Jurisdiction Intelligence Report

Personal Injury Case Values in Indiana (2026)

Data-driven verdict and settlement analysis for Personal Injury cases in Indiana. Median outcome: $21.3M across 4 tracked cases.

Verdicts Tracked

Median Outcome

$21.3M

Mean Outcome

$50.4M

Range

$25K–$159.0M

Verdict Distribution

Range	Cases	Percent
$0–$50K	2	50%
$5M+	2	50%

Key Valuation Factors

Severity and permanency of plaintiff's injuriesIndiana's $500K non-economic damages cap applicabilityPlaintiff's comparative fault percentage under 51% bar ruleDefendant identity and liability profile (e.g., corporate or autonomous vehicle)Venue and county-level jury demographics (e.g., Lake County tendencies)

Key Trends & Insights

Indiana Personal Injury verdicts show extreme polarization, with a median of $21.3M and a mean of $50.4M driven heavily by two landmark 2024 verdicts — Schnee v. Early at $159M and Dugan v. Kaszuba/Tesla at $42.5M — suggesting that high-profile cases involving severe injuries or novel defendants like Tesla can break through Indiana's traditionally defense-favorable environment. In stark contrast, the 2023 cases settled for $25K–$33K, reflecting the suppressive effect of Indiana's modified comparative fault (51% bar) rule and the $500,000 non-economic damages cap on more routine injury claims. Practitioners should note that outlier verdicts are shaping an otherwise modest landscape, and case valuation variance is exceptionally wide, making predictive modeling particularly challenging in this jurisdiction.

Notable Cases

Schnee v. Early $159.0M

2024 · TopVerdict.com

A head-on / impaired-driving collision case listed by TopVerdict among the top U.S. personal injury verdicts of 2024, with catastrophic paralysis injuries reflected in the tags. The TopVerdict listing omits the trial court.

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Dugan v. Kaszuba/Tesla (Motorcycle Left-Turn Collision) $42.5M

2024 · Courtroom View Network

A Tesla employee made a left turn across double yellow lines to circumvent traffic, striking a 37-year-old motorcyclist. Victim sustained brain injuries reducing his mental capacity to that of a 10-year-old and partial foot amputation. Jury awarded $60.7 million, reduced to $42.5 million after findi

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Munster Medical Research Foundation, Inc. v. Patricia Hintz $33K

2023 · FindLaw

Hintz was injured at Community Hospital in Munster. The jury found she incurred $50,000 in damages but was 35% at fault while MMRF was 65% at fault, resulting in a $32,500 verdict in favor of Hintz. The case was reversed and remanded for a new trial due to jury instruction errors.

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Plaintiff v. Defendant (Red Light Rear-End Lake County) $25K

2023 · Lawsuit Information Center

Plaintiff suffered a herniation at C6-C7, acute cervical strain, and low back pain radiating into hips when rear-ended while stopped at a red light. Defense contested causation and severity. Lake County jury awarded $25,000.

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