In City of Bethel v. Peters, 97 P.3d 822, 828-29 (Alaska 2004), the supreme court defined "disfigurement" in a civil law context. Alaska law sets a higher limit on damages in personal injury lawsuits if the plaintiff has suffered "severe disfigurement". See AS 09.17.010(c). The supreme court held that, for purposes of this statute, a "disfigurement" is an injury that "impairs or injures the beauty, symmetry, or appearance of a person ... or that renders a person's appearance unsightly, misshapen, or imperfect". Peters, 97 P.3d at 829. "If a reasonable person would see the injury as detracting from the plaintiff's appearance, the injury has caused disfigurement." Id.