Spinal Cord Injury Lawyer

Spinal Cord Injury Lawsuit

spinal cord injuryLawsuits due to spinal cord injuries have some of the largest settlements of all legal claims. People suffering from spinal cord injuries have higher medical costs because treatment is required more often. It is vital to have an attorney who specializes in spinal cord injuries to get the most money in an award or settlement. A lawyer who handles spinal cord injury cases will be able to estimate the damages suffered by the victim and assist with filing a compensation claim.

Here are some details about spinal cord injury claims along with what to expect during the lawsuit.

Specific Types of Spinal Cord Injuries

Spinal cord injuries happen when there has been an injury to the spinal cord or the spinal column. While the spinal cord can remain in place, there can be a serious underlying injury that can be devastating.

Some common types of injuries to the spinal cord include:

  • Spinal cord cervical injuries which affect the head and neck
  • Spinal cord lumbar injuries that impact the hips and legs
  • Spinal cord thoracic injuries that cause problems in the abdomen and check
  • Spinal cord sacral injuries that affect the thighs, pelvis, and buttock areas of the body

Reasons for Injuries of the Spine

Injuries that affect the spinal cord are due to trauma. The severity of the trauma dictates how or whether the victim will be able to recover from the injury. In situations where the victim is in good physical condition and the injuries are less severe, the prognosis is better for recovery.

Symptoms that result from spinal cord trauma can cause issues for patients, especially basic daily routines. When a person has an injury to their spinal cord, they may experience paralysis and become unable to use their extremities. There are instances where patients experience permanent effects or end up facing a long-term recovery process.

In addition to the loss of mobility, patients are often plagued by other symptoms and side effects. They may not be able to breathe or may experience loss of their bodily functions. There can be extreme pain or loss of sexual function.

The symptoms and effects suffered by patients with spinal cord injuries can be traumatic and significantly impact their quality of life.

Spinal Cord Injury Lawsuit – Damages To Be Compensated

People with spinal cord injuries will suffer from many damages that would apply to their claim and lawsuit. The following are some of the financial and other impacting factors of an injury to the spinal cord.
Victims who end up paralyzed to any degree are in pain and suffering from their injuries.
There are lost wages as people may be unable to return to work or may never work again because of the spinal cord injury.
Patients have medical expenses because they are going to need treatment and will endure multiple surgeries to stabilize their bodies and work to become mobile again.
Home nursing aids and assistance are needed by people suffering from spinal cord injuries.

There could be loss of companionship as the emotional and physical strain of their spinal cord injury begins to upset their intimate relationships.

Lawsuit Examples – Spinal Cord Injuries

There are many different forms a spinal cord injury lawsuit can take on. These are some examples of instances where a lawsuit for a spinal cord injury can be filed.

  • A newborn’s spinal cord can be damaged during birth due to negligent doctors or mechanical force during the mother’s labor and delivery.
  • A woman involved in a workplace accident severely injures her back and is paralyzed.
  • A man suffers an accident while skiing and becomes paralyzed from the neck down.
  • A woman is rear-ended by a delivery driver and becomes a paraplegic patient.
  • Because of medical malpractice during spinal cord surgery, a man suffers the softening of the spinal cord.

Spinal Cord Injuries and Legal Responsibility

When it comes to spinal cord injury, many people can be held responsible. The person who was the proximate cause of the spinal cord injury is generally the one to be considered liable in a lawsuit.

An attorney defending a victim in a spinal cord injury lawsuit would need to prove that a defendant’s actions or inactions caused the plaintiff to become injured.

Generally, this could be the defendant who caused the car accident, or the person driving in a car where the victim suffered the injury. This could also be a third party that caused a car accident due to negligence. If a semi-truck fails to stop at a red light and causes three vehicles to crash in an intersection, the person driving the semi-truck would be considered the proximate cause of the spinal cord injury and the crash.

There are other instances where the possible defendant could be the manufacturer of the product that caused the spinal cord injury. If a manufacturer of car parts designs and produces faulty brakes that are defective and a person becomes a victim in a car crash, the manufacturer would be considered to be legally responsible for the spinal cord injury.

Spinal Cord Injury Lawsuit Defenses

There are times where the defendant may argue that the plaintiff is actually responsible for their own injuries. If a person participates in a dangerous activity like paragliding or skydiving and they injure their spinal cord, a defendant may claim that the plaintiff was aware of the risk and is responsible for their own injury because they engaged in the activity.

It becomes the responsibility of the attorney to prove that the defendant was legally liable for the injury because of their negligence. Defendants also try to claim that the plaintiff was negligent due to the fact that they willingly chose to participate in the activity.

An example of this would be a defendant claiming that the plaintiff was speeding when the accident occurred, and for this reason, they are not entitled to compensation because speeding is illegal.

Reasons to Speak with a Spinal Cord Injury Lawyer

There are high stakes involved with spinal cord injury lawsuits. Victims are given one opportunity to sue the party responsible for their injuries so that they can receive compensation. It is absolutely essential that they file the strongest claim possible.

These situations call for an experienced spinal cord injury attorney who can access the situation and present the best possible case to the court. Spinal cord injuries often require a lifetime of care, and the jury award or settlement will need to be large enough to compensate the plaintiff for these and other expenses.

An attorney needs to have the ability to assign a financial value on the amount of compensation necessary to pay for the damages the victim has suffered as well as the medical care they will require throughout their life.

Many trials involving injuries to the spinal cord involve complex evidence, and a lawyer specializing in spinal cord injuries is absolutely necessary to present and establish the specific facts for the judge or jury. Attorneys will recreate the scene of the accident, using very strategic and detailed methods. They may call upon experts to present medical evidence to demonstrate the extent of suffering caused by the victim’s injuries.

They may need to prove that a particular product was defective with scientific evidence and a presentation with expert testimony. Specialized knowledge is required from a spinal cord injury attorney.

In a court of law, a defendant will want to display some sensitivity to the victim’s spinal cord injury, though they may not want to admit fault and pay to settle the lawsuit. It is well known that when large corporations become the defendants, they will use every weapon in their arsenal to discredit the victim, and they will have sophisticated lawyers to help them win. It is critical for a plaintiff to hire an expert spinal cord injury attorney to get the best possible result for their injury.

Speak With a Spinal Cord Injury Lawyer Today

The experienced attorneys at Dash Injury Law Firm will help guide you through the aftermath of any type of accident that was caused by someone else’s negligence.

Dash Injury Law Firm provides spinal cord injury lawsuit services in the surrounding areas of the following locations:

We are committed to serving our clients and fighting for the compensation and justice they deserve. Call our legal team today at 888-(DASH-LAW) or complete an online contact form.

The information contained in these pages should not be taken as a substitute for legal advice and it is in fact not legal advice, especially as to cases which are highly fact-specific.