Spinal cord injuries can be devastating for victims and their families. Diminished quality of life and financial burdens can leave those affected desperate for relief. If your spinal injury was due to someone else’s negligent or reckless actions, you should get in touch with a Delray Beach spinal cord injury lawyer.
At Steinberg Law, we understand the challenges that spinal cord injury victims and their loved ones have to deal with every day and are here to help clients get the full compensation they deserve. Let us help you in pursuing justice for your pain, suffering, and loss.
Call our Delray Beach personal injury lawyers at 877-783-4611 today to have your spinal cord injury case evaluated for free.
How Much Is a Spinal Cord Injury Worth?
Spinal cord injuries vary in severity, but most SCIs or spinal cord injuries typically result in permanent disabilities and are often quite expensive to treat. Since every case is different, calling an experienced and qualified attorney is the best way to learn what your claim may be worth.
An experienced Delray Beach spinal cord injury lawyer will review your case, gather evidence to establish fault, and determine how much in damages you can pursue against the at-fault party.
The following are some of the things that attorneys consider to determine the value of a spinal cord injury claim.
Future and Past Medical Expenses
Spinal cord injury victims can seek compensation for past and future medical expenses. These may include medical bills, surgical costs, the cost of medical equipment like breathing aid machines, and the need for car and home modifications to accommodate the victim’s disability.
Future and Past Loss of Earnings
The victim’s loss of wages, both past, and future, is also considered when calculating the value of their spinal cord injury claim.
Loss of Enjoyment and Quality of Life
Another factor spinal injury lawyers consider when determining the value of an SCI claim is the victim’s decreased quality of life and loss of enjoyment as a result of the injuries they sustained.
Emotional Suffering and Distress
Learning to live with a new disability and making unexpected lifestyle changes as a result of a spinal cord injury can cause emotional damage in victims and lead to serious issues like PTSD, stress, and anxiety.
All these are factors that attorneys will consider when determining the value of your claim to ensure that you receive the best possible compensation for your injuries and loss.
What Are the Most Common Types of Spinal Cord Injuries?
Spinal injuries are typically either incomplete or complete. If body parts below where your spine got hurt still function, then what you’ve sustained is an incomplete spinal injury. However, if you cannot move any body part below the area your spine got hurt, then you probably sustained a complete spinal injury.
Here are the common spinal injuries.
Quadriplegia
Also known as tetraplegia, this type of spinal injury results in partial or complete paralysis in all four of the victim’s limbs and is often characterized by loss of motion in the torso.
In some instances, quadriplegia will also affect the victim’s chest muscles, making it hard for them to breathe without a breathing apparatus. All motor and sensory functions are lost in affected body parts, resulting in loss of feeling and control.
Triplegia
This form of spinal injury is generally characterized by the loss of movement in three limbs. People who experience this type of injury typically have three of their limbs, i.e., both arms and a leg or both legs and an arm, paralyzed.
Paraplegia
This is the most common type of paralysis caused by spinal cord injury and is characterized by paralysis below the waist. Paraplegics may need a wheelchair to get about.
Why Should You See a Doctor Right Away After a Back Injury?
After a back injury, paralysis or numbness might happen immediately or occur gradually as swelling and bleeding happen around or in the affected part of the spine. Doctors are trained to diagnose and treat such situations to prevent further damage to the spinal cord.
A doctor can help determine how severe your spinal cord injury is and the best course of treatment. Medical records serve as critical evidence linking your injury to the accident that caused it.
What Are the Symptoms of a Spinal Cord Injury?
If you’ve sustained a back injury and are experiencing any of the spinal cord injury symptoms listed below, seek medical attention right away:
- Numbness in your extremities
- Spasms
- Sexual dysfunction
- Extreme neck and back pain
- Loss of respiratory function
- Loss of bladder control
- Loss of muscle control in your legs, arms, and torso
- Pain
What Are Some of the Causes of Spinal Cord Injuries?
Spinal cord injuries are generally caused by a hit or blow to the spinal cord that crushes, compresses, fractures, or dislocates more than one vertebra. Here is a list of some of the things that generally cause spinal injuries.
- Auto Accidents: Vehicular accidents are the number one cause of spinal injuries in America and account for more than half of all spinal injury cases in the country each year.
- Falls: Spinal injuries caused by falls are most common in Americans over 65. Falls account for 31 percent of all spinal cord injuries in the country.
- Violence: Acts of violence like gunshot wounds cause around 12% of spinal injuries.
- Sports Injuries: Injuries sustained during sports activities account for 10 percent of all spinal injuries in America.
- Diseases: Some spinal injuries are a result of some diseases and illnesses like spinal inflammation, spina bifida, cancer, polio, etc.
What Can I Expect to Recover if I Have a Spinal Cord Injury?
How much you’ll receive as compensation for your spinal injury will depend on the severity of your injury, how it has affected you and your family, and how its effects will evolve. Recoverable compensation for SCI injuries may include, but is not limited to:
- Pain & Suffering
- Loss of consortium
- Specialized Care
- Lost earnings
- Medication and treatment costs
How Is a Spinal Injury Case Different From Other Types of Injury Claims?
While patients recover from most other injuries sustained during an accident, that’s not the case with most spinal cord injuries. Most spinal injuries cause lasting disability and typically require long-term, specialized care, which generally translates to lifelong medical expenses and care.
You need a professional spinal cord injury lawyer in Delray Beach to help you pursue compensation if your SCI was caused by another person’s negligence.
Is There a Time Limit to File a Spinal Cord Injury Claim in Florida?
Spinal cord injury victims in Florida have up to four years, from the day the injury occurred, to file a personal injury lawsuit. If your case involves medical malpractice, then you have two years to file your claim.
If you fail to meet this deadline, then you’ll no longer be eligible to pursue compensation for your injuries and treatment.
What if the Injury Happened at Work?
If you’ve sustained back injuries while doing your job, you are entitled to file a workers’ comp claim for your medical expenses and lost income. Except in rare cases, Florida workers cannot sue an employer for a work injury.
Call a Spinal Cord Injury Lawyer in Delray Beach Today!
If you have suffered a spinal cord injury due to the negligence or carelessness of another person, you can file a claim to recover compensation for your treatment costs, lost income, suffering, and other damages. The personal injury lawyers at Steinberg Law have the experience, skills, and knowledge required to handle such cases.
If you’d like help filing a spinal cord injury claim in Delray Beach, Florida, call 877-783-4611 today and schedule a free-of-cost, no-obligation consultation with our legal team and have your case reviewed by an experienced attorney.
