What type of damages compensate for actual loss and restore the plaintiff to the position before the wrong?

Enhance your Bar Exam preparation with Themis Bar Exam Quiz. Use hints and multiple choice questions to sharpen your understanding. Excel in your Bar Exam!

Damages that aim to put the plaintiff back in the position they were in before the wrong occurred are compensatory damages. The core purpose is to compensate actual losses caused by the breach, making the plaintiff whole again rather than punishing the defendant. They cover the tangible costs incurred, like medical bills and lost wages, and can also include non-economic harms such as pain and suffering where appropriate. This distinguishes them from nominal damages, which acknowledge a breach without proving actual loss; punitive damages, which punish and deter; and consequential damages, which are a subset of compensatory damages for indirect losses that flow from the breach and must have been foreseeable.