Damages for lost time were awarded as a part of future medical expenses. Lost earning capacity and willingness to work . Lack of demonstrated willingness to work was a reason for reducing damages for lost earning capacity. Treatment of income taxes on personal injury awards and of household services provided gratis continues to vary. Expert testimony on hedonic damages has been generally disallowed since Daubert, and the meager economic underpinnings have been further eroded.
Courts continue to penalize plaintiffs who fail to do their homework and prove the amount of loss.
Worklife expectancy Available data for estimating worklife expectancy are improving. As the data became increasingly out of date many economists, including yours truly, became concerned about its relevance. Fortunately, the U.S. Bureau of Census has been making available detailed population survey figures from the early 1990's. Worklife expectancy estimates can now either be calculated directly from the 1990's Census figures or obtained from studies in the professional literature based upon the data. Breakdowns are available by age, education, sex, race, whether an individual is disabled or not, and whether he or she is currently active in the labor force.