This volume serves to provide an international overview of personal injury compensation in different geographical areas (15 countries already included), with a special focus on the methods used to ascertain the injury and the related damages. It also goes on to clarify the logical and methodological steps required for a sequential, in-depth ascertainment of any traumatic event and the related personal damage, both pecuniary and non-pecuniary. Personal injury is a legal term for an injury to the
body, mind or emotions suffered by the plaintiff under tort and/or civil law
regulations. Damages related to the injury can be pecuniary or non-pecuniary in
nature. Although several comparative studies and research projects on tort and
civil law and personal injury claims aimed at developing new tools for
promoting harmonization of private law have been performed at an international
level, heterogeneity and divergences still exist in the definition and
compensation of personal injury and damage across different national legislative
systems. The starting point for any awarding procedure should be a medical, or rather a
medico-legal, assessment to gain evidence on the trauma or event causing the
injury, the mechanism of injury, the pre-existing health status of the injured
party, and the health consequences of the injury (temporary and permanent
impairment, work incapacity, etc.). In order to pursue the ultimate goal of an
international harmonization of personal injury compensation, it is of upmost
importance to define the quality requirements for the medico-legal
ascertainment methodology, which are essential for guaranteeing the
objectivity, rigor, and reproducibility of the data and the evidence collection
procedure. Currently, there are no supra-national medico-legal guidelines dealing
with the ascertainment methodology of personal injury and damage under tort and
civil law.