Episode 2 - What is a Brain Injury Case Worth?
What is a Brain Injury Case Worth? Episode 2
Brain injury comes in many shapes and sizes. The proverbial “one size fits all” does not apply. Although there are many similar characteristics with most brain injuries they are not all the same. For instance, brain injury often results in short term memory loss and difficulty processing information. How that emerges between individuals varies but often it is seen at work and in social situations. Often the difficulty requires more energy for processing information and results in fatigue.
Depression is common both from the injury itself and psychologically as a result of the affects of the injury. This is especially true in cases of mild and moderate traumatic brain injury when those around you simply have difficulty believing you are suffering when you look otherwise normal. This adds to the frustration, anxiety and irritability.
If you have been in a traumatic event that caused a concussion and brain injury, you may wonder about the value of the legal case. A legal case value depends on many things other than the injury and its affects. Many people do not understand this. Sometimes an injury can be worse in one case but valued lower than another case with a lesser injury. On the other hand, too often cases with a higher value are settled for less because the person making the evaluation does not understand brain injury. Since traumatic brain injury typically results in difficulty making decisions, it is a good idea to have someone you trust help you find a lawyer.
Finding the right lawyer is critical to getting a proper verdict or settlement. Lawyers have different interests and talents. Long ago lawyers could be general practitioners handling wills, business matters, divorce and criminal matters. Today the law is very specialized. That is, what a lawyer spends most of his time doing is what he is best at. If your lawyer handles one or two brain injury cases a year, he is not a good choice to handle your injury. If your lawyer’s practice is devoted to over 90% brain injury cases, you’ll have a much better outcome.
The first thing to understand is all lawyers are not made the same. And just like other folks, if a lawyer untrained in brain injury does not see an injury on standard diagnostic tests or by simple observation, they are not likely to believe it exists. On the other hand, if your lawyer is versed in how mild and moderate traumatic brain injury affects victims, they will know where to look and how to maximize the value.
Traumatic Brain Injury typically has medical costs associated with care in the past and in the future. Determining what the future costs are likely to be is important in valuing the case. Likewise, past lost earnings from being out of work are simple enough to calculate, but what about the loss of future earning capacity? This is very tricky since a person with brain injury may be able to do a job but staying consistently employed is an entirely different matter. Again, unless your lawyer has extensive experience on how and why a brain injury can cause loss of future earning capacity, she may sell your case short.
There are many other things to consider when hiring a lawyer and that is why you should seek out assistance from someone you trust; your spouse, parent, child, relative, or good friend. You should not simply take the advice of someone who tells you about a lawyer they used in a case. That lawyer may be a very talented divorce lawyer but that is not what you need. Your friend’s lawyer may even be personal injury lawyer, but that does not automatically qualify her as a brain injury specialist. Personal injury lawyers rarely limit their practice and research to traumatic brain injury. You are entitled to hire a lawyer that does.
I wrote an article entitled a Guide to Selecting a Lawyer in a Traumatic Brain Injury Case. I attempt to guide non-lawyers in choosing a qualified lawyer to handle their case. Much of what I propose are simple questions that you have a right to ask. Lawyers who profess skill in handling traumatic brain injury cases typically have blogs they publish. For instance my blog is entitled Brain and Spine Injury Law Blog. You may want to research your lawyer’s web site as well.
With the help of a trusted companion, look up organizations like the Brain Injury Association of America (BIAA), www.biaa.org. Visit their site on the internet or call them and ask for a referral to a lawyer in your particular state. There are organizations whose purpose is to assist victims of brain injury. Consult them rather than simply relying on the recommendation of a friend who may mean well but does not understand the nuances of brain injury.
These organizations will also assist you in getting the right care and treatment in your area. Most hospital emergency rooms do not treat or even diagnose mild or moderate traumatic brain injury, so you will benefit by talking to folks who understand. Other groups include individual State Brain Injury Associations, and the North American Brain Injury Society (NABIS), www.nabis.org.
Not only will these organizations assist you in getting help, they provide literature and videos to help explain what you are experiencing and how treatment can help.
If you or someone you know has suffered traumatic brain injury, please accept my best wishes and prayers for a maximized recovery. I hope something I have shared here will assist you in your journey.
Timothy Titolo copyright 2010
