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If you or a loved one have experienced a painful spinal cord injury to due another’s negligence, contact the West Virginia spinal cord injury lawyers at the Manchin Injury Law Group today.
The spinal cord is one of the most important parts of our bodies. A spinal cord injury is one of the most serious injuries from which an individual can suffer. After experiencing a spinal cord injury, an accident victim is usually paralyzed and experiences a lifetime of limitations. While some therapies and aggressive treatments can help a spinal cord injury victim regain some function, many spinal cord injury victims are faced with a lifetime in a wheelchair or other restricted mobility.
At Manchin Injury Law Group, PLLC, our experienced spinal cord injury lawyers in West Virginia can help you pick up the pieces after a serious accident. We will guide you through the legal process from start to finish as a spinal cord injury survivor. Find out how we can help during a free consultation at our local law office.
Quadriplegia and paraplegia change one’s life in multiple ways. Typical work activities may no longer be possible as one is faced with new disabilities. Parents and spouses oftentimes become caregivers. New and ongoing expenses arise.
In addition to emergency medical treatment, follow-up medical care and rehabilitation therapies, a spinal cord injury victim often is faced with new expenses. In addition to a wheelchair, a person may need a lift to move around their home, and a modified van to travel to and from treatments. People with spinal cord injuries also often need a personal caregiver for several hours a day to assist with activities of daily living. Proving these future expenses often requires the use of a life-care planner. Our attorneys have been using these experts for many years.
We can help you prove all of the costs that you have related to your injury, as well as pursue maximum financial compensation from a powerful defendant. Our West Virginia spinal injury attorneys can investigate your accident, collect proof of fault and go up against any defendant on your behalf. We will do what it takes to help you move forward.
A spinal cord injury, also referred to as an SCI, describes any damage to the bones, nerves and cells that make up the spinal cord – the part of the body that sends and receives signals from the brain. It can refer to an injury that directly impacts the spine itself or its surrounding tissues, fluids and nerves. A spinal cord injury can cause many symptoms, some of which are temporary, while others are permanent. Common symptoms include:
If you suffer any type of trauma to your back, neck, head or spine, see a doctor right away. You may notice symptoms immediately or they may start to appear later as swelling and bleeding around your spine worsens and causes problems. Either way, seeing a doctor is critical, as waiting for treatment can lead to a more severe injury and related complications. If you can, restrict your movements until help arrives.
Damages is the legal term for the financial compensation that is available to a filing party or plaintiff in a personal injury claim. It is important to understand damages and the value of your spinal cord injury claim. This will allow you to negotiate with an insurance company for a fair settlement rather than accepting less than you deserve. Although each case is unique, the damages available stay relatively the same. Claimants in West Virginia can seek both economic and noneconomic damages, including:
The value of your claim could be significant depending on the extent of your injury. If you have a catastrophic spinal cord injury, for example, a defendant may owe you for a lifetime of medical care and other losses. If a loved one died due to complications from a spinal cord injury, you may be eligible for wrongful death damages in West Virginia, as well. These damages could pay for your family’s funeral and burial costs, lost earnings from the decedent, loss of love and companionship, mental anguish, the decedent’s pain and suffering, and more.
In West Virginia, if someone else caused or substantially contributed to your spinal cord injury, you may be able to hold that person liable, or financially responsible, for the injury and your related losses. You could file a personal injury claim based on the legal doctrine of negligence, for example, if an individual or entity failed to treat you with a reasonable or appropriate amount of care, and this caused your injury.
Most personal injury claims are based on the legal theory of negligence. Other grounds for a claim are strict liability and breach of warranty. You may be able to hold multiple parties liable for your spinal injury based on any of these legal theories. Often, the liable party is the one that broke a law or violated a duty of care – an obligation not to cause you harm. If the breach of duty caused your spine injury, you can hold the at-fault party liable. The defendant in your case could be a:
Determining liability for a spinal injury often requires an investigation of the accident that led to the injury. An investigation can find proof of negligence, recklessness or intent to harm that places liability with one or more defendants. If you are not sure who to name as the defendant(s) in your spinal cord injury lawsuit, an attorney can assist you. An attorney from Manchin Injury Law Group can revisit the scene of your injury, speak to eyewitnesses, analyze police reports and take other steps to help you understand liability in your case.
You are already dealing with enough expenses as a spinal cord injury survivor. It is normal not to want to spend a great deal of money on hiring an attorney during a spinal cord injury claim. At Manchin Injury Law Group, we operate on a contingency fee basis. This is a payment arrangement where we do not ask you to pay anything upfront in attorney’s fees. Instead of paying out of pocket, you will only pay if and when we win your case. If we don’t win, you won’t pay. If we do win, we will charge our fees as a pre-agreed upon percentage of the overall award won.
Many different types of accidents can cause harm to the spinal cord or spinal column. Its vertebrae, ligaments, disks and nerves can sustain damage from any type of blunt-force trauma, as well as from penetrating injuries, such as a gunshot wound. A sudden blow to the spine can cause fractures, spinal cord compression or dislocations, while penetrating injuries can sever the spinal cord. Some of the most common causes of spine injuries in West Virginia are:
These are also common types of personal injury claims. This means that if you or a loved one suffered a spinal cord injury in any of these circumstances, you could be eligible for financial compensation from the at-fault party. If a negligent or reckless driver caused a car accident that gave you a spinal cord injury, for example, you could bring a claim against the driver for financial recovery. A West Virginia spinal injury lawyer from Manchin Injury Law Group can help you determine if you have grounds for a spinal cord injury claim.
When a patient arrives at a hospital with symptoms that match a spinal cord injury, a doctor will use a physical evaluation and imaging tests, such as x-rays or CT scans, to diagnose the injury. The official diagnosis will be as specific as possible based on the information gathered by the doctor. The diagnosis will describe the type, location and severity of the injury, as well as give the patient’s prognosis for the future. A doctor will classify the type of injury in the following ways:
Within these categories, the specific type of spinal cord injury could be a concussion, bruise, fracture, soft-tissue injury, dislocation, nerve damage or paralysis. Ask your doctor for as many details as possible about your spinal cord injury diagnosis and treatment options. Although serious spinal cord injuries are irreversible, there are treatments available to improve a patient’s independence and quality of living. These treatments include surgery, medications, physical therapy and rehabilitation.
Every year, thousands of new spinal cord injuries are diagnosed in the United States. It is important for organizations such as the National Spinal Cord Injury Statistics Center (NSCISC) to keep track of spinal cord injury data so we can better understand these injuries and what causes them, as well as how to prevent them. The following are highlights from NSCISC’s spinal cord injury fact sheet for 2021:
For more facts and information about spinal cord injuries in general, such as how they tend to impact a victim throughout his or her life, or for legal advice about your specific spinal cord injury lawsuit, arrange a free consultation at Manchin Injury Law Group.
Consulting with a skilled spinal cord injury attorney in West Virginia after suffering a spinal cord injury can help you pursue maximum available compensation to assist in life’s new difficulties. Whether you were injured in a car accident, a coal mining accident or some other accident, the West Virginia accident lawyers at the Manchin Injury Law Group can be your most valuable resource.
At the Manchin Injury Law Group in Fairmont, our injury attorneys work on a contingency fee basis. This means we do not get paid unless we obtain results for you. If you or a loved one has suffered a spinal cord injury, contact one of our West Virginia lawyers today by calling (304) 367-1862 so you don’t have to stand alone.
Talk to our Fairmont lawyers about your personal injury or wrongful death claim today by contacting us online, or by calling us at (304) 367-1862.
We offer a free initial consultation at our office in the Manchin Professional Building — our home since 1983 — conveniently located in Fairmont.
If you are unable to visit our firm, we can come to your home or hospital room.
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