Glossary
Damages
Money awarded by a court to a plaintiff who's been wronged. The amount is supposed to compensate for the harm: though some kinds of damages are meant to punish the defendant or send a message.
Damages are how civil cases usually translate harm into a dollar amount. The basic categories:
- Compensatory damages make the plaintiff whole for actual losses: medical bills, lost wages, property damage, sometimes pain and suffering.
- Punitive damages punish the defendant for egregious conduct and deter others. Awarded only in narrow circumstances.
- Nominal damages are tiny symbolic awards (like $1) when the plaintiff proved a violation but no real harm.
Calculating damages can be its own complicated phase of a case, often requiring expert testimony from economists, doctors, or accountants.