Phoenix Spinal Cord Injury Attorney

Phoenix Spinal Cord Injury Attorney

A spinal cord injury (SCI) is one of the most catastrophic injuries you can suffer in an accident. The odds are overwhelming that you will suffer some paralysis or diminished use of your limbs on a long-term basis. Even if you eventually make a full recovery, it will require long and grueling rehabilitation. How will you pay for the medical treatment you need? Talk to a Phoenix spinal cord injury attorney at Gallagher & Kennedy as soon as you can.

If someone else caused your spinal cord injury, you might be able to hold them legally responsible. Without compensation from the at-fault party, you may not be able to afford the necessary medical care, and your family will lack crucial support if you can no longer provide for them.

Our experienced personal injury lawyers regularly handle high-value catastrophic injury cases. We have a successful track record of recovering the results our clients need, including one recent case where we obtained $10 million for a child suffering life-changing injuries from a car crash. Reach out to our spinal cord injury lawyers today for a free consultation to discuss your case and answer all your questions.

Why Choose Gallagher & Kennedy as Your Phoenix Spinal Cord Injury Lawyers?

The team at Gallagher & Kennedy has over 40 years of experience representing accident victims in Phoenix and across Arizona. Our experienced personal injury lawyers have handled some of the highest-profile cases in Arizona and around the country, with many record-setting verdicts and settlements. We have the experience and resources to face off with insurance companies and major corporations to fight for the compensation our clients need and deserve. Contact us today to discuss your case and your legal options.

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How Accident Trauma Can Cause Spinal Cord Injuries

The spinal cord carries messages from the brain to the rest of the body to control movement. The spine is a series of bones called vertebrae surrounding the spinal cord. Humans are born with 33 vertebrae, although they fuse over time to become 24 bones. The spinal cord runs down the middle of the spinal canal, and the vertebrae protect the spinal cord from injury.

However, acute trauma or impact can cause the spinal cord to bruise or tear. When damaged, the vertebrae can break or compress around the spinal cord, causing extreme pain and permanent injury. The spinal cord is not like many other parts of the body. It does not heal on its own, and if it tears, it does not repair itself.

How Spinal Cord Injuries Can Happen

Here are some of the common causes of spinal cord injuries:

• Car accidents
• Slip and fall accidents
• Sports injuries
• Violence
• Infections
• Bicycle accidents
• Pedestrian accidents
• Motorcycle accidents

What are the Four Primary Types of Conditions Our Spinal Cord Injuries Attorneys Can Handle?

Usually, the higher the injury is on the spinal cord, the more severe the damage. There are four primary kinds of spinal cord injuries:

• Cervical spinal cord injuries – The most severe spinal cord injuries affect the area around the head and neck. The accident victim will lose most or all use of their limbs and may have trouble breathing.
• Thoracic spinal cord injuries – These injuries impact the abdominal and upper back muscles, and the accident victim can usually still use their arms and hands.
• Lumbar spinal cord injuries – Injuries to this spinal cord region impact the hips and legs, and the patient will either be unable to walk or walk with difficulty.
• Sacral spinal cord injuries – As the least severe spinal cord injury, the patient may still have the ability to walk.

Common Spinal Cord Injury Symptoms

SCIs sometimes immediately appear at the accident scene when the victim loses feeling and the ability to use some or all of their limbs. In other cases, the victim will not know the extent of the damage right away.

An accident victim may notice some of these symptoms:

• Loss of movement in part or all of the body
• Weakness in a particular part of the body
• Spams or exaggerated reflexes
• Loss of bladder control
• An intense stinging sensation
• Difficulty breathing

If you or a loved one experiences any of these symptoms following an accident, seek immediate medical treatment. A medical professional can determine the extent of your injuries and recommend treatment, which may include surgery to stabilize the area or remove bone fragments that put pressure on the spinal cord. Seeking medical attention also establishes the injury on your medical records at the time of the accident and proves you are taking your injuries seriously.

Keep in mind that a spinal cord injury patient’s prognosis is not always apparent right after the accident or the initial surgery. The patient may need intensive rehabilitation to see what functions they can regain that were lost it in the wake of the accident. Regardless, the days following a spinal cord injury are sure to be filled with angst, physical difficulties, pain, fear, and uncertainties.

At the same time, you need to consider bringing a legal claim because it may be the only way to receive financial compensation for your injuries. An experienced spinal cord injury lawyer in our Phoenix office can handle all the details for you so you can focus on what is most essential. We know you have a long and challenging road ahead, and our compassionate legal team is here to relieve some of your burden.

Should I Take the Insurance Company’s First Settlement Offer?

When you or a family member suffers a spinal cord injury, you face costly medical treatment. And if you’re unable to work due to the injuries, those bills can add up quickly with no source of income to pay them. The first offer from the insurance company may look like a godsend, but you should never accept an offer without first consulting with a knowledgeable personal injury attorney.

Insurance companies are notorious for short-changing accident victims to protect their own bottom line. If you accept an insufficient offer to settle your case without understanding your claim’s real value, you cannot demand more money in the future if your injuries require more medical treatment than anticipated or if you cannot return to work in the same capacity.

How Much Is My Spinal Cord Injury Claim Worth?

Perhaps the most crucial function that a skilled spinal cord injury attorney can perform is calculating the value of your claim. This calculation takes time and diligence because it includes many considerations. While it may seem scary to lock you into the estimation that your attorney makes now, that is exactly how personal injury cases work.

You only get one opportunity to seek compensation for your injuries, so the money must last for the rest of your life. We can thoroughly evaluate your claim’s value and start the process with a settlement demand that covers all of your anticipated losses.

With that in mind, our injury attorneys may work with experts to understand your current and future situation. Everything begins with your medical diagnosis and prognosis. When spinal cord injuries are involved, your chances of recovery are unknown at the start of your treatment. That is not the time to discuss a settlement.

We can file your claim demand or lawsuit once you have reached the point of maximum medical improvement (MMI). MMI is when a doctor determines that further medical care will not improve your condition. Essentially, it is a plateau in your healing. Before then, you will not know your damages with certainty.

Once you understand what you face, you can begin to seek financial compensation. In the meantime, while you focus on healing and rehabilitation, we can begin investigating your accident and building a strong case to ensure you receive the maximum amount of compensation possible.

How Does a Spinal Cord Injury Lawyer in Phoenix Value Your Claim?

Once our personal injury lawyers understand your prognosis, we may work with certain experts to clarify your present and future condition. Knowledgable professionals that may consult on your case include:

• Medical experts to understand the full extent of your condition and the prognosis for your future.
• Mental health experts to help quantify how your long-term physical injuries can affect your mental condition.
• Vocational experts to explain whether you can work again and what duties you can perform.
• Life care planning experts to determine what activities of daily life you will need assistance with and what you can do on your own.
• Economic experts to calculate future expenses and factor in how inflation may impact the value of your settlement dollars tomorrow (in today’s inflationary environment, we cannot overstate this).

We Know Spinal Cord Injuries Are Expensive

Statistics show the financial struggles families of spinal cord injury patients will encounter.

• Paraplegia can lead to medical expenses exceeding $500,000 in the first year and $75,000 annually afterward. A 25-year-old who suffers from paraplegic injury will incur medical costs of over $2.5 million over the rest of their life.
• Low tetraplegia will incur medical expenses that exceed $840,000 in the first year and $123,000 per year for each year after that. Lifetime medical costs for a 25-year-old who suffers this injury will approach $4 million.
• High tetraplegia will create medical expenses exceeding $1.1 million in the first year and over $200,000 annually afterward. Lifetime medical costs will exceed $5 million.

These figures are just for medical expenses. The accident survivor may need multiple surgeries to stabilize the injured area and possibly help them regain some function. In addition, they will require extensive medical equipment and retrofitting of their home to accommodate their injury.

What Financial Damages Can Our Spinal Cord Injury Attorneys Help You Receive?

The amounts mentioned above do not include any of the indirect costs associated with spinal cord injuries. Accident victims will likely incur other costs, both financial and physical. Our skilled personal injury lawyers can recover compensation for all of these injuries.

Other compensation we can request after an SCI includes:

• Lost income while recovering from your injuries
• Future loss of income if you cannot return to your job in the same capacity
• The costs of home and life care for your daily activities
• Pain and suffering from the physical and emotional impacts of living with this severe injury
• Loss of enjoyment of life compared to the life you lived before the accident
• Scarring and disfigurement
• Other personal losses you suffered from the accident caused by someone else’s negligence

Spinal cord injury cases can result in some of the highest compensation of all personal injury claims. With so much at stake, you need an experienced spinal cord injury attorney who knows how to negotiate the best settlement for you and your family. If the insurance company does not offer you the compensation you deserve, our tenacious attorneys can file a civil lawsuit and take your case to court to persuade a jury to award the full amount you deserve.

What is the Legal Process for a Spinal Cord Injury Claim or Lawsuit?

The legal process after an SCI can be complicated. The stakes cannot be higher because you’re facing mounting medical expenses at the same time when you most likely cannot work due to your injuries and, thus, you’re not earning money on your own. Dealing with an aggressive insurance company and the person or entity who caused your injuries can feel overwhelming since they are only focused on self-protection, not paying you what you deserve.

Injury claims are complex and highly technical in nature. Like every other personal injury case, you must prove that someone else’s negligence caused your injuries before you will receive a settlement offer or a jury award. Negligence is defined as “the failure to behave with the level of care that a reasonable person would have exercised under the same circumstances.”

For example, if you have suffered an injury in a car accident, the negligence could occur when the other driver runs a red light and T-bones your car at an intersection. A driver who fails to stop and hits a pedestrian in a crosswalk can also be found legally negligent.

How Can a Phoenix Spinal Cord Injury Lawyer Can Help Me?

Negligence requires legal proof to explain precisely how the other party is to blame for your accident and why they should pay for your injuries in a claim or lawsuit. Finding this proof and building a solid case is time-consuming and complicated. You should not try to handle your own legal case when your health and long-term physical future hang in the balance.

Also, the at-fault party will likely have a team of insurance adjusters and defense lawyers working hard to reduce or deny your claim. This is why you need an experienced, diligent, and trusted personal injury lawyer in your corner, fighting for your rights.

A skilled spinal cord injury attorney in our Phoenix office will investigate the accident, gather evidence, hire expert witnesses (if needed), consider all liable parties, and value your claim. We will negotiate for full compensation from the insurance company, and if it refuses to offer fair compensation, we can file a spinal cord injury lawsuit in civil court on your behalf.

To learn more about what we have done for other injury clients and what we can do for you, take a look at our client testimonials.

Contact the Phoenix Spinal Cord Injury Attorneys at Gallagher & Kennedy Today

We understand an injury involving your spinal cord is a grave matter that can affect you for the rest of your life. The compassionate and dedicated personal injury lawyers at Gallagher & Kennedy are here to fight the legal battle necessary to obtain the compensation you deserve. We’ll always offer realistic and objective advice as we advocate for you.

Our mission is to help accident victims receive the justice and the money they deserve. Your case is our cause. Always.

To begin the legal process, call our office at (602) 530-8400 or fill out our online contact form for your free initial consultation. With no upfront expenses, you won’t pay legal fees unless we successfully resolve your case. Let’s talk today.

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Gallagher Kennedy – Phoenix Office

2575 E Camelback Rd, Suite 1100
Phoenix, AZ 85016
Tel: (602) 530-8400