Work Loss Must Be Reconstructed From the Job's Actual Pay System
Lost income may be recoverable in a Columbus injury matter when the evidence links the absence or reduced work to the injury and proves the amount under the governing claim. Past missed earnings, used leave, lost incentives, reduced hours, diminished future capacity, and business interruption are distinct questions requiring different records.
Rebuild the Baseline Before Measuring the Change
For an employee, collect schedules, pay statements, tax records, attendance, overtime history, commissions, bonuses, benefits, leave usage, and employer confirmation. Mark ordinary variation so the pre-injury baseline is not selected from an unusually high or low period. An attorney for injury claim evaluation should document the calculation window and every assumption.
For variable, gig, seasonal, tipped, or self-employed work, add invoices, deposits, contracts, job calendars, mileage, platform statements, canceled work, business expenses, and capacity constraints. Gross receipts are not automatically personal earnings. Separate revenue, avoided expense, replacement labor, and net income.
Tie Each Missed Period to Medical and Workplace Proof
Create a dated row for restriction, provider, scheduled work, actual work, employer response, accommodation, leave code, payment, and unresolved gap. Record return attempts and changed duties. A medical restriction without a scheduled work loss may not establish the amount, while an absence without medical support may leave causation disputed.
If the employer offered modified duty, preserve the written terms, hours, location, physical demands, pay, start date, and response. Do not characterize an accommodation as suitable or unsuitable without comparing it to the qualified restriction and actual job requirements.
Keep Past Earnings and Future Capacity in Separate Models
Past loss uses an incurred period and historical proof. Future earning capacity may require medical prognosis, vocational information, education, skills, labor data, work-life assumptions, mitigation analysis, and qualified economic methodology. Retain ranges and identify the source of every input.
For an accident lawsuit, update the model after a return to work, promotion, termination, new restriction, retraining, or business change. The final worksheet should show baseline, missed period, offsets, benefits, causal issue, supporting record, reviewer, and next verification date. Keep the underlying payroll or business files with the exact calculation version. That audit trail allows a later reviewer to reproduce the number instead of trusting a summary. No page can promise that every claimed dollar will be accepted. At S&S Law, we help Columbus clients with lost income documentation.