Joe from Hazelton asks, “Can a lawyer suggest a dollar amount to a jury for a personal injury action?” Hi, I’m Park Powell, a Scranton attorney – Legally Speaking. While some states allow attorneys to ask or suggest a dollar amount, Pennsylvania limits an attorney’s ability to ask for a dollar amount in pain and suffering damages. Rather, it’s up to the jury’s collective knowledge and experience, based upon hearing all the evidence, to render a verdict. A judge will instruct a jury on what the law is, but no one can instruct the jury on what to award. Lawyers may suggest economic losses, or the wage, or medical bills incurred, but that’s usually only a small percentage of what someone has experienced and does not take into account the pain and suffering that someone experiences as a result of an injury. Despite the difficult task, jurors do render fair and just verdicts in cases.
