While it may seem counter-intuitive, an important component of preserving the value of your Mississippi personal injury claim is to take proper steps to reduce the severity of the damages that you suffer because of your accident.  This may seem like a foreign concept because the level of compensation one receives is directly related to the seriousness of one’s injuries and the extent of one’s financial loss.  However, an injury victim in a personal injury case in Mississippi has a duty to “mitigate” damages.  This means that an injury victim often has a legal obligation to take steps to minimize the losses suffered even if these losses are caused through no fault of the injury victim.

The duty of a plaintiff in a Mississippi personal injury lawsuit to minimize damages may take many forms ranging from seeking reasonably prompt medical care from an appropriate health care professional, completing one’s physical therapy or course of treatment, and even seeking appropriate employment retraining if one’s injuries prevent one from engaging in the same type of work after one’s injuries. When a plaintiff fails to take measures to mitigate damages, the defendant may argue that compensation be denied for injuries that resulted or were exacerbated by the failure of the plaintiff to take steps to reduce the magnitude of injury or loss.

There are several common forms of mitigation that may be relevant if you are injured and seeking damages in a personal injury case arising from a car accident, slip and fall, construction accident or any other type of accident or intentional criminal act.

Failure to Seek Prompt Medical Care: The prognosis for many injuries and medical conditions can be impacted by how soon appropriate medical treatment is obtained.  A head injury may seem minor, but a delay in treatment may result in pressure on the brain from bleeding in the space between the brain and the skull.  This can cause permanent brain damage and even fatalities.  In this type of situation, a defendant might argue that an accident victim who refused medical treatment after an accident failed to mitigate damages.

Seeking Employment Retraining: Some Mississippi personal injury victims are not able to continue in the same occupation after suffering serious injuries in an accident.  However, a person may still have an obligation to seek other work for which one has skills or to seek retraining.  While you may be entitled to compensation for any reduced earning capacity, you are not necessarily excused from seeking employment or training for employment that you are physically or mentally competent to engage in.

Failure to Complete Treatment: If your doctor prescribes an ongoing course of treatment or physical therapy, it is important that you follow through on all treatment modalities recommended by your medical provider.  The failure to complete treatment may be considered a failure to mitigate damages.

Although these are not the only form of mitigation of damages that may be required in a Mississippi personal injury case, the bottom line is that the obligation to mitigate damages should be complied with to avoid compromising the value of your personal injury claim.  If you or someone you love is injured or a family member dies because of the negligent or intentional misconduct of another, you may be able to seek damages for your injuries and loss.  At the Barrett Law Offices PLLC, our experienced Mississippi personal injury lawyers represent injury victims throughout Mississippi.  Our law firm has roots that reach back 75 years so contact us today for your free initial consultation at (662) 834-2376 to see how we can help.