San Diego Brain Injury Attorney
If you or a loved one has suffered a traumatic brain injury due to the negligence or wrongdoing of another party you may be eligible to file a lawsuit to recover your losses. Contact the Liljegren Law Group today to speak to an experienced San Diego brain injury attorney who can evaluate your case.
How a Local Brain Injury Lawyer Can Help
Our San Diego office is conveniently located off the I-805 just minutes from downtown, La Jolla and UCSD. If you’re still in the hospital recovering, we will come to you. More importantly, however, our San Diego brain injury lawyers have decades of experience handling such catastrophic injuries. Acting promptly to secure an effective personal injury lawyer’s services after a head injury is important to help protect your rights.
Contact the San Diego Brain Injury Attorneys at Liljegren Law Group today (619) 460-0109
Damages in a Brain Injury Case
In instances of brain injury caused by negligence, you can recover for your damages by seeking legal recourse. By filing a claim with an experienced brain injury attorney, you guarantee that your claim clearly illustrates the damages you’ve sustained. Some of the damages you can discuss with a Liljegren attorney include:
- Immediate medical bills accrued after the incident, including examination, treatment, surgery, and emergency services.
- Recurring medical bills accrued through recovery, including prescription medication, physical therapy, and related medical equipment.
- Lost wages to replace missed paychecks while the plaintiff recovers.
- Diminished ability to earn, resulting from chronic disability caused by the accident. This generally occurs when a plaintiff can no longer complete their previous job because of their injuries.
- Household and/or vehicular renovations that increase accessibility to those who have impaired motor functions cause by the accident.
- Substitute services that keep your household running while you recover. This is usually only a part of the damages when the plaintiff cannot physically complete basic household tasks or provide childcare.
- Pain and suffering, or emotional distress.
- Mental anguish.
- Loss of consortium (a loved one) if a case of accident-related TBI causes death.
What Is The Average Settlement
Because such a huge spectrum of brain injuries exists, it’s hard to give a solid figure for compensation. Brain injury lawsuits can range between a couple hundred thousand dollars to several million dollars in recoverable damages. This is due to the severe nature of brain injuries.
Liljegren Law Firm handles personal injury cases for brain injury and other mixed cases involving some sort of brain injury. For instance, one case that Liljegren represented, which settled for $100,000, involved a woman who suffered injuries when a stolen truck struck her. She suffered several hip injuries and a concussion but was able to recover compensation for her damages through Liljegren’s services.
Liljegren Law Firm provides irrefutable services to their customers. If you’ve sustained a brain injury caused by a third-party’s negligence, you retain the right to pursue legal recourse to recover for your damages. By consulting with our client-centered firm, you give yourself the best chance at receiving a fair settlement that accurately reflects the bodily and emotional damages you sustained. If you’re wondering whether you can successfully pursue a brain injury claim, contact Liljegren Law Firm today.
What is a Traumatic Brain Injury or TBI?
A traumatic brain injury (TBI) is the result of a sudden blow to the head or a violent shaking of the head or body, which causes the brain to violently impact the skull. Brain injuries can cause serious complications such as cognitive, behavioral, communication, and/or sensory processing problems. Sometimes in more serious cases a traumatic brain injury can result in a coma, vegetative state, or death.
Unfortunately, there are many ways someone may suffer a brain injury ranging from more innocent behavior of high school football games to malicious reasons such as child abuse. If a person’s negligent behavior directly led to your TBI, contact a San Diego brain injury lawyer to see if and how a lawsuit can help you financially recover.
Brain injuries aren’t always immediately discoverable. Sometimes, it takes several days or weeks to notice that something isn’t right. This class of injury is understandably frightening, because not only are brain injuries virtually invisible, but severe injuries can come with life-altering consequences. Technically, brain injuries occur every day. Some of the most common brain injuries are concussions, which have become so normalized that many don’t realize the damage they could create if treated improperly. When an accident caused by third-party negligence results in brain injury, it might be time to call Liljegren Law Firm.
Common Causes For Brain Injuries?
Some form of high impact or penetration commonly causes brain injuries. One of the most cited causes of brain injury in personal injury law is the impact caused by a car accident. In minor cases, car accidents cause concussion. In severe cases, car accidents can cause traumatic brain injury like skull fractures and hematomas (internal bleeding). Damaging incidents like falling from a great height, impact from a falling object and playing sports with notoriously high impact also cause brain injury.
- Car crashes
- A car accident can lead to very serious or even fatal brain injuries. During a crash, the force of impact can cause a passenger’s head and neck to twist and turn in unnatural ways. The sudden jerking motion can easily cause a concussion, and the head striking the inside walls or roof of the vehicle can lead to severe brain damage. If a driver causes an accident due to negligence, he or she will be liable for the resulting brain injury and related damages. Talk to a car accident lawyer near you to see if you have a case.
- Bicycle accidents
- Bicyclists can suffer serious head injuries from the force of a collision. They also often suffer head injuries from hitting the ground after falling from their bikes during accidents. Bicycles also afford riders virtually no protection from external forces, so bicyclists should wear protective gear and Department of Transportation-approved helmets to limit the risk of head injury. Drivers need to be alert and drive safely near bicyclists, but bicyclists also have a duty of care to ride responsibly with the flow of traffic and follow all applicable traffic laws.
- Medical malpractice
- Medical negligence can cause several types of brain injuries. If a surgeon must operate on a patient’s brain, he or she must be extremely careful to avoid damaging the healthy areas of the brain. Other surgical procedures may require the use of anesthesia, and some drugs may cause oxygen deprivation.
- Truck accidents
- Victims of trucking accidents face a higher risk of brain injury than they would in crashes involving smaller passenger cars. An at-fault truck driver will be liable for an injured victim’s brain injury and other damages. Seek advice from an experienced truck accident lawyer if you believe you have a case.
- Physical assault
- Interpersonal violence can easily cause brain injuries. During a fistfight or brawl with multiple people, a person can suffer concussions from repeated blows to the head, or worse injuries if he or she strikes his or her head on the ground. A person knocked unconscious in a fistfight can have neurological trouble, including concussions or contusions on the brain.
- Firearms
- Gunshots to the head are often deadly. However, some gunshot victims survive wounds to the head, but face very difficult recoveries and often develop permanent disabilities.
- Slip and fall accidents
- A “slip and fall” may not sound very serious, but a slip and fall victim may hit his or her head on the ground, causing a concussion or other serious problem like a skull fracture or contusion.
Brain damage can occur within minutes after cutting off the flow of oxygen to the brain. Doctors and other healthcare professionals must do everything possible to limit the risk of harming their patients. Surgeons or other healthcare professionals that cause brain injuries to their patients will likely be liable for the resulting damages.
Negligence is a very important factor in TBI cases, particularly those involving car and trucking accidents. Our San Diego personal injury attorney will review your unique accident and subsequent brain injury during a free consultation. If we believe someone acted negligent, we can help fight for compensation of medical bills, loss of wages, emotional damages and more.
Brain Injury Statistics in San Diego
Across the United States, brain injuries occur every 23 seconds. In San Diego County alone there are more than 11,000 brain injuries every year. These injuries cause incredible difficulties for victims as well as a significant financial strain on the country’s economy. Traumatic brain injuries cost more than $56 billion every year, and more than five million American citizens currently live with a permanent disability due to a brain injury.
What Are Common Types of Brain Injuries?
Though a variety of many different types of brain injuries exist, traumatic brain injuries (TBI) are what commonly occur in negligence-based cases. Traumatic brain injuries involve a jolting blow to the head, which is not characteristic of other forms of head trauma. Common forms of TBI include:
- Concussion – Concussion occurs when the head impacts a hard surface in one location, creating a bruise.
- Coup-contrecoup brain injury – This occurs when an impact causes the contents of the head to shift, slamming into the side of the head opposite of the impact.
- Brain contusion – Brain contusion refers to bruising. This is similar to a concussion, but it does not always stop bleeding on its own. In severe cases, a surgeon must remove them.
- Diffuse Axonal Injury – This occurs when an impact causes the brain to move so vigorously that the brain stem sustains damage. The resulting tears in the brain stem sever certain connections in the brain.
- Second impact syndrome – This refers to a severe injury that results from impacting the brain after it previously sustained damage. A second impact could cause horrific injury, sometimes resulting in permanent brain damage.
Signs of a Brain Injury or TBI
Not all brain injuries are readily apparent, even when caused by an accident with an obvious head injury. An accident victim who has had a closed head injury may not feel symptoms of brain injury immediately. Certain symptoms of brain injury should prompt an immediate evaluation for brain damage, and a subsequent call to an local accident lawyer.
Some symptoms include:
- Headaches
- Confusion
- Blurry vision
- Fatigue
- Dizziness or lack of balance
- Difficulty concentrating
- Diminished senses of hearing, taste or sight, or ringing in the ears
- Vomiting
- Seizures
- Nausea
- Slurred speech
- Unconsciousness
- Loss of coordination
- Inability to find words or convey thoughts
- Paralysis of any body part
- Mood changes
Treatment of brain injuries depends on the severity and cause. Some minor injuries may be monitored closely from their comfort of their homes while others may require emergency surgery or medications including coma-inducing drugs or diuretics. No matter the severity or initial symptoms, people in serious accidents should seek immediate medical attention.