PJC Malpractice 2024

PJC 80.3

P ERSONAL I NJURY D AMAGES

fees ) raised by the evidence. In an appropriate case, the phrase health care expenses may replace medical care expenses . Periodic payments for future damages. When a plaintiff in a health care liabil ity claim is awarded damages in the jury verdict for future medical care, health care, or custodial services, on request of a defendant, the trial court must order that those dam ages be paid, in whole or in part, in future periodic payments. With regard to damages other than medical, health care, or custodial services that may be awarded by the jury, the trial court may require those payments be made in whole or in part in periodic pay ments. Tex. Civ. Prac. & Rem. Code § 74.503. There are two conditions for the appli cation of this statute. The defendant must (1)request the periodic payment statute be applied; and (2)if not covered by adequate insurance, provide evidence of financial responsibility or security in an amount adequate to assure full payment of damages awarded by the judgment. Tex. Civ. Prac. & Rem. Code §§ 74.503(a), 74.505(a), (b). If these conditions are met and the jury has awarded future damages covered by the statute for medical, health care, or custodial services, it is incumbent on the trial court to make a determination as to (1)the total amount of the judgment if no future pay ments were awarded; and (2)the amounts required by the claimant immediately in a lump sum payment to pay for items such as past damages awarded by the jury; future damages for elements other than medical, health care, or custodial services that the court has determined should not be paid in periodic payments; attorneys’ fees due under the agreement between the claimant and their attorney; reimbursement of case expenses; lien satisfaction; and amounts needed immediately for medical, health care, and custodial services from the date of judgment until the date the first periodic pay ment is to be made. The remaining amount of the judgment is to be allocated by the trial court to be paid in periodic payments over a period of time not to exceed the pro jected life expectancy of the person for whom the damages were awarded, and with consideration to the cost of the care reasonably expected to be required to treat the claimant going forward. Columbia Valley Healthcare System, L.P. v. A.M.A , 654 S.W.3d 135, 142–43 (Tex. 2022), reh’g denied (Nov. 18, 2022); Regent Care of San Antonio, LP v. Detrick , 610 S.W.3d 830, 836–37 (Tex. 2020). The periodic payment portion of the judgment must identify specifically (1)the recipient of the payments; (2)the dollar amount of the payments; (3)the interval between the payments; and (4)the number of payments or the period of time over which payments must be made. Tex. Civ. Prac. & Rem. Code §74.503(d); Columbia Valley , 654 S.W.3d at 143; Regent Care , 610 S.W.3d at 836–37. In addition, the judg ment must provide that, if the claimant should expire before all scheduled future pay ments have been made, the responsibility for payment from the date of death forward shall terminate, and any security provided by the defendant for those payments shall be released to the defendant. Tex. Civ. Prac. & Rem. Code §74.505(c). (However, with respect to any future payments awarded by the court for lost earnings only, on death of the claimant the court “may modify the judgment to award and apportion the

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