High Ridge Spinal Cord Injury Lawyer

Your spinal cord is a roadway driven by your brain. Together they comprise your central nervous system—your brain signaling areas which are along the spinal cord so your body will react to shared information. This is how your limbs move and how you detect pain. If your spinal cord is damaged, that communication is cut off, and your life will change forever.

After a severe accident, you could be left partially or permanently paralyzed. You may require lifelong medical treatment and expensive changes to your lifestyle, such as refitting your home and vehicle with special equipment. If someone else is responsible for your damages, a skilled catastrophic injury attorney could help. A High Ridge spinal cord injury lawyer could work tirelessly to get you the compensation you will need to adjust to life with your injury.

Activities That Cause Spinal Cord Injuries

Despite the body’s resilience, spinal cord damage can occur in numerous situations—though, most often, they occur in motor vehicle crashes. Auto collisions account for almost half of the head and neck injuries in the United States each year. Of those accidents, drunk driving causes one in four spinal cord injuries.

Spinal cord damage also commonly results from:

• Slip and falls
• Construction accidents
• Violent criminal acts
• Recreational activities
• Professional and school sports

In most of these instances, someone acted irresponsibly and caused an accident that injured another. Slip and falls are likely if spills are not cleaned up at the grocery store. Traumatic injuries to the head and back are possible if high school athletes are not adequately trained or protected. An experienced lawyer in High Ridge will scrutinize the details of an accident that led to a spinal cord injury to determine who should be held responsible.

Evaluating the Full Impact of Spinal Cord Injuries

Those suffering from spinal cord injuries must have the damage assessed because it affects how much compensation they will need to meet their lifetime needs. Doctors first determine where the injury falls along the spinal cord and its completeness. Injuries are incomplete if the patient can move a little or feel sensations. The injury is complete if the patient feels nothing and cannot move the body below the injury. Quadriplegia is considered total body paralysis, while paraplegia is paralysis of the lower body.

The more complete the injury is, the more care a patient will need. A High Ridge spinal cord damage attorney will examine all available evidence, including medical charts, to determine a suitable damages award that will cover all of an injured party’s past and future losses.

Recoverable Damages Following Traumatic Spinal Cord Damage

When a victim’s attorney proves negligence, the jury will compensate that party with economic and non-economic damages. In rare instances, punitive damages may be available. Economic damages are tied to the injured party’s monetary losses, such as wages lost after an accident and accruing medical bills. Non-economic damages put prices on losses such as emotional anguish from being paralyzed, loss of consortium, and disfigurement.

Punitive damages are meant to punish a defendant’s egregious acts. Missouri Revised Statues § 510.261 allows injured parties to request punitive damages if they can clearly prove the defendant intentionally injured them without cause or deliberately disregarded others’ safety. A seasoned legal professional in High Ridge could study a specific spinal cord injury case to determine if punitive damages are appropriate.

Let a High Ridge Spinal Cord Injury Attorney Be Your Advocate

A serious spinal cord injury will alter your life forever. You will have to find new ways of doing things, such as refitting your home and vehicle so you can perform daily tasks. You may also be unable to work your old job or fully enjoy time with your family. If someone else caused you the accident that let you to suffer this harm, you should be compensated for the full-extent of your losses.

A High Ridge spinal cord injury lawyer could be your loyal advocate and represent you with insurance companies or in court, if a lawsuit is your best option. Call today so one of our dedicated attorneys can get started on your claim.