Catastrophic injuries are those that typically leave individuals permanently disabled or impaired. These injury victims may require ongoing medical treatment, assistance with activities of daily living; they also may be unable to work and support themselves. When a catastrophic injury occurs, you may wish to look to an Alexandria catastrophic injury lawyer for assistance.
A compassionate injury attorney may be able to evaluate the facts and circumstances surrounding the accident that led to your injury and determine whether you have any legal claims against those who are responsible. Pursuing available claims may enable you to recoup the costs of your medical expenses and get the continuing treatment that you need.
Defining Catastrophic Injuries
An injury may be catastrophic if it indefinitely impacts the ability of individuals to function as they did prior to the accident. Some common examples of catastrophic injuries include:
- Amputation of limbs
- Traumatic brain injuries
- Neck and spinal cord injuries
- Burn injuries
When a catastrophic injury occurs, injury victims may be unable to perform simple tasks of self-care, such as bathing, dressing, and eating. In some cases, individuals may require 24-hour care or must be confined to a nursing facility. As a result, it may be necessary to get advice from an Alexandria catastrophic injury lawyer who can help them recover damages which could go towards covering treatment.
Negligence and Injuries in Alexandria
Even when accidents are completely unintentional, individuals may have acted in a manner that does not meet a reasonable standard of care, given the circumstances. For instance, if a driver disregards a stop sign, proceeds through an intersection, and strikes another vehicle, thus causing its occupants injuries, that driver probably failed to live up to the requisite duty to obey traffic laws and regulations. This example may qualify as negligence under Louisiana law.
Even those injury victims whose own negligence contributes to the accident and their injuries may have recourse under the principle of comparative negligence. According to La. Civ. Code § 2323, partially at-fault individuals still may seek compensation for their damages from other responsible parties. The law simply limits their ability to recover all of their damages, as any recovery of damages decreases according to the percentage of fault allocated to the claimant.
Damages in Claims
In any personal injury suit, injury victims can seek various types of damages to cover their needs arising from their injuries. These damages may include compensation for:
- Hospital, surgical, and medical bills
- Home health care services
- Current and future loss of income
- Pain, suffering, and emotional distress
These are just a few of the potential losses for which injury victims may seek compensation for. An experienced catastrophic injury lawyer in Alexandria may be able to help you through the process of seeking compensation for your losses.
Pursuant to La. Civ. Code § 3492, catastrophic injury victims have only one year from the date of the accident that resulted in their injuries in which to file a personal injury claim. If individuals miss this deadline, or prescriptive period, then they risk being unable to pursue any legal claims related to their injuries.
Rapides Parish Catastrophic Injury Lawyer
For a free legal consultation with a catastrophic injuries lawyer serving Alexandria, call (318) 777-7777
Defining Catastrophic Injuries
Louisiana law does not define catastrophic injury, but injuries are generally considered catastrophic when they impose severe and long-term and/or permanent disabilities. Catastrophic injuries often leave victims unable to work or care for themselves and their families, leading to emotional and financial stress.
Alexandria Catastrophic Injuries Lawyer Near Me (318) 777-7777
Accidental Amputation
Workplace accidents, as well as collisions involving motor vehicles, boats, pedestrians, or bicyclists, may result in injuries requiring the amputation of an arm or a leg. While prosthetics may be available, they are often expensive and need to be frequently replaced.
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Organ Damage and Internal Bleeding
Even if an accident victim initially seems fine, serious internal injuries may be jeopardizing their health. Impact from an accident, whether an automobile crash or a slip and fall, can damage crucial organs, including the intestines, spleen, stomach, liver, heart, and lungs. Blood loss can lead to shock and organ failure, and infections can be deadly.
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Head Trauma
A healthy brain is crucial to a person’s ability to perform the most basic life functions. Brains control breathing, voluntary movement, organ function, memory, communication, thoughts, and sensory perception. A brain injury can impede any of these processes for life.
Financial and Emotional Impact of Catastrophic Injuries
Catastrophic injuries are also expensive. Victims may be burden with bills from hospitals, medical device providers, home care nurses, rehabilitation, and home modifications. Meanwhile, the injured person may be unable to work.
The physical and financial stress can take an extreme toll on a victim’s mental health, adding depression, anxiety, and more drug and therapy costs to the mounting bills. The impact of all these challenges can be overwhelming and terrifying.
Recovering Damages in Rapides Parish for Catastrophic Injury Victims
Fortunately, a Rapides Parish catastrophic injury attorney could help. Louisiana law allows victims to recover compensation for the full extent of their losses. This compensation falls into two main categories: economic and non-economic damages.
Economic, or special, damages are objective expenses and losses that a victim suffers, including lifelong medical care, lost earnings, pharmaceuticals, therapy, and property damage. Non-economic, or general, damages compensate a plaintiff for pain and suffering, mental distress, disfigurement, loss of enjoyment of life, and loss of consortium.
In limited situations, a Rapides County court may also authorize punitive damages designed to punish a defendant and deter similar future conduct. For example, Louisiana Civil Code Article 2315.4 permits plaintiffs to recover punitive damages from defendants who caused a motor vehicle accident while intoxicated.
Louisiana follows a pure comparative fault system, which means that plaintiffs who are deemed to be partly at fault for their injuries will receive a proportionately reduced damages award.
Contacting an Alexandria Catastrophic Injury Attorney
Suffering catastrophic injuries in an accident can be life-altering. When your injuries arise from an accident caused by the negligence of others, you may be entitled to seek damages from those whose actions caused your injuries. An Alexandria catastrophic injury lawyer may be able to help you obtain any compensation to which you are entitled.
Holding others accountable for their carelessness can be just as important to receiving compensation for your losses. Doing so may help ensure that others must pay for their carelessness.
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