An injury is termed a catastrophic injury when it happens suddenly, without warning, and causes a life-changing effect on the individual. Due to its serious and debilitating nature, several survivors cannot return to normal life because of life-long disabilities. Here is a helpful guide on the exact definition of a catastrophic injury lawyer and how you can choose the most suitable catastrophic injury lawyer for your case.
What is a Catastrophic Injury?
A catastrophic injury is a serious injury with long-term effects on the body. It can also be permanent for the injured person’s life. Some injuries are personality changes, memory loss, emotional issues, learning problems, etc.
Now that the definition of catastrophic injury has been explained in detail. Let’s understand the causes of a catastrophic injury.
Causes of Catastrophic Injury
Catastrophic injuries occur suddenly, creating a life-changing effect on the affected individual. They occur due to another person’s negligence or inattentiveness and can be life-changing for the affected individual. Due to the extent and nature of catastrophic injuries, catastrophic injury attorneys’ expertise can aid in filing a competent case. Some causes of catastrophic injury are:
Birth Injury
Childbirth is an extremely important process, during which even the slightest mistake can be life-changing. Unfortunately, any mistake, omission, or oversight can cause severe health problems. In case there are any problems with the newborn child’s health, the parents may bring a medical malpractice claim as their child’s representative to get compensation for the injuries suffered.
Spinal Cord Injury
Injuries sustained to the spinal cord can cause problems in mobility, paralysis, and tingling. Although treating spinal cord injury with care might help improve the individual’s quality of life, it is unlikely that they would be able to heal completely. Therefore, when a claim for spinal cord injury is created, the victim must ensure that they include the level of care they need to recover.
Nerve Damage
Damage to the nerves can cause pain and interfere with body functions. The most common signs of nerve damage are shooting pains, numbness, and tingling. As nerve damage is difficult to treat, nerve damage can interfere with normal functions and daily activities due to a catastrophic injury.
Internal injury
A catastrophic injury might not be visible from the outside in case of internal organ damage or traumatic brain injury. However, an individual who suffers from internal injuries from a catastrophic injury needs a lot of monitoring and care in the future. A traumatic injury can be debilitating as it causes physical pain and interference in personal care, motor skills, and other related functions.
Loss of Hearing or Sight
Losing your hearing or sight can impact your life to a great extent. When individuals lose their hearing or sight, they are dependent on others and become dependent on family members for financial help. Therefore, this form of catastrophic injury qualifies for catastrophic injury claims.
Amputation
When a catastrophic injury causes the loss of a limb, it interferes with normal life and creates an injury that lasts for life. Without both limbs, the affected person becomes partially dependent on another person for their daily activities.
Facial Injury
Any injury that affects your face and causes disfigurement can be included in catastrophic injuries. Although reconstruction surgeries can help reduce the damage caused, the pain and suffering caused, along with the inconvenience and anxiety caused by the facial injury, needs to be addressed via legal means.
All these different causes of catastrophic injuries are valid reasons for you to search for the best catastrophic injury lawyer who can fight your case and help you claim benefits. So, with the causes of catastrophic injuries explained, let’s go through the steps on how you can find the best among several reputed catastrophic injury attorneys.
Searching for a Catastrophic Injury Lawyer
When searching for the best catastrophic injury lawyer or a catastrophic injury law firm, it is important to understand the points mentioned below to choose the most experienced and reputed attorneys for your catastrophic injury case. Here are some helpful points:
- Check their experience in handling cases related to catastrophic injuries and ask them questions like their main practice areas as a lawyer or as a firm, including years of experience
- A strong and successful track record means that they will be able to win awards for their verdicts and settlements and have successfully secured multi-million dollar settlements and verdicts.
- Ensure that you feel assured and respected when the catastrophic personal injury lawyer communicates with you.
- Ask them about their fees and if they provide a free initial consultation. In addition, ask them if they work on a contingency fee basis and if they can provide a cash advance to cover costs preceding the settlement or verdict.
- Explore additional resources they might be able to provide, like doctors and assistance with property damage costs.
Hiring a catastrophic injury attorney will aid in gaining a fair right to compensation for life-changing injuries. With the help of an expert catastrophic injury lawyer, you will be able to gain the highest settlement or verdict to which you are entitled.
Benefits Gained Through Catastrophic Injury Claims
Once you have successfully won your catastrophic injury claims with the help of the lawyer you have hired. Any benefits gained through the catastrophic injury claims will help you restore some semblance of normalcy in your daily life and gain an extent of mobility while doing everyday tasks. Some of the most common benefits other than financial support are:
- Rehabilitation therapies
- Assistive technologies
- Adaptive and prosthetic devices
- Transportation costs
- Home accessibility modifications
- Vocational Rehabilitation
Conclusion
All the points mentioned above will help you choose the best catastrophic injury attorneys and ensure that you can gain financial and medical assistance due to catastrophic injuries. A simple search on the internet for the best catastrophic injury lawyer or asking friends and relatives for the best catastrophic personal injury lawyer will help.
