States With Caps on Pain & Suffering Damages

By the FigureMyTax Editorial Team · How we calculate

Michigan caps noneconomic damages for two kinds of defendants and leaves everyone else uncapped.

Malpractice and products

The caps come from MCL 600.1483 and 600.2946a. They began at $280,000, with $500,000 for the most severe cases, and the State Treasurer adjusts them every year for inflation. The January 30, 2026 notice sets them at $596,400 and $1,065,000.

What triggers the higher cap

In malpractice, the higher limit applies if the plaintiff is hemiplegic, paraplegic or quadriplegic from a brain or spinal cord injury; has permanently impaired cognitive capacity that leaves them unable to make independent life decisions or perform daily living activities; or has permanent loss of or damage to a reproductive organ causing the inability to procreate. In a product case, it applies when the defect caused death or permanent loss of a vital bodily function.

One limit for everyone in the case

The malpractice cap covers the total noneconomic loss recoverable by all plaintiffs from the negligence of all defendants. A spouse and children share the same ceiling as the patient would have had alone.

Everything else is uncapped

A slip and fall, a dog attack or a premises claim has no statutory ceiling on pain and suffering. The practical limits are the fault rule — over 50% fault bars noneconomic damages under MCL 600.2959 — and, for car accidents, the no-fault threshold.

This is general information, not legal advice, and the state comparisons above are illustrative, not an exhaustive survey. Confirm the current rule in any state with a licensed attorney there.