Special damages

What it is

Specials are the damages with a number already attached: past and future medical expenses, lost wages and earning capacity, out-of-pocket costs, household help and property loss. They sit beside general damages, which cover pain and suffering.

The California rule

Civil Code 1431.2 defines economic damages as objectively verifiable monetary losses, including medical expenses, loss of earnings, burial costs, loss of use of property, repair or replacement costs, substitute domestic services, and loss of employment or business opportunities. For past medical expenses, Howell v. Hamilton Meats (2011) limits recovery to the amount actually paid or still owed, not the full billed charge, when a provider accepted less under a prior agreement with the plaintiff's health plan. Plaintiffs who treat on a lien or without insurance are measured differently (see Howell damages). Future medical costs are proved by expert testimony, often through a life care plan in larger cases.

Why it matters to a plaintiff firm

Specials anchor the claim's value. Carriers and their evaluation software start from the medical specials, and an incomplete total undervalues the case. Firms total specials from the bills, not the client's memory, separate billed from paid amounts, and document wage loss with employer letters and pay records. Every missing bill is money left out of the demand.