Have you suffered a traumatic injury to your brain? Has someone you love been a victim of a traumatic brain injury and you’re uncertain what to do next? Belal Hamideh, a traumatic brain injury lawyer, can help. Belal and the team here have assisted many who suffered a traumatic brain injury, whether on the job or elsewhere, to receive maximum compensation for everything that they’ve gone through.
Traumatic brain injuries, or “TBIs,” for short, are more common than many realize. These injuries can be devastating, leading to disabilities, hopefully temporary but often permanent. Worse, these injuries affect not just those who suffered them but those who suffer with them: family members, loved ones, and others. If you believe that you or someone you love has suffered a TBI, we encourage you to reach out to us for a free case evaluation. Se Habla Espanol.
What Are Traumatic Brain Injuries?
In simple terms, any brain injury that results from trauma is technically a “traumatic brain injury.” However, when many hear the term “traumatic brain injury,” they tend to think of the most serious injuries, the ones that require immediate medical attention and have lasting symptoms. For the most part, these injuries come from an “instant” trauma. A sudden impact to the head, a jolt, a collision, or even if the body is struck in such a way that it hurts a person’s brain. Of course, if you believe that you’ve suffered one of these injuries, get medical help immediately.
“Slip and fall” accidents are the most common type of TBI. Every year, there are around 600,000 of these, all across America. The second most common kind of TBI comes from traffic collisions, which amount to about 300,000 annually. Another common cause of TBIs: violent crime. Assaults, shootings, and similar: they cause TBIs all across America. Many of our clients have suffered TBIs from objects falling on them, debris raining down, and similar concerns.
If you believe that you or someone you love has suffered a TBI through the negligence and/or recklessness of someone else, we may be able to help.
Is a TBI the Same as an ABI?
No. While they may be similar, there are important differences between a “traumatic brain injury” and an “ABI,” or “acquired brain injury.” Specifically, ABIs are often caused by a pre-existing condition. So that could be a disease, something that built up over time, etc. A TBI can occur in a truck accident, something that happens in a moment.
On the other hand, an ABI can come from cancer, tumors, strokes, inflammation, and something else that didn’t happen due to trauma.
Are There Different Kinds of Traumatic Brain Injuries?
Traumatic brain injuries can have any number of causes, but there are three distinct types of TBIs. No matter which form of TBI that you or someone you love has suffered we have experience in helping clients in the same position you are to receive maximum compensation.
Concussions
These often result when there’s a significant impact to the victim’s head. Whiplash (or some other kind of unexpected change), shaking, and so forth – concussions can occur in many ways. There’s no such thing as a “minor concussion,” (defined here as one that does not appear in an imaging test) on account of how any concussion can lead to memory loss, an inability to focus, concentrate, feelings of disorientation, and more. Unfortunately, concussions can worsen the more you suffer them.
Brain Contusions
A contusion is, more or less, a brain tissue bruise. Bruises are, of course, small blood vessels leaking after they break open. A bruise on your brain can be worse, as these can build up pressure on your brain that’s ultimately unsustainable.
Like other brain injuries, these can result from a significant, instant impact. Slips and falls, accidents, a blow to the head – even minor brain contusions can have lasting effects. Many of our clients have reported agitation, emotional distress, fatigue, confusion, or even loss of consciousness.
Penetration
These are brain injuries where something breaks through your skull, piercing it. Very serious injuries, these are often caused by steep slips and falls, vehicular accidents, or even injuries from sports. A gunshot wound to the head is the leading cause of traumatic brain injury in the United States.
What are the Symptoms of Traumatic Brain Injuries?
Many of the symptoms related to TBIs aren’t something you can see. They don’t always (or don’t usually) leave wounds, cuts, bruises, and the like. That said, they do often have accompanying physical symptoms. Slurred speech, lasting headaches, vision changes, pupils of different sizes, fluid leaks from nose or ears. Perhaps your hearing goes away for a bit or you’re very sensitive to sounds.
Vomiting can result from TBIs, as can convulsions, or even seizures and numbness in your extremities.
Not all of the symptoms are physical, either. You may feel unlike yourself. Confusion, restlessness, agitation, an inability to focus and concentrate, or even recognize people and places you know – these can all result from a TBI.
If you believe you have suffered a TBI, get medical attention as soon as possible. Once you’ve done so, we encourage you to reach out to us.
What Can a Traumatic Brain Injury Be Worth?
Establishing an “average” TBI settlement is not easy. Any injury settlements made outside of court are private. What we can tell you, however, is that our TBI clients receive compensation either through verdicts or settlements.
In the last year, the average brain injury verdict in California was in the neighborhood of $1.6 million. That’s higher than the national average, but not by much. No matter what’s going on elsewhere, our team can work as hard as possible to make sure that you receive maximum compensation for your traumatic brain injury.
What Kinds of Damages Can I Claim for a Traumatic Brain Injury?
In traumatic brain injury cases, you can receive economic as well as non-economic damages. The former covers compensation for expenses that you’ve had to pay due to the injury. This covers any medical expenses, treatment, therapy, rehab, home modifications, transportation, and so forth. This also covers property damage, such as that to your home, your vehicle, etc. Plus, this can even cover wages you lost from being unable to do your job, or unable to do your job at the same level you did previously.
Non-economic damages, on the other hand, can provide you with compensation for mental anguish, pain, suffering, and other losses that may not appear on your bank statement. That includes loss of enjoyment of life, loss of consortium, and other losses. When you reach out to us for a free case evaluation, we can let you know which damages are appropriate for your case.
What Do I Have to Do to Prove I Have a Traumatic Brain Injury?
To put it simply, you have to prove both that you have a traumatic brain injury and that the other party (the defendant) caused it. Whether it was due to their negligence and/or recklessness, their actions led to your injury. Belal and the team here have helped so many clients in the same position you are in now by proving both definitively.
For starters, we conduct a thorough evaluation of our client’s cases. Through that, we can find exactly what happened. By collecting that evidence, we can use it to make our clients’ cases that much more compelling. Additionally, we can provide access to independent, experienced doctors. Through a comprehensive, thorough examination, they can corroborate your injury, finding the truth.
We have the resources to do whatever is necessary to win your case. From getting and utilizing police reports, getting witness testimony, reconstructing crash sites, and more, we do what we have to do to make sure you get what you should for your traumatic brain injury.
Can Workers’ Compensation Help With a Traumatic Brain Injury?
In some cases, yes. Remember, in a workers’ compensation case, one where your injury occurs on the job, you don’t have to prove that it was another party’s fault. As long as you were injured in the course of your job, you could be eligible for compensation.
Traumatic brain injuries can, among workers’ compensation injuries in California, range from $75,000 all the way up to $205,000. This compensation can cover all of the medical expenses you may have, as well as helping with rehab, counseling, occupational rehab, and more. In the event that you can’t return to your job in the same capacity (or to your same job, period) then worker’s comp can induce new training for a new job as well.
If your injury occurred at work, we still do recommend that you call us for a free case evaluation. We can help to make sure you receive as much as possible for your injury. For example, it could be that, even if you were injured at work, it may be in your best interest to file a personal injury lawsuit against a third party or even your employer. Our team can help you to figure out the best way forward.
Winning Traumatic Brain Injury Lawyer Belal Hamideh
Traumatic brain injuries, no matter how seemingly minor, are serious indeed. The mildest can still lead to long-term concerns. If you believe that you or someone you love suffered an injury like this due to the actions of another or in the course of doing their job, it’s worth it to reach out to us for a free case evaluation.
Belal and the rest of our team work on contingency. That means that you don’t have to pay until we win. Even then, our compensation will come out of your eventual winnings. To see how we can help, reach out to us for a free case evaluation. For a free case evaluation, message us through our site or give us a call.