Charleston Brain Injury Lawyer
Whether you’re riding a motorcycle or playing sports, protecting your head is essential. Injury to the brain can result in long-lasting effects that impact your ability to live and work in the way you want. If you or a loved one has suffered a brain injury, consult with a Charleston brain injury lawyer at The Joel Bieber Firm. We want to help you hold the responsible party accountable for their actions and seek the financial compensation that’s owed to you.
How Do Brain Injuries Happen?
Brain injuries can occur when the victim engages in certain activities, like sports, or without the victim intentionally putting themselves in danger. Some of the most common causes of brain injuries resulting from other people’s actions include:
- Car accidents
- Truck accidents
- Motorcycle accidents
- Slip and fall incidents
- Physical violence
- Workplace accidents
- Medical malpractice
A brain injury can happen in a split second, resulting in lifelong consequences for a victim.
Understanding Brain Injuries
The brain is one of the most important organs of the body. It is in charge of everything from memory and speech to breathing and heart rate regulation.
Therefore, when this critical organ suffers an injury, it can have a substantial impact on a victim’s life. While it is possible to recover from some brain injuries, many victims are unable to return to their normal lives, even after extensive rehabilitation efforts.
Types of Brain Injuries
Closed traumatic brain injuries occur when a sudden or violent jolt moves the head or body, causing the brain to move inside the skull forcefully.
Some of the most common types of closed traumatic brain injuries include:
- Concussions: Concussions occur when a force strikes the head, causing the brain to collide with the skull
- Hematomas: Hematomas occur when blood pools in the brain as a result of a ruptured blood vessel
- Brain Hemorrhages: A brain hemorrhage is defined as uncontrolled bleeding on or within the brain
- Diffuse Axonal Injury (DAI): DAIs occur when the connecting fibers in the brain (axons) tear
Along with closed brain injuries, injury to the brain can also be penetrating. A penetrating brain injury happens when an object goes through the brain tissue.
Severity of Brain Injuries
When diagnosing a brain injury, medical professionals will determine whether the injury is mild, moderate, or severe.
Mild brain injuries can often be treated with rest and pain medication. However, victims suffering from mild brain injuries should be monitored closely, as new or worsening symptoms can arise at any time. Symptoms of a mild brain injury include:
- Headache
- Fatigue
- Dizziness
- Problems with speech
- Blurred vision
- Confusion or disorientation
- Difficulty sleeping or sleeping more than usual
Moderate to severe brain injuries can include some of the same symptoms as mild injuries, as well as other symptoms that may develop in the following hours or days after trauma to the head. Symptoms could include:
- Loss of consciousness
- Persistent headache
- Seizures
- Inability to wake from sleep
- Numbness or tingling in fingers and toes
- Confusion
- Slurred speech
More significant brain injuries may also result in coma. In the most unfortunate circumstances, a brain injury could result in a permanent vegetative state or death.
Long-Term Effects of a Brain Injury
Brain injuries frequently lead to life-altering consequences with a need for continued medical care. Brain injuries could leave victims facing any of the following outcomes:
- Problems with memory and amnesia
- Mental health concerns, including anxiety and depression
- Intellectual disabilities
- Lack of balance
- Poor coordination
- Reduced motor skills
- Tremors
- Changes in senses, including hearing and vision
- Difficulty speaking
- Loss of bladder control
After sustaining a brain injury, speak to a brain injury lawyer. They can work to hold the responsible party accountable for your harm.
Liability for a Brain Injury
Brain injury cases can arise from negligent or intentional actions, but negligence is the most common. When a party is negligent, they fail to act in the manner in which another similarly situated party would have acted under the same circumstances.
To hold a negligent party accountable for your injuries, you’ll need to establish the elements of negligence:
- The party owed you a duty
- The party breached their duty
- Their actions were the cause of your brain injury
- You suffered losses as a result
Establishing liability is one of the most critical parts of a brain injury case. Your Charleston brain injury lawyer can gather evidence to attempt to prove the liable party’s negligent actions caused you harm. This can allow you to pursue fair compensation for your losses.
Damages for a Brain Injury
Damages serve to provide compensation for the injuries and losses you’ve suffered as a result of the other party’s actions. Financial recovery can either be economic to cover your tangible losses or non-economic to cover your intangible losses.
Economic damages include:
- Past and future medical expenses
- Rehabilitation and therapy costs
- Loss of earnings
- Lost earning potential
Non-economic damages can include:
- Pain and suffering
- Physical impairment
- Emotional distress
- Loss of enjoyment of life
- Loss of consortium
Recovering financially can have a significant impact on your life. Your Charleston brain injury lawyer will examine the details of your case to determine how much your case is worth and fight diligently to obtain the most favorable outcome.
Seek Legal Guidance from a Charleston Brain Injury Lawyer Today
While compensation cannot turn back the hands of time and undo the harm the at-fault party has caused, it can substantially help with the financial burden of a brain injury. A brain injury attorney is the best possible ally in your legal battle.
The Joel Bieber Firm has a legal team with over 400 years of collective experience. We know what it takes to handle a brain injury lawsuit, and we’re ready to put up our best fight. When you have us on your side, you can expect kindness, compassion, and the highest quality legal representation.
Contact our firm today to schedule a complimentary case review.