A spinal cord injury is one of the most life-altering diagnoses you can receive, with long-term implications for all aspects of life, from earning potential and the ability to accomplish routine daily tasks to impacts on your personal relationships.
When the accident was caused by someone else’s careless, reckless, or wrongful actions—all examples of legal negligence—it’s even more devastating.
If you or a close family member has suffered a spinal cord injury, contact a Henderson personal injury attorney at Bay Law Accident Attorneys for the experienced legal representation you need for favorable results when they matter most.
Why Select Bay Law for Your Spinal Cord Injury Case In Henderson?
The experienced attorneys at Bay Law understand the impact of a spinal cord injury on you and your family. Bay Law is dedicated to legal advocacy for injury victims when they suffer life-altering injuries through no fault of their own.
Let Bay Law bring the following advantages to your case:
- Years of experience navigating injury law in Nevada
- An approach that combines compassion with bold, assertive action for the most favorable results
- An attorney dedicated to personalizing a strategy for an outcome that aligns with your goals, and the backing of an entire legal team and staff
Bay Law offers a free case consultation and contingency-based payment, so your lawyer works for you at no upfront fees and only gets paid after recovering your compensation.
What You Need to Know About Spinal Cord Injuries
The spinal column surrounds and protects the delicate nerves of the spinal cord. However, a severe blow, twist, or overextension injury can cause nerves to tear or the protective discs to shatter, leaving the spinal cord vulnerable to injury from sharp shards of bone, swelling, and internal bleeding.
Spinal cord nerves conduct messages back and forth from the brain. When nerves are damaged or severed, messages cannot pass beyond the point of injury. Injuries at the lower vertebral level result in loss of sensation and motion in the lower limbs, often with sexual dysfunction as well, depending on the location of the injury.
Injuries at higher levels of the spinal cord result in greater dysfunction. Injuries of the cervical spine in the neck cause total paralysis of the upper and lower limbs and typically result in complete dependence on adaptive equipment and full-time care.
Who is Liable for Your Spinal Cord Injury?
When a catastrophic injury, such as a spinal cord injury, occurs due to someone else’s negligence, you have a right to full and fair compensation for your damages. The liable party in your case depends on which individual, business, or other entity’s negligent actions resulted in your injury.
Common liable parties in Henderson spinal cord injury cases include:
- An at-fault driver after a car accident, pedestrian accident, or bicycle accident
- A trucking company
- A negligent commercial property owner
- A negligent government entity, such as a city transit system
- Employers, contractors, and subcontractors
- The manufacturer of a defective product
- A doctor or surgeon who commits malpractice
There are many other possibilities for liability depending on how the injury occurred. Proving liability requires demonstrating through the evidence that the at-fault party owed a duty of reasonable care to the injury victim, breached this duty through negligence, and that the negligent breach directly caused the injury.
Finally, it’s also necessary to show a carefully calculated list of past, current, and future damages suffered by the injury victim.
Damages That May Be Available To You After A Spinal Cord Injury In Henderson
The life-altering consequences of a spinal cord injury mean that these cases result in extensive economic and non-economic damages. Common damages recovered in Henderson spinal cord injury cases include:
- Past and future medical expenses
- Costs of mobility equipment and adaptive equipment for the home and vehicle
- Home health aid costs
- Out-of-pocket expenses
- Lost earnings and future income loss
- Reduced earning capacity
- Compensation for pain and suffering
Because a spinal cord injury is considered catastrophic, additional compensation may be available for loss of enjoyment of life, diminished quality of life, loss of consortium, and emotional damages such as PTSD, anxiety, or depression.
Fault and Comparative Negligence in Nevada
Nevada’s fault-based injury laws require assertive action to prove the full extent of someone else’s liability. The modified comparative negligence system requires insurance companies to investigate accidents and injuries to assign a percentage of fault to all involved.
For instance, after a car accident, they could consider a driver who ran a red light 100% at fault. But if the injured motorist was speeding when the accident occurred, the insurance company could assign them 25% of the fault. This reduces the payout on their claim by 25%.
Under this system, an injury victim who shares fault for their injury may still recover compensation as long as they are no more than 50% at fault.
How Can An Attorney Help You After A Spinal Cord Injury?
A proactive spinal cord injury lawyer safeguards your best interests by preventing the insurance company from assigning you an undue portion of fault to protect their profits. Your attorney will investigate all aspects of the injury, document compelling evidence of the at-fault party’s liability, and consult with medical experts to carefully calculate your total damages, maximizing your financial recovery.
Then, your lawyer negotiates with the insurance company, tirelessly arguing for the largest possible settlement for your damages.
How Long Do I Have to File a Claim After a Spinal Cord Injury in Nevada?
Like all states, Nevada limits the time frame after an accident during which an injury victim may file a personal injury claim. This statute of limitations expires two years from the date of the injury.
Some exceptions may apply in cases such as the following when the court extends the time limit:
- If an injury victim is incapacitated or unconscious for some time after the injury, the statute of limitations begins on the date they regain cognitive ability
- If an injury victim discovers the cause of their injury later (such as learning that a spinal cord injury was caused by medical malpractice), the statute of limitations begins on the date of discovery
- If an injury victim is a minor when the injury occurs, they have up to two years after their 18th birthday to file a claim
This ensures that evidence remains available and eyewitness testimony is still reliable if the case goes to court. It also protects defendants against the long-term threat of a lawsuit.
Reach Out to a Spinal Cord Injury Attorney in Henderson About Your Claim
Recovering from a spinal cord injury and adapting to the life-altering impacts requires your full time and attention to reach the maximum medical improvement for your condition.
Contact us at Bay Law Injury Attorneys for prompt action on your behalf from a team of dedicated legal advocates who prioritize your best interests throughout every step of your spinal cord injury claim.