Posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is a recognized medical condition. Hence, there are times when the victim of an accident seeks compensation for PTSD damages.

Steps to be taken by someone that hopes to get compensated for PTSD damages

Have the condition diagnosed by a medical expert. Speak with the same expert, regarding the need for an expert’s testimony, if the case were to proceed to the trial stage. Make clear the sort of information that a testifying expert would need to share with the judge and jury. The expert’s testimony ought to substantiate the claim that was made by the person that has claimed to suffer PTSD’s symptoms.

Still, substantiating statements made by someone with expertise in a particular area might not be fully understood by the jurors. For that reason, the same statements need to get presented in association with details, regarding the nature of PTSD’s symptoms.

Fact witnesses help to supplement the materials that the plaintiff’s lawyer gave to the defendant’s attorney.

The testimony from a fact witness gets used to confirm the claim that was made by the plaintiff, in other words, the fact that he or she was a victim of PTSD. That confirmation could be obtained from accounts about the plaintiff’s symptoms as per Personal Injury Lawyer in St John’s.

Who could serve as a fact witness? It should be someone that has noted the changes in the plaintiff’s behavior, after he or she has become involved in a serious accident. It could be a therapist.

Facts that plaintiffs’ lawyers need to introduce, in order to convince the judge and jury of the veracity of claims, those that concerned their clients’ alleged PTSD symptoms.

• The fact that the plaintiff has experienced a stressful event
• Facts that substantiate the plaintiff’s claims, claims about having bad dreams and flashbacks
• The fact that the plaintiff has demonstrated the tendency to avoid those situations that might trigger a recollection of the stressing event, which took place earlier
• Evidence that the client/plaintiff has struggled with the emergence of specific emotional issues, such as anxiety, insomnia, or an exaggerated response to any startling move.
• Evidence that the stress-induced symptoms have managed to disrupt certain aspects of the plaintiff’s daily life.

The challenge facing plaintiffs’ lawyers

Members of the jury have a minimal understanding of posttraumatic stress disorder. For that reason, any expert needs to present an easy-to-understand explanation. Of course, the attorney for the opposing party could seek to convince members of the jury that another expert’s view of the disorder’s symptoms is the right one. Juries might hear 2 different interpretations of the nature and extent of the disorder’s symptoms. Each of the 12 members must decide in his or her own mind which interpretation is correct.