General damages are monetary awards designed to compensate an injured person for their what?

• A. Pain and suffering, which cannot be measured in dollars and cents
• B. Medical bills and lost wages
• C. Punitive fines
• D. Attorney fees

Answer: (A)

General damages cover the portion of a claim that compensates for non-economic harms—the things that come from an injury but aren’t easily measured in money. The classic example is pain and suffering, including emotional distress and loss of enjoyment of life. These are subjective experiences that don’t have a precise dollar value on their own, unlike economic damages which are tied to actual expenses or lost income. Medical bills and lost wages are economic (special) damages with clear dollar amounts, whereas punitive fines are meant to punish and deter wrongdoing, not to compensate for the injury. Attorney fees are the costs of pursuing the claim, not the injury itself, though they can be recoverable in some situations. So, general damages are designed to compensate for the pain and suffering a person endures.