Section 21 Aggravation of a Preexisting Injury

• Library: Damages 2012

Pain and disability acquired in one accident can be aggravated by subsequent occurrences. Counsel must determine whether this aggravation is a proper element of damages in the claims arising out of the first accident. The rule in Missouri is that a person who has been injured because of the negligence of another is entitled to recover all damages proximately traceable to the initial negligent act, including any subsequent aggravation of the injury that follows as the natural consequence of the original harm. Thus, in Ponciroli v. Wyrick, 573 S.W.2d 731, 733–35 (Mo. App. E.D. 1978), an injured motorist was allowed to recover for the pain and suffering from two broken wrists, the first broken in the collision upon which he was suing and the second broken when...