Florida Spinal Cord Injury Lawyers

Spinal injuries are some of the most severe injuries a victim can experience from an accident. Depending on the severity, a spinal cord injury victim can incur up to millions of dollars in medical bills and a long-term effect on the quality of life.

If you or a loved one has unfortunately ended up with a severe spine injury, we, as spinal cord injury attorneys, can help you with your financial pain and suffering. Here is everything you need to know about spinal cord injuries and what you can do to obtain compensation for an accident.

What Causes Spinal Cord Injuries

A spinal cord injury occurs in one of three ways:

Car Accidents – This is the most common cause of spinal cord injuries and makes up nearly half of all spinal cord injury cases. Whiplash is one common spinal injury from motor vehicle accidents when the neck jerks forward or backward too abruptly.

Slips and Falls – This is the second most common cause and accounts for about 15% of all spinal cord injuries. This cause often happens in households and public places.

Medical Malpractice – This is when a doctor fails to improve your physical condition and worsens your spinal cord damage out of negligence.

The resulting spine injuries are categorized into two main types:

• Complete spinal cord injury – This injury usually leads to lower body paralysis. Extensive physiotherapy can help patients develop feelings in the body again.
• Incomplete spinal cord injury – The injuries are severe but still possible to recover through extensive treatment.

However it happens, the injured person is usually left with a high financial cost. The average cost of spinal cord treatment totals between $15,000 and $30,000 every year. Furthermore, the lifetime costs total as much as $3,000,000. Most spinal cord injury victims don’t have the insurance to cover every medical expense and are unable to work. As a result, they lose out on income due to long-term damage.

How to Choose a Spinal Cord Injury Lawyer in Florida

Picking the right spinal cord injury attorney is a serious decision because you can’t afford to miss out on compensation to pay off your medical expenses. You want to look for these traits in a spinal cord injury lawyer:

• They should have extensive knowledge of the laws surrounding spinal cord injuries.
• They must be aggressive enough to fight for millions of dollars in medical compensation.
• To build your case, they must have connections with medical teams, accident reconstruction experts, and forensic specialists.
• Find a personal injury law firm that provides a free case evaluation to get your questions answered with no strings attached. Be sure that the firm works on a contingent fee basis. That means you won’t be charged for an attorney’s services until you get the outcome you’re looking for.

What are Your Legal Rights After a Spinal Cord Injury?

You have the right to make a spinal cord injury claim if you can prove someone injured your spine due to their failure to meet a legal duty. These are the questions you must be able to answer when making your case:

• Who was the at-fault person?
• What was the legal obligation they had to fulfill to keep you safe?
• Was your spine injured as a result of their negligence?
• If so, describe the extent of your injury in terms of all costs.

How to Prove Fault After a Florida Spinal Cord Injury Accident

You must be able to demonstrate these four criteria to prove someone contributed to your injury:

• Duty of Care – Proving the at-fault person had legal responsibility for their care and safety (see section 768.0755).
• Breach in Duty of Care – Proving the at-fault person, whether intentional, neglected that responsibility for your safety.
• Causation – Proving the person’s negligence caused the accident that resulted in your injuries and expenses.
• Damages – Proving you incurred damages as a result of your injuries.

However, you don’t have to worry about this if you hire an experienced personal injury lawyer. They’ll work with medical teams, accident reconstruction experts, and forensic specialists to make a compelling case in court.

Who is Considered Liable for Your Spinal Cord Injury?

It highly depends on where and how the injury happened. That’s because many parties may be responsible for your spine injuries. 

In a household accident, the homeowner is responsible due to premises liability. Homeowners are required to warn their guests of any known dangers in their homes. Most homeowner insurance companies provide coverage for spinal cord injury claims. The victim can file a personal injury claim with the homeowner’s insurance carrier. It’s better than filing personal injury lawsuits directly against the responsible party.

Premises liability can also apply to spine injuries resulting from a slip and fall in a public place or business. Public venue managers are responsible for warning their guests of these dangers. Store owners have an ever greater responsibility because they invite customers into their stores for business.

In medical malpractice, doctors owe patients a legal standard of care. That’s why a doctor who fails to meet medical standards can face negligence allegations from an injured patient.

In a car accident, the at-fault driver is legally obligated to compensate spinal cord injury victims in the car accident. As a result, the at-fault driver’s insurance carrier is contractually obligated to pay accident victims for injuries and losses.

How to Get Compensated After a Florida Spinal Cord Injury Accident

First, you must determine who is legally responsible for your injuries, especially when multiple people contributed. It can get complicated because insurance companies often try to deny liability when they have someone else to blame.

Then you have to prove the total value of your personal injury claim. Consider future earning potential, medical bills, pain, and suffering from your injury.

Remember that insurance adjusters are trained to reduce your claim value to meet the company’s bottom line. Suppose an insurance adjuster still refuses to offer you a fair spinal cord injury settlement. In this case, an experienced injury attorney can file a lawsuit on your behalf and dispute the claim as necessary in court.

Get Started With A Free Consultation

You don’t have to fight this battle alone when you’re already in so much physical pain and suffering. If you’re looking for a spinal cord injury attorney in Florida, contact us at Denmon Pearlman Personal Injury Law Firm for a free consultation, so our legal team can fight for fair compensation in this difficult time. We have offices in Brooksville, New Port Richey, St. Petersburg, and Tampa.

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