TBI, or traumatic brain injury, is a serious personal injury that can leave the victim with deadly complications. As a result, a person’s life can be drastically altered, depending on the severity of the injury. They can leave people with physical, emotional, and psychological burdens. If you or a loved one suffered a brain injury, seek medical care immediately. If the accident that caused the injury wasn’t your fault, you may be owed compensation.

Traumatic brain injuries can leave victims with great pain and even greater medical bills. If you or a loved one suffered a traumatic brain injury due to someone else’s negligent behavior, don’t hesitate to contact a Chula Vista personal injury lawyer from OnderLaw by calling today. 

Causes of Traumatic Brain Injuries

Traumatic brain injuries occur from a violent blow to the head, typically by an object or external force. In some cases, a traumatic brain injury occurs when an object pierces brain tissue. There are many incidents a traumatic brain injury can stem from, including:

  • Motor vehicle crashes. Collisions involving motor vehicles such as cars, motorcycles, and 18-wheelers are often contributors to brain injuries. The impact of a wreck can cause significant injuries and blunt force head trauma.
  • Slip and falls. TBI can result from any kind of slip and fall accident, from slipping on a wet floor to falling down a broken escalator.
  • Nursing home abuse. If your loved one is the victim of physically violent elder abuse, TBI can result.
  • Explosions. Explosive blasts can cause a traumatic brain injury within seconds. This can include shrapnel piercing the skull or the blast affecting the head.
  • Construction accidents. Objects falling from above or a person falling onto debris or dangerous surfaces can cause traumatic brain injury.

 

Whether it’s caused by an accident, violence, or any other circumstance, a traumatic brain injury is devastating and can lead to dire consequences. In some cases, a traumatic brain injury may take days or weeks to appear. It’s important to pay attention to the key symptoms that come with a traumatic brain injury. If you experience any of these symptoms following a blow to the head, see a doctor immediately:

  • Headaches
  • Dizziness
  • Confusion
  • Nausea
  • Slurred speech
  • Personality changes
  • Changes in mood
  • Memory loss

 

Many traumatic brain injury symptoms can affect your ability to go about your regular life, such as going to work, school, or other activities. If the effects are significant, you may require assistance to perform daily activities or require a wheelchair to get around.

Types of Traumatic Brain Injuries

There are many different kinds of traumatic brain injuries, all of which can range from minor to fatal. See below the types of traumatic brain injuries people may sustain:

  • Coup-Contrecoup Brain Injury: An injury that occurs when the brain slams into the opposite side of the impact site. It results in two different damage sites.
  • Concussion: Often known as a mild traumatic brain injury, a concussion is a sudden blow to the head. It causes the brain to shake within the skull.
  • Contusion: Also known as a bruise, a contusion is a brain bleed.
  • Diffuse Axonal Injury: This injury is a severe form of a concussion. It involves tears within the connecting fibers in the brain. Shaken Baby Syndrome is a form of this kind of injury.
  • Penetrating Injury: A penetrating injury happens when an external object penetrates the brain. Think of a gunshot or a shard of glass from a windshield in a car accident. These injuries can be fatal.

Compensation for a TBI Claim

If you or a loved one suffered a traumatic brain injury, it’s important to file a claim with the insurance company. However, the insurance company will do all that they can to make sure they are protected. This includes making a lowball settlement offer to you in an attempt to have you settle your claim as quickly as possible. That is, they want to get you to accept a small amount before you talk to an attorney who can tell you what your case is really worth.

Don’t let the insurance company take advantage of you. A traumatic brain injury lawyer will make sure you and your rights are protected. They will carefully build your claim and speak with adjusters for you, so you or your loved one can focus on recovery.

In severe cases, there may be no full recovery for victims. In some cases, a traumatic brain injury results in death. If there is only partial recovery, the victim may require around-the-clock, lifelong care. Because of this, financial compensation for these damages may extend beyond what the insurance company can give you. A lawyer can take your case to trial and fight to obtain the maximum compensation you deserve.

Compensation in personal injury cases is referred to as “damages.” There are two kinds of damages a person can recover after a traumatic brain injury: economic damages and non-economic damages.

  • Economic damages: Economic damages are monetary losses that can be verified. This includes medical expenses, loss of earnings, costs of repair or replacement of property, costs of obtaining substitute domestic services, loss of wages and employment, and more.
  • Non-economic damages: Non-economic damages are damages that can’t be easily quantified. This includes pain and suffering, emotional distress, mental suffering, loss of society and companionship, loss of consortium, injury to reputation and humiliation, inconvenience, and more.

In the state of California, there is no formula for calculating non-economic damages. This is why you need one of the experienced lawyers from OnderLaw . With our years of experience, we can help you arrive at an accurate assessment of the value of your case. In negotiations with the insurance companies, we can insist on what we know to be the true value of the case.

Since each case is different, compensation will vary from case to case. The factors that may influence the amount of compensation you’re eligible to obtain include the duration or severity of the injuries, the manner in which the injuries affect the victim’s life or the victim’s family’s lives, and the total recovery from the injury. There is no cap on compensation for non-economic damages.

Proving Negligence in California / Statute of Limitations on Personal Injury lawsuits

In California, everyone has a duty to act in a reasonable way that prevents harming others. When we take your case to court, your OnderLaw lawyer will need to show that the at-fault party didn’t act in that way. We’ll show that their failure to act caused the accident, that you were injured in that accident, and that your injury caused you to experience losses. When someone acts carelessly and causes others harm, they are negligent.

If you can show negligence, you can usually recover compensation.

It’s important to note that there’s a timeframe for filing a lawsuit to obtain compensation for a traumatic brain injury. This timeframe is known as a statute of limitations. In the state of California, the statute of limitations for traumatic brain injury ranges from one to two years, starting at the day the incident or accident occurred. For nearly all lawsuits, it is two years from the date of the injury. If the injury was not discovered immediately, then you have one year from the date of discovery to file a lawsuit with the courts.

Should you fail to file a lawsuit by the date the statute of limitations expires, your case will likely be dismissed. You will lose your right to pursue compensation for your injuries in court. 

Chula Vista Accident Statistics

 A variety of traumatic brain injury accidents occur every year. These injuries can manifest after falls, motor vehicle accidents, explosions, and more.

Chula Vista is one of the top cities in San Diego County. In 2019, San Diego County released a report of all the accidents that occurred in the area that coincide with a possible brain injury. Below is a list of accident statistics that came from the report: 

  • 49 percent of people suffered Blunt Head Trauma/Subdural Hemorrhage from an accidental fall.
  • 86 accidents that resulted in death occurred in Chula Vista alone.
  • 1664 people suffered a death from an accident, 545 females and 1119 males.
  • There were 301 motor-vehicle accidents that resulted in death in San Diego County. 

 

Why Do I Need a Lawyer?

A brain injury is a life-altering event that requires immediate legal action. From medical expenses to loss of wages to ongoing care, you’re left with a massive financial burden that you never asked for. Don’t let your brain injury accident go unnoticed. Contact a traumatic brain injury lawyer from OnderLaw as soon as possible.

The trusted lawyers at OnderLaw have the legal expertise and knowledge to make sure you get the compensation you deserve. From speaking with insurance companies to negotiating settlements to going to trial, we will work to give you the successful outcome you deserve in your brain injury case. Don’t hesitate to contact us today.

Contact OnderLaw Today

If you suffered a traumatic brain injury in an accident, call the Chula Vista personal injury attorneys at OnderLaw today. Don’t wait to seek the legal help you deserve. The aggressive legal team at OnderLaw will make sure you get the attention you require for your brain injury case.

We work on a contingency fee basis, which means you don’t pay until we get money for you. Connect with the successful traumatic brain injury lawyers at OnderLaw so you can seek compensation for your TBI. Call us today.