Many traumatic brain injuries (TBIs) happen as the result of a genuine accident. In some cases, however, they may be caused by someone behaving recklessly or negligently.
If you suffer a TBI under these circumstances, a traumatic brain injury lawyer can help you file a legal claim. TBIs can cost hundreds of thousands of dollars in treatments over time, and the financial support you stand to receive from a settlement can make adjusting to life with a major injury a little less challenging.
But while many people understand the necessity of filing personal injury claims on some level, not everyone understands exactly what the claims process entails. Here’s a closer look at what you can expect if you choose to file a traumatic brain injury claim.
What Is a Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI)?
A traumatic brain injury is a head injury that causes trauma to the brain. It’s a very broad term — TBIs can range from mild concussions to serious damage that can result in coma or death. There are two major categories of TBI:
- Penetrating TBI: Caused when an object (like a bullet or piece of metal) breaks through the skull and enters the brain
- Non-Penetrating TBI: Caused by an external force that strikes the head but doesn’t break through the skull
Traumatic brain injuries can be difficult to understand (and sometimes to diagnose and treat) because the symptoms can vary widely depending on what part of the brain is affected. Broadly speaking, TBIs can include symptoms like:
- Loss of consciousness
- Memory issues
- Issues with thinking and problem-solving
- Trouble sleeping or sleeping more than normal
- Feeling confused, dizzy, or disoriented
- Uncharacteristic mood swings or mood changes
It’s important to seek medical attention anytime you suffer a major blow to the head. Even serious TBIs sometimes don’t show symptoms right away, and if you want to preserve your chances of a strong recovery, early treatment is a necessity. It’s possible to recover completely from some TBIs, but others can lead to lifelong impairment.
Understanding Traumatic Brain Injury Claims
When you book a consultation with a traumatic brain injury lawyer, your lawyer can help you through the process of filing a claim. Filing a traumatic brain injury claim means going through the legal system in an attempt to recover compensation for an injury.
Typically, a claim starts with your lawyer negotiating with the insurance companies representing the responsible party or parties. This process often leads to an insurance company offering a certain amount of money (called a “settlement”). If a fair settlement can’t be reached, your case will go to trial, meaning it will be decided in a courtroom.
The Traumatic Brain Injury Claims Process
Any traumatic brain injury lawyer can tell you that the claims process tends to be long, complex, and stressful. The above overview is a very general one — there are many smaller steps that go into a successful claim.
Consultation With a Personal Injury Attorney
Successful personal injury cases all start with the same thing: quality legal representation. During your initial consultation, your attorney will go over the facts of your case with you and tell you whether your claim is likely to be successful. If so, you and your lawyer can then develop a game plan.
Determining the Extent of Your Injuries
Insurance companies are motivated to pay out as little as possible. In order to have a strong claim, it’s necessary to work with medical experts who can verify the cause, nature, and severity of your injury.
With your permission, your attorney can speak to your medical team and consult other medical experts to determine the exact nature of your injuries, as well as what treatments are medically necessary, both immediately and over the long term.
Gathering Evidence to Support Your Claim
Information on the severity of the injury is just a small part of the evidence needed to support your claim. You don’t only have to prove that your injury is serious. You must also show that another party acted negligently and that their negligence was the direct cause of your injury.
To this end, your legal team will gather as much evidence as possible, including police reports of the accident, witness statements, and photos and videos of both the incident and your injuries.
Negotiating With Insurance Providers
An experienced attorney won’t just compile supporting evidence. They’ll also use that evidence to try to negotiate a fair settlement for you.
Some people are tempted to try to negotiate with insurance companies themselves, but this isn’t a good idea. Insurers have their own legal professionals who handle negotiations, and they’ll usually offer injured individuals very small settlements in hopes that they’ll accept.
When you have an attorney representing you, the insurance company knows you’re serious. They also know that if they can’t come up with an offer your attorney will accept, the case will go to court. If that happens, the insurance company will have to deal with the considerable time and expense involved with litigation.
Representing You in Court
If your case ultimately goes to court, your attorney will be there to advocate for you.
When personal injury cases go all the way to the courtroom, it’s called a “trial.” However, instead of proving that the other party is guilty of a crime, your attorney must prove that they caused your injury and that your condition has led to considerable expense and damaged your quality of life.
Time Limit for Filing a Traumatic Brain Injury Claim
When you’ve just suffered a serious injury, filing a brain injury claim probably isn’t the first thing you think of. Seeking immediate medical attention is your first priority, but you should also speak with a traumatic brain injury lawyer as soon as you can.
In California, the statute of limitations for filing a personal injury claim is two years. The clock starts ticking on the date of your injury, so you should talk to a lawyer as soon as possible. It takes time to build a strong case, and the stronger your case is, the better your chances of receiving a fair settlement.
What to Expect During a Traumatic Brain Injury
No two traumatic brain injury cases are exactly alike, which means it can be hard to know what to expect.
When you work with a traumatic brain injury lawyer, your attorney will handle the logistics of your claim. You’ll remain directly involved, of course, but the most important thing for you to do is keep up with your medical care and follow all your doctor’s orders.
In the immediate aftermath of the injury, you’ll likely be given diagnostic tests like CT scans. Such tests are important for assessing the severity of your injury.
Most TBI cases require you to rest as much as possible after the injury. As such, your doctor might tell you to avoid any kind of activity that involves thinking. That might mean refraining from reading, texting, or even watching TV.
Just like you’d need to rest a broken leg in order for it to heal, you need to rest your brain after a TBI to minimize the risk of permanent disability.
How Our TBI Lawyer Can Help With Your Traumatic Brain Injury Claim
Recovering from a car accident or other mishap can be challenging. However, if you’ve suffered a TBI in the process, the injury — both in terms of symptoms and the intensity of the medical treatment that comes after — can complicate your recovery even further.
That’s why we believe that accident victims who have suffered TBIs deserve financial compensation to help them cover their medical expenses and adjust to the cognitive, physical, and emotional challenges that come with a major brain injury.
At Delfino Green & Green, we have extensive experience helping injured people file traumatic brain injury compensation claims. If you’ve suffered a TBI due to someone else’s carelessness, we’re here for you. Contact us to speak with one of our TBI attorneys today.