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One might think. But like buying life insurance, not everyone is "worth" a whole heck of a lot in dollars and cents that others depend on. Settlements usually involve several components, including lost wages and punitive damages that can't really be equalized across the board.
plenty of times in the press, one can see stories about compensation.
Perhaps a legal secretary gets hit by a bus and injured, then gets awarded a massive payout from the bus company to cover her 'lost earnings'.
but if a MacD's worker befalls the same inconvenience then they'll be lucky to even get a voucher for a discounted happy meal.
isn't there some kind of double standard here, I mean compensation is compensation right, and should be for the same amount to everyone?
No.
A person's current financial status in the US is always temporary, we do not have a class system. You cannot measure a person's worth with a snapshot in time.
Besides these compensation awards are a punishment for the guilty party, not a reward for the victim.
Not in full. Someone earning more has lost more in the way of earnings forgone. Our purpose should have a punitive element as well as an earnings recovery element. The latter would vary depending on what one earned, the former would not.
but, someone who must forgo his earnings has not actually earned them yet.
In this case , there should be a flat rate of compensation, say around $10/hr lost, as this is considered to be the 'value' of the lowest person on the food chain.
and what makes the 'value' of a higher earner to be greater anyway - is their DNA any better?
I think not.
so we get a flat rate, plus $1000 inconvenience fee (maximum) plus medical bills.
Yes financial compensation levels should be related to income, because ideally the goal of torts is to put you in, as close as possible, the position you were in prior to the tort ****ing you up, and using money to do so. McDonalds workers and say doctors were in very different positions prior to the tort messing with them and in order to put them back in the same position they were in prior to the tort happening they should get different awards.
Last edited by Randomstudent; 01-21-2013 at 11:32 PM..
but, someone who must forgo his earnings has not actually earned them yet.
In this case , there should be a flat rate of compensation, say around $10/hr lost, as this is considered to be the 'value' of the lowest person on the food chain.
What makes the 'value' of a higher earner to be greater - is their DNA any better?
so we get a flat rate, plus $1000 inconvenience fee (maximum) plus medical bills.
this seems about right
how about it?
No. each has positioned his lifestyle dependent on a level of future earnings, and quite frankly, not compensating for that would also mean the higher wage earner cuts expenditures which mean lower wage jobs are cut.
Example: And I abhor the reckless nature of Wall St. But I must admit, studies have shown when their bonuses drop in lean years, tens of thousands of other jobs are eliminated. From luxury car dealers and the car detailers who make 5 figures, to the 5 star hotel bellhop, to the valets, to the ushers at the opera. All suffer proportinately as the amount of discretionary income drops.
Besides these compensation awards are a punishment for the guilty party, not a reward for the victim.
Not necessarily. First off there is no reward for getting yourself maimed in some way, or at least there shouldn't be. Secondly, there is a difference between compensatory damages and punitive damages, with the latter being only for rather extreme cases.
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