Spinal cord injuries are among the most serious types of injuries a victim in Los Angeles can experience as a result of a personal injury accident. Because the medical expenses associated with this type of injuries will often exceed the coverage of an insurance, you should seek the services of a Los Angeles personal injury attorney. Only a professional will be able to obtain the true compensations for the physical and emotional damages sustained in an accident that has resulted in a spinal cord injury and for the costs of the medical treatments.
Our Los Angeles spinal cord injury lawyer highlights some of the most important issues regarding the types of accidents that cause this severe injury in this article. Please keep in mind that each case is different and spital injuries can be compensated for both the medical expenses as well as the lost quality of life for the victim.
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The severity of a spinal cord injury after an accident in L.A.
Spinal cord injuries can occur in various types of accidents, however, some of the most common ones that can cause such major trauma are car accidents, other motor vehicle accidents or slip and fall accidents. These types of injuries can also occur while the victim was performing recreational sports activities, that should have been safe, or during acts of violence.
A spinal cord injury means that the victim will lose motor control and sensation either partially or fully. Victims can become paralyzed from the waist down or, in more severe cases, from the neck down. While some victims may not become paralyzed, they will still experience loss in the normal functions of the body. In some cases, it may be useful to work together with a brain injury attorney Los Angeles, when the injuries are extensive, and the victim also presents structural and functional brain abnormalities or loss of cognitive function.
Victims who suffer from spinal cord injuries may require lifelong care and treatment. This is why you should seek legal help in order to be able to receive compensations for the extensive medical care required for this type of injuries.
The injured individual and his family are often overwhelmed by the impact this type of injury inflicts on their lives. A settlement calculator is a useful tool to determine costs like those for the medical treatment, the future medical expenses, and the lost wages. A victim that has suffered such a traumatic injury will not be able to work as he or she used to and may never be able to perform an activity from which he/she can derive enough income.
Permanent and/or long-term injuries are not adequately calculated with what is known as the per day rate: a certain amount that is established for each day the victim has to suffer from the accident. Residual injuries will increase the total amount of the compensation. A lawyer is the one who can help you state your case in such a manner that it will be obvious for the jury that you need higher compensations because of your extensive suffering. Documented support is needed in this case and you can talk to your doctor to obtain the needed medical records that prove the fact that your injury is permanent.
We invite you to watch a video that summarizes the main issues concerning spinal cord injuries:
Request professional help from a Los Angeles spinal cord injury lawyer
A Los Angeles personal injury lawyer will be able to help you make a claim for obtaining compensations. One of our lawyers will help you gather the needed evidence in order to determine the negligent party. While most spinal cord injuries are caused by accidents or even while using defective products, if you sustained an injury while performing extreme sports like bungee jumping, the defendant can use the “assumption of the risk” defense and you may lose all or part of your monetary claim.
If you have been the victim of an accident that resulted in a spinal cord injury, one of our personal injury attorneys in Los Angeles can help you obtain the monetary compensations you deserve.
Spinal cord injuries to the newborn baby, sustained during childbirth, can be one of the most serious types of injuries, and ones that, unfortunately, can have a life-long impact on the child’s development. If you believe that your newborn was injured during childbirth (or if you were injured) it is advisable to discuss your options with our birth injury lawyers in Los Angeles.
Who caused the injury?
In any personal injury lawsuit, it is important to determine who is responsible for the injuries. As no two cases are the same, negligence and liability may not always be clear. The spinal cord injury might have been caused in a vehicle accident in which a truck was involved, a situation in which our truck accident attorney Los Angeles will be able to help.
When the injury was caused by another party you are required to show that the individual has a duty of care and failed to meet it. This can be the case in defective product cases, premises accidents, or medical malpractice lawsuits. One of our Los Angeles personal injury attorneys who specialize in these type of accidents, such as our medical malpractice attorney Los Angeles can answer particular questions.
The conditions in which the accident took place need to be properly determined in order to link the party at fault to the occurrence of the accident and thus the injury. For example, when the spinal cord injury took place as a result of a fall, our slip and fall lawyers in Los Angeles can help you gather the needed evidence to show that the accident could have been precented if the owner of the premises on which it took place would have taken adequate precautionary measures.
When the injury is not actually caused but aggravated by another party you may still claim compensations. Perhaps you have some preexisting back or spinal cord problems and you did not receive the appropriate or timely medical care. A lawsuit for a spinal cord injury could involve the party that played a role in the evolution of the injury.
How can negligence be shown?
Most spinal cord injuries will result from a previous accident, such as a vehicle or truck accident, a construction accident or another type of incident. The plaintiff has the burden of proof, meaning that he/she must show that another party was negligent, thus caused the accident, and the injury would not have occurred if it weren’t for the said negligence and the accident that followed.
The State of California has a pure comparative negligence doctrine which allows the plaintiff to recover damages even if he/she was partially to blame for his/her own injuries. One of our Los Angeles personal injury attorneys can help you know more about your options and the maximum settlement amount of you are also to blame for the accident.
Spinal cord injuries require substantial medical evidence and proof that the other party had a duty of care that he breached.
Spinal cord injuries are severe accidents that need to be treated with the utmost care. If the emergency or treating physician failed to follow the standard procedures in this case, the patient may suffer from complications or, in most severe cases, paralysis. If you believe that the treatment you received was incorrect, our medical malpractice attorney in Los Angeles can analyse your case.
Death following spinal cord injuries
In some cases, the victim’s wounds, which have also included spinal cord injuries, are took extensive and the patient dies immediately or a short time after he or she was treated for the spinal cord injuries. In this case, our wrongful death attorney Los Angeles can help take over the case and help the grieving family obtain compensation for loss of consortium or loss of financial support, as their case requires.
The compensation for wrongful death is calculated in a different manner, one that will focus mostly on the emotional losses because the ones submitting the claim are the victim’s surviving relatives. It is useful to note that this type of claim can be filed by the spouse or children and a non-family member, in the event in which that individual stood to gain inheritance from the victim. Our attorney who specializes in these types of cases can provide more detailed information, according to the specific scenario of the accident and the relationship with the victim.
If a loved one sustained severe spinal cord injuries in an accident caused by another party, injuries that made his or her survival impossible, our team is here to help you claim your legal rights.
Spinal cord injuries facts outlined by our Los Angeles spinal cord injury lawyer
Spinal cord injuries occur in a wide range of accidents, however, a common factor in these is that the majority of the causes could have been prevented (for example, they were road traffic crashes that could have been avoided or they were acts of violence that also could have been put off).
Regardless of how the injury occurred, it is estimated that people who sustain such as injury are five times more likely to die prematurely. Because of their nature, the fact that the victim will no longer be able to live a normal life, these injuries are also associated with lack of economic participation or school enrollment (for example, continuing studies in the case if younger individuals).
In light of these complex issues, it becomes clearer that the specialized aid offered by a Los Angeles spinal cord injury lawyer is even more important as it can help the victim (and/or the family members) obtain the monetary compensation that may allow them to overcome some of the economic hurdles that will possibly be unavoidable if the victim is no longer able to derive income.
Some of the statistical data issues by the World Health Organization on these types of injuries reflects the following:
- each year between 250,000 and 500,000 people suffer a spinal cord injury at a global level;
- an estimated annual global incidence is 40 to 80 cases per million population;
- 90% of the spinal cord injuries recorded at a global level are due to traumatic causes.
As far as the demographic trends on a global level, men are most at risk of suffering from a spinal cord injuries in young adulthood and at an older age (70+) wile women mostly in their adolescence and also at an older age. The risk of mortality from a spinal cord injury is higher in the first year after the accident.
Severe or catastrophic injuries, as they are sometimes called, have a tremendous impact on the victim and they alter one’s life completely. A Los Angeles spinal cord injury lawyer understands the enormous impact of this type of injury and working with one of our specialists is recommended, as they have relevant experience in this particular field.
You can contact our Los Angeles personal injury attorneys if you have any questions about your right as a victim in L.A.