The term “benefit” has a specific meaning in law, which is broader than its common usage in relation to job perks. In the legal context, benefit refers to any advantageous result from an agreement, action, or property. In contract law, the term is employed to ensure that the agreement covers all profitable outcomes, not only monetary ones.
The term “benefit” may also come up in cases of theft. For instance, if something of high value is stolen and kept for a long time, the original owner may have the right to not only the cash value of the stolen item, but also the “benefit” it produced during the time it was missing (since the rightful owner would have gained that benefit themselves had they not been a victim of a crime).
Some examples of benefits that may be recovered in such cases include the increased value of a building following improvements, a litter of new puppies born to a purebred dog, or the profits generated by a business.
Benefit in Personal Injury:
In the context of a workers compensation claim, the term “benefits” is used in a different sense. It typically refers to the monetary compensation provided by the insurance policy to the family or dependents of an employee in the event of a fatal workplace accident. In other personal injury cases, “benefit” typically refers to specific types of productivity that you may have lost as a result of your injury. For instance, if you were unable to work due to your injury, you may have the right to seek compensation for lost wages, which represent a type of benefit you would have received had you been able to continue working.
Personal injury cases typically concentrate on damages or losses that the injured person has suffered, rather than potential gains or benefits that they could have earned. However, if the injury resulted in a missed opportunity for a gain or benefit, the injured person may have the right to include it in their damages.
