All injuries are painful, frightening, and disruptive to the victim’s life, but few injuries are as potentially life-altering as a brain injury. When a brain injury results from outside forces and not a medical condition it’s known as a traumatic brain injury (TBI). A TBI ranges in severity and effects from a mild concussion that may cause a missed paycheck and a single hospital bill to a grave injury causing lasting trauma, impairment, disability, or death.
Brain injuries are always traumatic, but when they result from someone else’s careless, reckless, or purposefully wrongful actions they are even more distressing. While nothing can erase the injury, there are legal options that help brain injury victims recover financial compensation for their damages when another individual or business causes the injury. Financial compensation opens doors to the best medical care, replaces lost income, and provides a buffer so the victim can spend more time in rehabilitation to reach the greatest medical improvement possible for them. It’s important to know the legal options after a preventable brain injury.
According to the CDC, the most common causes of brain injuries are car accidents, falls, and being struck by an object. If someone else was at fault for the brain injury, a personal injury lawyer can maximize the chances of a successful claim by handling the legal aspects involved in dealing with the at-fault party’s insurance company—which often prioritizes profits over paying out on large claims. Depending on how the accident occurred, the claim could be against an auto insurance policy after a car accident, a property liability policy after a slip-and-fall accident, or malpractice insurance after a medical malpractice case.
An attorney typically investigates all aspects of the brain injury’s cause, documents evidence of liability, identifies the appropriate insurance company, carefully calculates the damages, and sends a demand package to the insurer. Damages often include medical expenses, lost income, diminished future earning capacity, and pain and suffering. Depending on the severity of the brain injury, the victim could also claim loss of enjoyment of life or reduced quality of life due to disability.
The attorney typically negotiates with the insurance company to recover the maximum amount of compensation available. If the insurance company fails to offer a large settlement, the case can proceed to court in a lawsuit.
Some brain injury claims are fully resolved through an ample settlement, but a small portion of cases require litigation in court through a lawsuit. This may be the best option if the insurer undervalues the amount of the claim with a lowball settlement offer or if the victim’s damages far exceed the limits of the insurance coverage.
The victim and their attorney must file the lawsuit within the state’s statute of limitations for personal injury claims—two years from the date the injury occurred in most states with a few exceptions. In a lawsuit, the attorney for the insurance company and defendant will argue that the defendant isn’t responsible, or isn’t solely responsible, for the injury or that the injury victim doesn’t need the amount of monetary compensation they’re seeking. The injury victim’s attorney must present clear evidence of liability and provide medical expert testimony about the impacts of the injury on the victim’s life. Then, a jury decides on the case. If the brain injury victim has evidence of the at-fault party’s failure to take reasonable measures to prevent injury to others and that they’ve suffered serious damages because of the brain injury, the jury will award an amount of compensation to the victim that they find appropriate in the case.
If you’ve sustained a brain injury, it’s crucial to consider consulting with a specialized brain injury lawyer in Encino for tailored legal advice and representation to ensure your rights are protected and potential compensation avenues explored.