A brain injury is unlike most other kinds of injuries. The effects of a brain injury may be felt throughout the body and come with long-term or lifelong consequences.
Car accidents and other sources of trauma might cause traumatic brain injuries. A brain injury might also occur because you were deprived of oxygen for too long. Determining liability requires analyzing how the injuries occurred. Another driver, an attacker, or a doctor could be liable, depending on the case. Brain injury survivors can often claim significant damages, including medical bills and damages for their deep pain and suffering. To prove your claim, we need evidence. Medical records and expert testimony are crucial, and any other evidence that connects the defendant to the injuries will be important.
If you or someone you love experienced a brain injury, the person or people responsible should be held accountable. Call our Queens brain injury lawyers for a free case review. Call The Carrion Law Firm at (718) 841-0083.
Possible Causes of Brain Injuries in Queens
While many brain injuries are caused by physical trauma, they can also be caused by a doctor’s negligence. You should speak to your doctor about how your brain injury occurred so that they can provide the best treatment possible. You should also contact our Queens brain injury attorneys about taking legal action against the person who caused the injuries.
Auto Accidents
Car accidents are rather common, and people may experience numerous injuries. Traumatic brain injuries are not too unusual in car accident cases. A brain injury might happen if your head is slammed against the steering wheel or dashboard or some object in the car hits your head. Concussions are common brain injuries in car accidents and often come with intense pain and long-lasting effects on the plaintiff.
Lack of Oxygen or Suffocation
Another potential cause of brain injuries is being deprived of oxygen. Although these kinds of accidents might seem farfetched, they are more common than people realize. One of the most common reasons people experience brain injuries from suffocation is in near-drowning accidents. You could also experience brain damage if you were strangled, either by accident or by an attacker.
Medical Malpractice
Medical malpractice can also lead to brain injuries. Many brain injury cases related to medical malpractice are birth injuries where infants are born with serious brain injuries. There are numerous possible causes of birth injuries, and doctors are responsible for preventing them or treating them so that children do not grow up with brain damage or disabilities.
Determining Who is Liable for a Brain Injury in Queens
Determining who is liable for your brain injuries requires that we examine how the injuries happened and who played a role. In particularly complicated accidents or incidents, it might be difficult to identify the person responsible. Our Queens brain injury lawyers can parse through the case details to determine who you should sue for damages.
The Other Driver
We can help you file a lawsuit against the other driver if you were injured in a car accident. Keep in mind that New York is a no-fault insurance state for auto accidents, and drivers must file insurance claims with their own no-fault policies instead of the other drivers’.
In addition, New York requires that plaintiffs meet the “serious injury” requirement to sue for non-economic damages after filing a no-fault claim. Brain injuries often satisfy this requirement because they are ongoing injuries that can significantly limit a person’s functioning.
An Assailant or Attacker
If your brain injury stems from an act of violence, you can sue the attacker. For example, if someone tried to strangle you and the lack of oxygen caused a brain injury, you can sue the assailant. Similarly, if someone struck your head when they attempted to rob you, they can be held civilly liable for your brain injuries. Remember, these people are likely to face criminal charges, and your civil lawsuit might be delayed until the criminal proceedings are complete.
Your Doctor
Doctors may also be held responsible for brain injuries caused in the course of medical care. In many cases, brain injuries occur during birth. This might be from trauma during delivery or complications that a doctor failed to catch in time.
Other Common Accidents
A brain injury might be caused by numerous accidents other than those mentioned above. For example, a simple slip and fall accident could cause a brain injury if someone landed on their head. Sports injuries can also cause brain injuries, especially in high-contact sports like football. Military servicemembers injured in combat zones or people who work with explosives also might experience brain injuries.
Possible Damages You Might Claim in a Brain Injury Case in Queens
Damages in brain injury cases can be very high, especially if your brain injury leaves you needing long-term care or a permanent disability. It can be easy to lose track of certain damages, and our Queens brain injury lawyers can help you accurately calculate them.
Economic Damages
Economic damages are related to money you lost or spent because of your injuries. In brain injury cases, the bulk of economic damages is often medical bills. Brain injuries are very complex and often require extensive medical treatment. As such, costly medical bills can be added to your economic damages. If you cannot return to work because of your injuries, you can claim the value of your lost income and lost future income.
Non-Economic Damages
Non-economic damages are somewhat harder to pin down as they are not connected to an exact amount of money. Common examples of non-economic injuries include pain, suffering, humiliation, and reduced quality of life. People who experience brain injuries experience not only intense physical pain but also intense emotional trauma. Brain injuries often leave people disabled and unable to live as they used to, which takes a deep emotional toll.
Proving Liability in Brain Injury Cases in Queens
Proving your claims in a lawsuit will almost certainly require introducing your medical records as evidence. Medical records are important for several reasons. First, these official records lend credibility to your arguments because experienced doctors and medical professionals compile them. Second, brain injuries are often complicated, and medical records are necessary to fully explain to the jury the full extent of your injuries.
To explain your condition and medical records, we need an expert witness. An expert witness is not an eyewitness, and they do not have to have a direct connection to the case. Instead, an expert is someone with qualified scientific knowledge who can explain things that might be over the heads of ordinary jurors. Your doctor can testify about your condition and explain how it happened and your prognosis. Experts can also offer their opinion on whether the defendant caused the injuries.
Call Our Queens Brain Injury Lawyers for a Free Case Review
If you or someone you know recently suffered a brain injury, our Queens brain injury attorneys can help you get compensation from the people responsible. For a free case review, call The Carrion Law Firm at (718) 841-0083.