A burgeoning litigation backlog, exacerbated by COVID, requires the Bench and Bar to become more efficient in valuing personal injury actions, especially in the realm of non-pecuniary (pain and suffering) damages reviewed under CPLR 5501(c). The first step in this process involves eliminating a number of common misconceptions that have been repeated over and over in damages litigation for the past two decades. Through repetition, these errors have achieved a measure of traction they do not remotely deserve.