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of wage is a significant component of any claim for economic
damages and will ultimately require the engagement of a vocational
expert to substantiate or refute. Such an engagement needs to
be made cautiously:
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cases
that involve serious functional loss may not necessarily
involve significant wage impact; and cases in which the
diagnoses seem less serious may, in fact, have serious implications
for the individual’s future capacity to produce income.
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there
are wide disparities in the training and methodologies of
vocational experts and the bases of their opinions may or
may not be sound.
MDEX
Online has developed a wage impact estimate program to give
attorneys reliable and cost-effective input on which to make
a decision to proceed or not to proceed with the retention of
a vocational expert. While it is not meant to supplant the need
for a vocational expert or to be used as evidence in court,
it is a credible tool for making decisions about the management
of the wage impact aspect of the case.
The wage impact estimate program is administered by Cynthia
Grimley. Ms. Grimley is a seasoned testifying vocational
expert who has appeared on behalf of both plaintiff and defense
attorneys involving workers’ compensation, matrimonial
law, personal injury and labor and employment. The methodology
on which she relies has been demonstrated to be both reliable
and valid.
Here’s how the wage impact estimate program works:
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