Spotlight on Personal Injury

For how many future years can a claim be made for lost pension benefits?

Case: At the time she stopped working, Ms. Doe was 80% vested in her pension. Dr. Tinari was asked to calculate her pension income losses but for the injury and job loss. It was stated that plaintiff enjoyed her work and it was her intention to continue her employment there. Calculations were provided to the jury in 5-year increments through retirement 25 years in the future, showing the present value of her future pension payments less the present value of already accrued benefits, for each incremental period of assumed employment.

At trial, the opposing attorney rightly pointed out that there were market forces, company specific factors, and employee-factors that could cause the plaintiff not to be employed by that firm in years to come. This line of questioning was intended to raise doubts that the plaintiff would still be employed by the firm many years into the future. When it came time for jury questions, Dr. Tinari was asked to calculate plaintiff’s projected pension loss in one-year increments up to the fifth year. This was a clear indication that at least one juror was unwilling to give credit to the plaintiff for even five years of future employment at the same firm.

Outcome: The economic issues were never resolved because the jury returned a no-cause verdict. Nevertheless, it is prudent for the damages expert to account for all factors that could impact future pension benefits.

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