Damage to the spinal cord is usually a life-changing injury that causes full or partial paralysis. When you or a loved one suffers spinal cord damage in an accident, contacting a local catastrophic injury attorney as quickly as possible is critical to preserve your rights and ensure a reasonable settlement.
Insurance companies for the responsible parties will work hard to convince you to accept less than your claim is worth. A Jupiter spinal cord injury lawyer has extensive experience representing people with similar injuries, recognizes your claim’s value, and will produce evidence and data to support a settlement that will allow you to move forward after your injury.
Impact of a Spinal Cord Injury
When the spinal cord suffers a disruption or break, the nerves that conduct messages between the brain and the limbs cannot do their job. Although modern treatments are showing increasing success in preserving movement in some people with spinal cord injuries, the injury still leads to paralysis in most cases.
Paralysis can cause secondary health concerns. Pain, spasticity, pressure sores, and constipation are common among long-term survivors of spinal cord injury, and these conditions lead to a lower quality of life.
Other common secondary conditions of spinal damage include loss of sexual function, loss of bowel and bladder control, urinary tract infections leading to sepsis, and respiratory infections, particularly in people with higher injuries. Those responsible for an accident are also accountable for paying for all the health impacts associated with the injury. A Jupiter lawyer could ensure a settlement adequately addresses an injured person’s spine damage health challenges.
Common Causes of Spinal Cord Damage
Most spinal cord injuries result from an impact that damages the spinal column. Motor vehicle accidents and falls are the most common causes of traumatic spinal cord damage. Other events that frequently contribute to spinal cord harm are sports injuries, industrial accidents, violence, and surgical errors.
An attorney in Jupiter could investigate the cause of the spinal cord injury and identify responsible parties. Spinal cord damage causes severe physical symptoms, could be career-ending, and disrupt the individual’s future plans and family life. Accordingly, damages could be substantial, and a legal professional will seek multiple sources of insurance coverage, if possible, to ensure the injured person receives appropriate compensation for their losses.
Damages in Spinal Cord Injury Cases
It is expensive to treat, rehabilitate, and live with a spinal cord injury. Depending on the injury’s location on the spinal cord and other factors that vary from person to person, significant, ongoing medical and personal support could be necessary to ensure the injured person has the best quality of life possible.
Damages are the compensation those responsible pay as compensation to an injured person. They ensure the injured person receives the ongoing support they need. A Jupiter attorney uses the latest data available to calculate the potential damages a person with a spinal cord injury deserves.
Compensatory Damages
Compensatory damages cover the losses the spinal cord injury has caused and will cause in the future. They cover all medical care and supportive services the injured person needs and will need. Damages could pay for home renovations necessary to accommodate a wheelchair and supportive care in the home if necessary. Damages also include funds to address the injured person’s reduced earning capacity.
Compensatory damages also pay the subjective losses a person with a spinal cord injury experiences. These damages provide money to acknowledge the person’s pain, disability, humiliation, lost enjoyment of life, and emotional suffering.
Punitive Damages
Florida allows a jury to award punitive damages against a responsible party that acted intentionally to harm or whose conduct demonstrated a willful disregard for others’ safety. Florida Statutes § 768.73 caps punitive damages at three times the total compensatory damages or $500,000, whichever is greater. When the responsible party acted intentionally to harm the claimant, there is no cap on punitive damages.
Contact a Jupiter Attorney for a No-Cost Consultation After a Spinal Cord Injury
When you or a family member recently suffered spinal cord damage, get legal help immediately. Insurance companies will likely contact you soon after the incident, offering a settlement, and you need professional representation to ensure you receive what you deserve.
A Jupiter spinal cord injury lawyer could ensure those responsible pay an appropriate amount that will allow you to live the fullest life possible after your injury. Schedule a free consultation today.
