the life expectancy the medical evidence supports, presents the total under alternative care scenarios where the plan offers them, and states every assumption so the valuation can be examined item by item. Because policy limits often frame the practical range, the report shows the plan's present value by category so counsel can evaluate settlement against the components that carry the most weight.
Reduction of a life care plan's line items to a single present value. The plan's items, frequencies, durations, and unit costs are carried forward with medical cost growth appropriate to each category, then discounted over the applicable life expectancy. Plan authorship stays with the life care planner; our role is the economic translation of the plan into a damages figure that reconciles with the plan and can be examined item by item.
In moderate injury the exposure is concentrated in the period out of work and any future surgery or treatment, and the numbers can usually be built directly from the records. Once an injury prevents a return to the prior occupation, the future earnings gap across the remaining worklife becomes the dominant figure, and in catastrophic injury the present value of attendant care and equipment in the life care plan can exceed the earnings loss. Policy limits often frame the practical range, so counsel commonly ask for a report that presents each component separately for settlement evaluation and for trial.
Arizona courts screen expert opinion for reliability before it reaches the jury: the judge asks whether the witness is qualified, whether the method rests on sufficient facts and reliable principles, and whether those principles were applied reliably to the case. An economic damages report is written to that inquiry, with each input tied to the record and each data series identified by source.
Highest court: Arizona Supreme Court. Court system: azcourts.gov.
Federal venues: District of Arizona.
Outside the civil courts, wage-loss disputes in workers' compensation matters proceed before the Industrial Commission of Arizona.
Arizona's wrongful death action belongs to the surviving spouse, children, parents, or estate and is measured by their own losses, while the decedent's pre-death claims survive to the estate without damages for the decedent's pain and suffering. The state constitution bars legislative limits on the amount recovered for death or injury, pure comparative fault reduces the award in proportion, evidence of collateral-source payments is admissible in medical malpractice cases but not in ordinary injury claims, and prejudgment interest is generally limited to liquidated sums.
We issue the final report and provide deposition and trial testimony, rebuttal of opposing present value opinions, and revaluation when the plan is updated.
The same four steps apply to a motor vehicle accident case venued in Arizona; the damages framework above decides which components enter the total. Document the earnings history, the date the person left work, and any return to work at full or reduced capacity. Project the but-for earnings over a worklife expectancy with a stated wage growth rate and compare it with the post-injury path. Value fringe benefits from plan documents or published employer cost data, household services from time-use data, and future care from the life care plan. Discount each stream to present value at a stated rate and present the alternative scenarios where the return-to-work date or capacity is disputed.
Arizona courts screen expert opinion for reliability before it reaches the jury: the judge asks whether the witness is qualified, whether the method rests on sufficient facts and reliable principles, and whether those principles were applied reliably to the case. An economic damages report is written to that inquiry, with each input tied to the record and each data series identified by source. Motor Vehicle Accident cases venued in Arizona are heard in the Superior Court (General jurisdiction; larger civil cases, felonies, family law, probate), with final appeals to the Arizona Supreme Court. Matters within federal jurisdiction proceed in the District of Arizona.
Arizona's wrongful death action belongs to the surviving spouse, children, parents, or estate and is measured by their own losses, while the decedent's pre-death claims survive to the estate without damages for the decedent's pain and suffering. The state constitution bars legislative limits on the amount recovered for death or injury, pure comparative fault reduces the award in proportion, evidence of collateral-source payments is admissible in medical malpractice cases but not in ordinary injury claims, and prejudgment interest is generally limited to liquidated sums. 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 Arizona rules to a documented figure.
Request a consultation on Life Care Plan Costing or call (201) 343-0700. Plaintiff and defense counsel.