--- title: "Measurement of Damages: Critical to Your Case" description: Damage is a necessary element of a lawsuit. You can have a great story, great facts, and great law, but if you don't have damages you don't have a case. --- [Dan's Desk](https://www.gallatin-law.com/blog/author/dan-gallatin) - [lawyer](https://www.gallatin-law.com/blog/tag/lawyer) - [hugo](https://www.gallatin-law.com/blog/tag/hugo) - [MN](https://www.gallatin-law.com/blog/tag/mn) - [law](https://www.gallatin-law.com/blog/tag/law) - [attorney](https://www.gallatin-law.com/blog/tag/attorney) - [legal](https://www.gallatin-law.com/blog/tag/legal) [Subscribe](https://www.gallatin-law.com/blog/measurement-of-damages-critical-to-your-case#) 11/30/2017 # Measurement of Damages: Critical to Your Case - - - - - [mailto:?subject=Measurement%20of%20Damages%3A%20Critical%20to%20Your%20Case&body=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.gallatin-law.com%2Fblog%2Fmeasurement-of-damages-critical-to-your-case](mailto:?subject=Measurement%20of%20Damages%3A%20Critical%20to%20Your%20Case&body=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.gallatin-law.com%2Fblog%2Fmeasurement-of-damages-critical-to-your-case) Damage is a necessary element of a lawsuit. You can have a great story, great facts, and great law, but if you don't have damages you don't have a case. A recent Minnesota Court of Appeals opinion exemplifies that point better than any story I could tell. In a nutshell; an electrician was alleged to have negligently performed wiring work at a commercial space. The space burned to the ground. The case went all the way through trial, where Plaintiff's claim was dismissed for failure to adduce a proper measurement of damages. It is unknown if the electrician was even wrong; it didn't matter. The trial judge determined that even if electrician was negligent, Plaintiff failed to carry its burden of proving damages. In the case of real estate damage for the above type of case, the measurement of damages is the difference in the value of the property or the cost to replace the damaged property. If the Plaintiff in the case above would have had a proper measurement of damages (and a proper expert) then at least the case should get to the jury and you have a chance. Litigation is extremely difficult and perilous. I have litigated in Hennepin, Washington, Ramsey, Anoka, Chisago, Olmstead, and several other Minnesota counties. I have litigated in Federal court. I have represented parties in transactions in Hugo, Chisago City, St. Paul, Wayzata and many other municipalities. If you have legal or real estate issues, I think I can help. The material contained herein is provided for informational purposes only and is not legal advice, nor is it a substitute for obtaining legal advice from an attorney. Each situation is unique, and you should not act or rely on any information contained herein without seeking the advice of an experienced attorney. 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Born in St. Paul, Dan spent many of his formative years growing up there before moving to White Bear Lake. After graduating from White Bear Lake, Dan spent four glorious years at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, earning a degree in two majors. Dan worked as a Senior Investigator at the Minnesota Department of Commerce for several years after graduating from college. During his final years Dan attended William Mitchell College of Law while still working full-time. During this exhausting 3 ½ year period Dan honed his skills in becoming an efficient, to-the-point legal practitioner. While at Madison Dan met his wife, Tonya, and together they moved to Minnesota to plant their roots. Dan and Tonya have two amazing, unique children and reside in Hugo. ### CONNECT WITH ME - ## Related Posts [01/16/2019 Punitive Damages in Litigation Punitive damages are very powerful, but also require a very high standard of proof. You cannot plead punitive damages initially; rather, you have to… Read Post ](https://www.gallatin-law.com/blog/punitive-damages-in-litigation) [12/21/2016 Trespass and a Tree - What's a Tree Worth, or Take Out One Tree, Pay for Three? The cause of action of Trespass is pretty simple. You cross into someone else's property, you are wrong. The complexity of the cause of action arises… Read Post ](https://www.gallatin-law.com/blog/trespass-and-a-tree-whats-a-tree-worth-or-take-out-one-tree-pay-for-three) ### Subscribe Here! ```json { "@context" : "https://schema.org", "@type" : "BlogPosting", "author" : { "@type" : "Person", "name" : "Dan Gallatin", "url" : "https://www.gallatin-law.com/blog/author/dan-gallatin" }, "dateModified" : "2020-08-21T22:15:36.718Z", "datePublished" : "2017-11-30T06:00:00.000Z", "headline" : "Measurement of Damages: Critical to Your Case", "mainEntityOfPage" : { "@id" : "https://www.gallatin-law.com/blog/measurement-of-damages-critical-to-your-case", "@type" : "WebPage" }, "publisher" : { "@type" : "Organization", "logo" : { "@type" : "ImageObject", "url" : "https://www.gallatin-law.com/hubfs/logos/Gallatin-Logo-654x84.png" }, "name" : "Gallatin Law, PLLC" } } ```