An estimated 12,000 new spinal cord injuries occur each year [1]. Some arise through car accidents, bicycle accidents, or work-related incidents. If you suffer a spinal cord injury caused by someone else’s negligence, you may have a legal right to collect compensation.
Rosenfeld Injury Lawyers can be invaluable to your case. Not only can we help build a successful claim that gets you fair compensation, but we can also assist you with navigating your case while you focus on recovering.
The Devastating Impact of Spinal Cord Injuries on Your Quality of Life
Spinal cord injuries tend to have life-long impacts on quality of life. Injured victims may not be able to return to the same career and may no longer be able to enjoy the same activities they once did.
Many spinal cord injury victims are left with ongoing medical bills without the ability to earn income. These catastrophic injuries can also require assistive devices, which can make a significant difference in an injured person’s day-to-day life.
Fair compensation may not take away the pain and suffering that comes with a spinal cord injury, but it can help cover medical bills, lost wages, and any other costs incurred as a result of the accident.
What Are the Symptoms of Spinal Cord Injuries?
Spinal cord injuries can lead to a wide range of symptoms, including the following:
- Back or neck pain
- Intense pressure in the back or neck
- Body weakness
- Numbness or tingling in the extremities
- Difficulty balancing or walking
- Loss of bladder or bowel control
- The inability to move the arms or legs
- Sexual dysfunction
The symptoms of a spinal cord injury may arise immediately after the accident, or they may not show up until later. In extreme cases, spinal cord injuries can also lead to partial or permanent paralysis.
What to Do After a Spinal Cord Injury in Chicago
Spinal injuries require prompt action to protect your medical well-being and legal options. Here are a few important steps to take after suffering a spinal cord injury.
How Our Chicago Spinal Cord Injury Attorneys Can Help
A spinal cord injury attorney can be crucial to your case. In addition to helping you navigate Chicago’s legal system, your lawyer can also handle insurance company communications, negotiations, and the collection of evidence.
At Rosenfeld Injury Lawyers, we fight for spinal cord injury victim’s legal rights, helping them recover compensation.
With a free consultation, there’s no risk to consult with a personal injury lawyer. We work closely with medical experts and insurance companies to ensure you are fairly compensated. We help our clients build a strong case that clearly highlights their injuries and how they have and will impact their lives.
Types of Spinal Cord Injuries
Spinal cord injuries can be categorized into different types. The type of injury you suffer affects your anticipated medical expenses and, thus, compensation.
Complete Spinal Cord Injuries
A complete spinal cord injury is when spinal cord damage prevents a person from movement. It refers to catastrophic injuries that cause a complete loss of function below the injury site. A person with a complete spinal cord injury is unable to move, feel, or control certain aspects of their body.
Chicago paralysis lawyers help paralyzed victims take back some control of their lives. We conduct thorough evidence to determine liability and get you the funds you need to pay medical debt and deal with the life-changing injury physically and psychologically.
Incomplete Spinal Cord Injuries
Incomplete spinal cord injuries indicate the person still has partial feeling or functionality below the injury site. Incomplete injuries may arise from swelling or temporary damage, leading to temporary or permanently impaired motor function. The partial paralysis of an incomplete spinal cord injury can be just as life-changing as complete injuries.
Causes of Spinal Injuries
A spinal cord injury can occur from any direct collision or fall impact. Rosenfeld Injury Lawyers have worked with a wide range of clients injured in the following ways.
Proving Negligence for Spinal Cord Injury Cases
To qualify as a personal injury case, we must prove negligence was the cause of your injury. Illinois law requires spinal cord injury cases to prove the following four elements:
- Duty of care: To pursue compensation, we must prove the responsible parties owed the injured person a duty of care.
- Breach of duty: We must also show the responsible party breached that duty of care. Someone else’s negligence is typically considered a breach of duty.
- Causation: It’s also a requirement to establish the liable parties’ negligence was the direct cause of the injury.
- Damages: A personal injury case also requires actual damages, which may include medical costs or pain and suffering.
Chicago personal injury attorneys are a must when navigating complex cases involving the central nervous system or spinal cord. Whether your injury occurred in a car accident or while at work, you deserve to be fairly compensated for the life-changing consequences of a spinal injury.
Modified Comparative Negligence
Illinois follows a comparative negligence law, which means even spinal cord injury victims who are partially to blame can still seek compensation through a personal injury case as long as they’re less than 50% at fault.
Working with a spinal cord injury lawyer on your case maybe even more important if you believe you may be partially to blame. Spine injuries can be expensive, so it’s important for you to receive as much compensation as you’re entitled to.
Damages a Chicago Spinal Injury Lawyer Can Help You Recover
If someone else’s negligence caused a spinal cord injury, you may be entitled to compensation for your damages. Illinois law allows those injured by someone else’s fault to seek full and fair compensation, including the following damages types.
Economic
Economic damages include actual financial damages you incurred as a result of the accident. Some common economic damages may include medical bills, lost wages, rehabilitation costs, and medical assistance devices. Economic damage should include all medical expenses, including not only existing ones but anticipated expenses.
Non-Economic
Non-economic damages are the non-monetary costs incurred after an injury occurs. For example, most spinal cord injuries will lead to chronic pain, which should be compensated. Other common non-economic damages include pain and suffering, emotional distress, loss of consortium, and loss of companionship.
Punitive
Punitive damages are meant to punish the responsible party’s wrongdoing. Spinal cord injury lawyers may seek punitive damages when the responsible party was clearly negligent, such as in a case of drunk driving. Illinois doesn’t have a maximum on punitive damages.
Your Legal Options If a Spinal Cord Injury Results in the Death of a Loved One
Severe spinal cord injuries can lead to loss of life. In this case, the victim’s family members can file a wrongful death claim. Our Chicago wrongful death attorneys can help recover economic, non-economic, and punitive damages. They can also help collect compensation for burial and funeral expenses.
Qualified family members can file a wrongful death claim, which can also help cover the medical bills of the deceased. Illinois law allows close family members, including spouses, parents, siblings, or children, to file a lawsuit. The law may also extend to certain family members who relied on the injured victim for financial support.
The Time Limit for Filing Spinal Cord Injury Lawsuits in Chicago, IL
Illinois sets a time limit on how long victims have to file a personal injury lawsuit, also known as the statute of limitations. If you suffered spinal cord injuries in Chicago, most victims have just two years from the date of the accident to file their claim. Illinois has a two-year time limit for most personal injury and medical malpractice cases.
However, if you suffered a spinal injury at work and are filing a workers’ compensation claim, then you have three years from the date of the injury or the last date of benefits. These strict timelines are another reason to consider working with a Chicago spinal cord injury lawyer. Failing to file your claim within the required statute can deem you ineligible for compensation.
Contact Our Chicago Spinal Cord Injury Lawyers Today!
Rosenfeld Injury Lawyers fight for the legal rights of both injury victims. You need a spinal injury attorney on your side to stay within the state’s statute of limitations and build a successful personal injury case. We help injured victims go up against large insurance companies and legal teams and recognize how important fair compensation is to recovering after a severe injury.
Contact Rosenfeld Injury Lawyers today at (888) 424-5757 for a free consultation or fill out our online form to have our legal team contact you.
Our downtown office, near the Richard J. Daley Center, Dirkson United States Courthouse, and the Chicago Workers’ Compensation Commission, offers convenient access from Aurora, Joliet, and Waukegan via I-90, I-94, and I-290.
Rosenfeld Injury Lawyers
225 W Wacker Dr #1660
Chicago, IL 60606
Phone: (847) 835-8895
Toll Free: (888) 424-5757
We also serve clients from Buffalo Grove, Champaign, Elgin, Peoria  and throughout Illinois.
Resources: [1] National Spinal Cord Injury Statistical Center, [2] National Spinal Cord Injury Statistical Center, [3] National Library of Medicine, [4] National Library of Medicine