Personal injury lawsuits in Lancaster cover a wide range of accidents and injuries, to be sure. However, one of the most traumatizing and complicated types of personal injury cases involve spinal cord injuries. If you have suffered a major spinal injury, it can be difficult to live and work as you used to. Unlike other types, spinal injuries usually do not improve, especially if the spinal cord has been severed at a crucial point along the spine. Sadly, an injury of this kind can result in lifelong ailments, surgeries, rehab appointments and home care services that can be very costly.
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That’s why many people in your situation choose to file a personal injury lawsuit with the assistance of a spinal cord injury lawyer in San Bernardino. As with any major decision, filing such a lawsuit requires possessing the right level of information and understanding.
Here’s what you need to know about a spinal injury lawsuit, including why you need to hire a spinal cord injury lawyer in San Bernardino.
How Was Your Spine Injured?
Spinal injuries can result from a traumatic blow on, to, or around your spinal column. Due to the highly sensitive nature of the nerves contained within your spinal column, even minor accidents can bring about serious long-term damage.
When planning your case, it’s critical to identify exactly how you suffered the injury. Almost any major accident can cause some kind of spinal damage, but the most common causes of these injuries include:
- Car accidents
- Major falls
- Violent acts
- Collisions in sports
- Diving in shallow water
Pinpointing the exact cause of your injury will let you know if you have grounds for a spinal injury lawsuit.
Proving Your Case
Before filing your spinal injury lawsuit, you must be aware of the potential grounds for your case. In spinal injury suits, the two most common reasons people decide to file include defective products and negligence.
If your case involves negligence, you have to be able to demonstrate that the actions of another party were the direct result of your spinal injury and its effects. For example, if you sustained an injury to your spine while in a car accident, you would have to prove that the other driver was drunk, texting, or was operating their vehicle irresponsibly.
Or, if your injury was due to a defective product, you could also have grounds for a case. Let’s stay with the car accident example. If you got into an accident that was the result of improperly designed or manufactured brakes that failed to engage in enough time to stop your vehicle, you likely have a case.
Look Out for Common Defenses
A common stumbling block for any personal injury lawsuit is being unprepared for a possible defense strategy. Take some time to think about some of the ways in which your case may run into problems.
The other party in a spinal injury lawsuit will attempt to hold you partly responsible for your injury. If the defense can prove partial liability in your wreck, it can reduce your compensation or eliminate it altogether.
The activity that caused your injury can also derail your case. There is something referred to as “assumption of risk,” which says that you knowingly engaged in a risky behavior such as contact sports. If the other party goes with the assumption of risk defense, you will have to show that even though you were participating in a risky behavior, the circumstances that led to the injury were beyond your control.
What Will the Compensation Cover?
Spinal cord injuries, due to their lifelong impacts, are often eligible for a higher level of compensation than you could get from a typical personal injury case. Any damages that you are awarded will go to cover such expenses as:
- Medical bills
- Assistive mobility equipment
- Rehab
- Surgery
- Medication
For Any Questions, Contact The Lawyers At Kuzyk Law Today
Before filing your spinal injury lawsuit, consult with a spinal cord injury lawyer in San Bernardino at Kuzyk Law, where we have handled hundreds of SCI cases in our history. Get your free, no-obligation consultation with us at 661-945-6969.
