Are you struggling with the consequences of a recent spinal cord injury after an accident in Los Angeles, California? If you got hurt because someone else was negligent, you might be entitled to compensation. The experienced Los Angeles spinal cord injury lawyers at M&Y Personal Injury Lawyers can help you fight to maximize your financial recovery.
Our team has been providing winning legal representation to victims of catastrophic spine injuries and their families since 2013. Putting more than a century of combined experience behind every case, we’ve helped our clients win over $400 million in damages.
Our award-winning attorneys are ready to help you seek the money you deserve for your spine injury. Give our Los Angeles, CA law office a call at (877) 300-4535 or reach out to us online. We offer a free consultation and are standing by around the clock to help.
How M&Y Personal Injury Lawyers Can Help If You’ve Suffered a Spinal Cord Injury in Los Angeles, CA
Spine injuries are among the most catastrophic because even minor trauma can alter how you live your life. When someone else causes you to get hurt, you shouldn’t be responsible for the high costs and life-changing consequences. By filing a spinal cord injury lawsuit, you can demand accountability and compensation.
Our Los Angeles personal injury lawyers are ready to help you win your case and get every cent you deserve.
You focus on recovering and moving forward with your life while our law firm:
- Identifies all legal paths to financial recovery – including insurance claims, lawsuits, and/or workers’ compensation benefits
- Determines what caused your spinal cord injury and how it could have been avoided
- Gathers evidence to prove that your spine injury was caused by someone else’s negligence
- Consults with leading accident and spine injury experts in Southern California
- Defends you against claims that you share responsibility
- Builds a strong claim for damages highlighting the extent and severity of the trauma to your back
- Aggressively negotiates with insurance companies and other parties to get you a full and fair settlement
If other parties refuse to negotiate, or if you’re not offered a fair deal, our respected trial attorneys will be fully prepared to bring your case to a jury. We’ll do whatever it takes to ensure that you’re fully compensated for your devastating spinal cord injury.
Contact our law office to discuss legal options and strategies. Your initial case evaluation is 100 percent free, and our Los Angeles spinal cord injury attorneys work on a contingency fee basis. So, there’s absolutely no cost to ask for our help. Call to get started now.
How Common Are Spinal Cord Injuries?
It’s estimated that 17,000 people suffer a severe spinal cord injury every year. That’s roughly 45 new spine injuries every single day.
It’s also believed that as many as 282,000 people in the United States are currently living with a spinal cord injury.
What is a Spinal Cord Injury?
The spinal cord is a long cord made up of nerves, soft tissue, and bone that runs from the base of your skull to your tailbone. Through it and its 31 pairs of spinal nerves and roots, the brain is able to communicate with the rest of the body.
A spinal cord injury can involve any type of internal or external trauma to the cord or one of its components. Since the spinal cord plays a critical role in nearly everything the body does, an injury can be life-changing.
There are four sections of the spinal cord:
- Cervical spine
- Thoracic spine
- Lumbar spine
- Sacral spine
Typically, spinal cord injuries become more serious the higher they are on the spinal column. This is because the consequences of a spine injury are seen below the level of injury. Loss of mobility and bodily function occurs from the point of the injury down.
For instance, The sacral spine sits lowest on the spinal column. Victims who sustain an injury to this part of the cord may be able to retain the ability to walk. On the other hand, victims who suffer thoracic spinal cord injuries (or higher) are more likely to experience paraplegia – or paralysis of the trunk and legs.
Suffering a high cervical spinal injury can result in quadriplegia, which is paralysis of all limbs and the trunk.
The lower the point of injury, the less of the body that’s potentially affected. The higher the injury, the more the body can be impaired.
What Causes Most Spinal Cord Injuries in Los Angeles?
Many times, injuries to the spine are the result of avoidable accidents.
Across the United States, the leading causes of spinal cord injuries include:
- Motor vehicle accidents, including car accidents, truck accidents, and motorcycle accidents (38 percent of all new cases)
- Falls (30 percent of all new cases)
- Assaults and acts of violence (13 percent of all new cases)
- Sports injuries (9 percent of all new cases), and
- Medical negligence and surgical errors (5 percent of all new cases).
Other common causes of trauma to the spine include:
- Boating accidents
- Construction accidents
- Workplace accidents
- Birth injuries
- Nursing home abuse
- Negligent security
- Swimming pool accidents
- Defective and dangerous products
It’s important to seek medical attention whenever you are involved in an accident that may have caused an injury to your spine. A visit to the emergency room will help to ensure that you don’t experience complications and that the extent of your injury is limited. Additionally, the medical record that’s generated will serve as an important piece of evidence if you decide to pursue compensation through an insurance claim or lawsuit.
What’s My Spinal Cord Injury Case Worth?
Here’s the thing: it depends. The value of your spine injury case will depend on factors that are incredibly specific to your situation.
- What is your level of injury?
- Did you suffer a complete spinal cord injury or an incomplete spinal cord injury?
- Has your mobility been impaired? If yes, to what extent?
- Are you able to take care of yourself, or do you require assistance to perform day-to-day things like eating and bathing?
- How has your spine injury affected your ability to work and earn a living?
- Will you ever be able to return to work?
- Did you actively take steps to mitigate your injury?
- Did your own negligence contribute to your accident and resulting trauma?
The higher on your spine your injury is – and the greater the long-term consequences – the more your case will likely be worth.
However, you also have to factor in things like age, pre-existing conditions, and life expectations.
According to the Christopher and Dana Reeve Foundation, the average cost of living with a spinal cord injury (beyond the first year) can range from $42,000 a year to more than $184,000 a year.
Over the course of a lifetime, a spine injury resulting in a loss of motor function can cost millions. For a 25-year-old victim, a paraplegia injury costs roughly $2.3 million. The lifetime cost of the same injury for a 50-year-old victim is roughly $1.5 million.
What Compensation Is Available to Spine Injury Victims in Los Angeles?
When you suffer a catastrophic injury to the spine, you can recover compensation for your financial losses (economic damages) and pain and suffering (non-economic damages).
Our personal injury attorneys will work tirelessly to get you compensation for your:
- Medical bills and expenses
- Lost income and wages
- Disability
- Rehabilitation
- Nursing care and personal care assistance
- Loss of quality of life
- Depression and anxiety
- PTSD
- Mental anguish
- Loss of consortium
- Rehabilitation
If a spinal cord injury is fatal, your family may have the right to damages in a wrongful death action. Contact the legal team at M&Y Personal Injury Lawyers today to discuss your rights.
How Long Do I Have to File a Lawsuit If I’ve Suffered a Spine Injury in a Los Angeles Accident?
The standard statute of limitations for personal injury lawsuits in California is two years. The clock begins to run the moment you’re injured or the date of your loved one’s wrongful death, depending on the type of case you have.
There are situations when a different set of deadlines might apply. For instance, minors have additional time to seek compensation for an injury to the spinal cord. On the other hand, cases involving government negligence can be subject to accelerated timeframes.
Do not miss the expiration date that applies to your case. If you do, you’ll give up the opportunity to recover the money that you need and deserve.
Schedule a Free Consultation With a Trusted Los Angeles Spinal Cord Injury Lawyer
The long-term consequences of a spinal cord injury can be catastrophic. You can lose the ability to walk, work, and participate in your life. When someone else is at fault, they must be held accountable. Our Los Angeles spinal cord injury lawyers are here to make that happen.
Contact M&Y Personal Injury Lawyers, conveniently located in Los Angeles, California, to learn more about how we can help. Your initial case evaluation is free, and there’s no cost to hire our firm unless we win your case. Call to speak with a member of our compassionate legal team today.
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