Economic damages: the documented, countable losses
Economic damages are the straightforward, receipt-backed part of a claim. In a Florida personal injury case, this generally includes medical expenses already incurred, lost wages from time away from work, property damage, and reasonably anticipated future medical care or lost earning capacity tied directly to the injury.
Non-economic damages: the subjective losses
Non-economic damages cover the losses that don't come with a receipt: pain and suffering, mental anguish, inconvenience, and loss of capacity for enjoyment of life. These are inherently harder to quantify, which is exactly why the multiplier method exists — to translate a documented economic figure into a reasoned estimate of the non-economic side.
Why the distinction mattered so much, and still matters practically
This split used to carry enormous financial stakes in Florida: the state's non-economic damages caps, before they were struck down, applied specifically to this category. Today, with those caps gone after Estate of McCall (2014) and North Broward Hospital District v. Kalitan (2017), the categories carry equal weight — but the distinction still matters practically, since the multiplier method is applied to your economic damages total specifically. An incomplete economic tally still understates the entire claim, not just that one category.
Fault treats both categories the same way
Florida's 2023 fault-bar law doesn't distinguish between economic and non-economic damages. If your fault bars the claim under the 51% rule, it bars recovery of both categories together — there's no partial exception letting one category through while the other is barred.
Future costs count too
Anticipated future medical treatment tied to the injury — a planned surgery, ongoing physical therapy, or expected lost earning capacity — is generally treated as an economic damage alongside expenses already paid, provided it's reasonably supported by medical documentation.