Loth v. Truck-A-Way Corp.
California Court of Appeal
70 Cal. Rptr.2d 571 (1998)
Relevant factsFree
Loth (plaintiff), badly injured in a truck collision caused by Truck-A-Way (defendant), presented economist Stanley Smith's testimony assigning a $2.3 million baseline value to an average remaining lifespan, adjusted for Loth's own life expectancy, then multiplied by percentages reflecting various possible degrees of disability to calculate specific hedonic-damages figures the jury could simply select from a table; the jury awarded Loth $890,000, and Truck-A-Way appealed the admission of this formula-based testimony.
IssueFree
Whether, in California, a plaintiff may supply through expert testimony or otherwise a formula for calculating pain and suffering damages.