MRI-scan-of-brain-injury

SAN DIEGO BRAIN INJURY ATTORNEY

A brain injury is often the worst type of injury a person can suffer because the brain controls all the functions of the body. A brain injury can affect all aspects of a person’s life including their mood, memory, ability to focus and ability to perform basic daily tasks.

The damages resulting from brain injuries are complex, and insurance companies often deny brain injury claims and dispute them with full vigor in court. If you have suffered a brain injury, you need an experienced San Diego brain injury lawyer to receive fair compensation.

 

Common Effects of Brain Injuries

The symptoms of brain injuries include headache, dizziness, fainting, vomiting, sensitivity to light, depression, difficulty focusing, too much or too little sleep, loss of appetite, lost memory, anxiety, irritability, slurred speech, difficulty finding words and loss of fine motor skills. Contact a medical professional immediately if you were involved in an accident and experience any of these symptoms.

Brain injuries can occur without you knowing. Brain injury symptoms may not occur right away following an accident and may take days or weeks to recognize. The effects of the injury may not be fully realized until years after it occurred. The injury could get worse and the symptoms may intensify over time, especially if exacerbated by another blow to the head.

Individuals who have suffered from a brain injury are more likely to sustain another one than someone who has never suffered one.

Brain injuries are life changing. They often require extensive medical care, as well as vocational rehabilitation and physical therapy. Save all records of the accident and the treatment you receive in order to best preserve your legal rights.

 

Contact an Experienced San Diego Brain Injury Attorney First

Proving a brain injury claim requires detailed knowledge of the legal and medical procedures involved. Insurance companies are familiar with these procedures and will do everything in power to deny or reduce your claim. They will have their doctors and lawyers go to court, blame the accident on you and claim that your injuries are not as severe as you say.

Insurance companies offer less money to people who have inexperienced lawyers or no lawyer at all. From our experience, you will need a proven personal injury lawyer to receive anything close to the full value of your claim. As such, we suggest you contact a proven brain injury attorney before you contact an insurance company if you have suffered a brain injury as a result of someone else’s wrongdoing.

 

How To Prove A Brain Injury

There are three legal components to a successful brain injury claim: liability, damages and collectability.

Liability

Liability means that another person owed you a duty of care, breached that duty of care, and that your injuries occurred as a result of that person’s breach. Proving liability requires gathering evidence. Your attorney will conduct a formal investigation on your behalf, which will likely include:

  • Securing photos, witness statements and police reports
  • Composing a written summary of the facts
  • Deposing defendant(s), experts and third parties
  • Hiring medical and technical experts
  • Obtaining relevant evidence from defendants and third parties (i.e. security camera footage)

Damages

Damages are a calculation of how much the injury has affected your life. Proving damages in brain injury cases is especially difficult because much of the damage may not be visible, even through specialized equipment. As such, your attorney will use a variety of tools when building your case, such as:

  • Visual Evidence (CT scans, MRIs, diagrams, computer simulations)
  • Objective Testing (neurological and neuropsychological testing)
  • Expert Witnesses (such as a neurologist, a rehab doctor, and an economic expert)
  • Lay Witnesses (people who were close with you both before and after the accident)
  • Personal Testimony (often the most powerful evidence you have in a personal injury claim)

Collectability

Depending on the circumstances of the accident, it is likely that an insurance company will be involved. Insurance companies are profit driven and their goal is to settle your claim as quickly as possible, for as little money as possible. Their goal is not to offer you a fair settlement. Some common insurance tactics are to blame you and others for the accident, use contractual loopholes to deny or reduce coverage, and to claim that your injuries are not as severe as you say.

A common myth pushed by insurance companies is that you will recover quickly from a brain injury. Brain injuries may be permanent or take years to fully recover, and they may be made worse by subsequent blows. Nonetheless, insurance companies will fight tooth and nail to deny the extent of your suffering and minimize your claim.

 

Common Types of Brain Injuries

There are two types of brain injuries: traumatic injuries and acquired brain injuries.

Traumatic Brain Injuries

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention defines a traumatic brain injury as a disruption in the normal function of the brain that can be caused by a bump, blow, or jolt to the head, or penetrating head injury. A concussion is a common type of traumatic brain injury. A concussion occurs when the brain bounces against the skull and bleeds due to impact, sudden momentum or movement change. Other types of traumatic brain injury include coup-countrecoup injury (whiplash), second impact syndrome (a second traumatic brain injury occurs before a prior traumatic brain injury healed), penetrating brain injury (bullet, knife or other object enters the brain) and post-concussion syndrome (continued concussion-like symptoms after an initial traumatic brain injury).

Acquired Brain Injuries

An acquired brain injury is a non-traumatic brain injury which occurred after birth. Common types of brain injury include stroke, near-drowning (such as a swimming pool or boating accident), asphyxiation (choking), exposure to toxins (such as at the workplace or in a confined space), tumors and other diseases, and electrical shock.

 

Common Causes of Brain Injuries

Common causes of brain injuries include motor vehicle accidents (such as car, truck or motorcycle collisions), physical violence, sports injuries, slip and falls, and other severe blows to the head.

 

What to Do If You’ve Been in an Accident

Here are some practical and immediate steps you can take to protect your legal rights if you were injured in an accident:

  • Take photos of the accident and all vehicles involved.
  • Call the police and obtain a police report.
  • Record the ID of all persons involved (including witnesses).
  • Record the insurance information of all vehicles involved.
  • Immediately seek treatment for all injuries.
  • Keep accurate records of the event and all medical treatment received.
  • Contact a top personal injury lawyer without delay. (*before you contact an insurance company)

Gathering evidence begins immediately from the time of the accident and may lead all the way up to trial. Here is a more detailed explanation of the claims process.

 

How a San Diego Brain Injury Attorney Can Help You

If you have suffered from a brain injury, you may be able to recover for lost wages, pain and suffering, loss of consortium, medical expenses (past, present and future), loss of enjoyment of life (past, present and future), other non-economic and economic damages.

Attorney James Iagmin has decades of experience handling brain injury claims, and has the expertise and resources necessary to achieve the best possible outcome. Hiring James as your lawyer provides peace of mind knowing that the legal aspects of your brain injury claim are being handled directly by one of the top brain injury lawyers in San Diego, so you can focus on your health.

Over the years, Mr. Iagmin demonstrated consistent success winning brain injury claims. Here are a few of his brain injury claim case results:

  • SLIP AND FALL – A gentleman slipped on a wet floor and suffered a brain injury. He was unable to return to work. JURY VERDICT – $7,500,000
  • AUTO V. PEDESTRIAN – A boy suffered a serious brain injury when he was hit by a truck as he ran across a busy street. He needs careful supervision. SETTLEMENT – $4,500,000
  • TRUCKING COLLISION – A gentleman suffered a serious brain injury in a collision with a tractor-trailer. He was unable to return to work and needs close supervision. In addition to the settlement, the gentleman kept his rights to lifetime medical care through workers compensation. SETTLEMENT – $2,750,000

Mr. Iagmin is widely recognized not only for being an outstanding attorney, but also for being kind, compassionate, caring and intelligent. You can read more about what Jim’s former clients and fellow lawyers say about him on AVVO.

 

Free Strategy Session with A Top San Diego Brain Injury Attorney

Complete the form below to schedule a complimentary strategy session of up to 20 minutes with one of the top brain injury lawyers in San Diego to review the legal issues you’re facing and learn strategies which could get you the resolution you want. Contact Williams Iagmin, LLP today if you have suffered from a brain injury. We offer a no-fee guarantee, which means you don’t pay unless we win or settle your case.

 

Sources

U.S. Department of Health & Human Services – Centers for Disease Control and Prevention – Traumatic Brain Injury & Concussion: https://www.cdc.gov/traumaticbraininjury/index.html

 

James S. Iagmin Practice Areas – Boat Injury: https://personalinjuryattorneysd.com/practice-areas/boating-accidents/

 

James S. Iagmin Practice Areas – Construction Site Injuries: https://personalinjuryattorneysd.com/practice-areas/construction-site-injury-lawyer-san-diego/

 

James S. Iagmin Practice Areas – Car Accidents: https://personalinjuryattorneysd.com/practice-areas/car-accidents/

 

James S. Iagmin Practice Areas – Trucking Accidents: https://personalinjuryattorneysd.com/practice-areas/trucking-accidents/

 

James S. Iagmin Practice Areas – Motorcycle Accidents: https://personalinjuryattorneysd.com/practice-areas/motorcycle-accident-lawyer/

 

James S. Iagmin Practice Areas – Premises Liability: https://personalinjuryattorneysd.com/practice-areas/san-diego-premises-liability-lawyer/

 

James S. Iagmin Blog – Communicating the Litigation Process to Clients: https://personalinjuryattorneysd.com/communicating-the-litigation-process-to-clients/