Have you or a loved one suffered a traumatic brain injury (TBI) because of someone else’s recklessness? When you add up medical care, rehabilitation, loss of work, and more, TBIs and other brain injuries cost more than one might think.
Our skilled s have a proven track record of helping victims get the necessary damages to move forward. Book your free consultation by calling (866) 931-2115 today.
Legal representation for your injury
Unlike other personal injury lawyers, our Kansas City personal injury lawyers have specific knowledge and decades of experience handling TBI cases. Langdon & Emison can help connect you with specialists and experts to help build your case and ensure you get the appropriate treatment.
We get results for brain injury victims.
At Langdon & Emison, our Kansas City brain injury attorneys are dedicated to securing full and fair compensation for brain injury victims and their families. Some of our most recent victories include:
- $8 million verdict: George v. Johnson Controls, Inc.
- $4.5 million verdict: Eckerberg v. Inter-State Studio, Inc.
What are the main causes of brain injury?
There’s usually no way to protect yourself from common causes of brain injuries because they often stem from unexpected events.
Car crashes, motorcycle collisions, and truck accidents are some of the most common causes of brain injuries in Kansas City. The force of the impact can severely jar an individual, sending their head into the steering wheel or the door frame or whipping it backward into the headrest.
Any of these movements can cause a head injury, such as a concussion.
Slip-and-falls and other premises liability accidents are the next leading cause of traumatic brain injuries in Kansas City. These occur when business or property owners do not maintain or repair their property to a reasonable standard, causing injuries to visitors. The owner’s negligence caused the accident, so they should be liable for the injured party’s medical bills and more.
Traumatic brain injuries can also be the result of a lack of oxygen to the brain, strokes, and heart disease.
Types of traumatic brain injuries
The most common type of brain injury is a concussion. This is a contusion on the brain, usually due to a bump to the head. Other types of brain injuries can be more severe, with impacts ranging from chronic dizziness to paralysis to brain death.
TBIs are sometimes difficult to diagnose. Many victims wait days or weeks before seeking medical treatment, at which point the damage the injury has caused may be irreversible.
It is vital to always seek medical attention immediately after an accident, even if you don’t think you’re hurt.
Some traumatic brain injuries are visible externally. These are skull fractures, where the bone of the skull has broken, revealing the brain. These require immediate medical attention.
Symptoms of traumatic brain injury
Every brain injury is different. Some individuals will have light sensitivity from a concussion, while others won’t have any issues with lights. This makes it difficult to self-diagnose a brain injury. Our Kansas City brain injury attorneys advise you to see a doctor who can run tests and ensure prompt treatment.
If you have been hit on the head, be on high alert for headaches, slurred speech, loss of consciousness, confusion, dizziness, and trouble concentrating. These can be signs of a moderate brain injury, such as a concussion. More severe brain injuries may result in a change in personality or temperament, increased anger, depression, or the urge to self-harm.
It is vital to seek help the moment you experience a symptom of a traumatic brain injury. Without medical intervention, it can take years longer to heal from your brain injury.
What damages are available in a Kansas City brain injury claim?
Brain injury victims can claim several types of damages in their lawsuits. Missouri divides these into three categories:
- Economic damages cover the tangible fiscal losses suffered because of the injury. This includes all necessary medical and rehabilitative treatment, long-term care in-home or in a memory care facility, lost wages and earning potential, and property damage.
- Non-economic damages, like pain and suffering from the injury and recovery, emotional trauma, diminished quality of life, and damaged relationships.
- Punitive damages are punishing in nature rather than compensatory. Punitive damages may be assessed if the jury feels the defendant was egregiously reckless or as a deterrent to other parties who may be tempted to engage in similar reckless behavior.
Legal challenges in TBI cases
The damage from a brain injury isn’t as visible as other types of injuries, like a broken leg or black eye, making assessing its extent complex. Measuring the extent of someone’s change in personality or assigning a monetary value to a decreased ability to perform high-functioning cognitive tasks is more subjective than valuing other types of damages.
Insurance companies tend to push back against claims for “invisible injuries,” like those associated with brain injuries. Your Kansas City brain injury lawyer may have to employ the services of one or more expert medical professionals to testify about the extent of your injury and its effect on your life.
Another potential legal complication is proving causation between the accident and your brain injury. This may be especially difficult for elderly brain injury victims. The defendant’s insurance carrier may argue that the cognitive decline caused by the brain injury is instead due to aging, for example.
The impact of a TBI on quality of life
Brain injuries affect every facet of your life and often impact those around you as well.
Psychological and emotional damage
The impact of a traumatic brain injury often depends on the extent of the damage and which part of the brain was affected. Some people may experience significant personality changes or diminished impulse control, affecting personal and professional relationships.
Someone who was formerly fairly laid-back may have sudden mood swings or become more irritable and lash out. If this happens regularly, there’s a good chance they could alienate friends, offend coworkers, or hurt people they love.
Or, a formerly driven, ambitious individual may become lethargic, which could affect their career trajectory or performance in school.
It’s not unusual for someone with a brain injury to develop mental illness, anything from anxiety to depression to dementia. The compensation for the emotional toll of a TBI and recuperation is hard to measure but can be part of your settlement.
Long-term care and rehabilitation costs
Many families underestimate how demanding it is to care for someone with a brain injury. An in-home personal caregiver or home nursing care (or both) eases the burden for the family but can quickly add up. If the damage is severe enough, or if the brain injury triggers early-onset dementia, then the injured person may require accommodations and treatment in a dedicated memory care facility.
Both of these options are costly. In the most recent year data was available, the average annual cost for an in-home caregiver or nursing services in Kansas City was $80,080, while a nursing home stay averages $93,075. Your Kansas City brain injury lawyer can value your settlement to include the cost of this care as long as you need it, even if it’s a lifetime.
Life care planning
Life care planning for TBI victims is a comprehensive plan to address the person’s physical, emotional, cognitive, and support needs. This may be necessary to prove to an insurance company that certain services, like programs to slow cognitive decline, occupational therapy, or in-home caregiving, are medically necessary.
The victim’s treatment team, often with input from the family and the victim (if able), creates the plan and may be required to testify how each element is needed for healing and care.
Vocational rehabilitation
Many TBI victims require extensive physical and occupational therapy to re-learn basic tasks like getting dressed, eating, or writing. Balance is another compromised ability, which could leave you more susceptible to falls and further injury, including potentially deadly brain re-injury.
You may be unable to work in the same field or job you held before injury. Vocational rehabilitation can help you learn new skills to find a job suited to your changed abilities.
How long do I have to file a brain injury claim in Kansas City?
The statute of limitations for filing a personal injury claim in Missouri is five years from the date of the injury. However, acting fast as evidence could disappear is critical, making causation harder to prove.
Specialized medical expertise for treating brain injuries
Medical expert witnesses are critical to building a brain injury case. Your Kansas City brain injury lawyer may have a brain injury specialist examine you and attest to the type and extent of damage you suffered. They may also employ a psychiatrist to explain how the brain injury caused a mental health condition or how your personality and cognitive abilities changed after the accident.
Expert testimony does not just qualify the extent of the injury and your current medical needs. A brain injury expert can also testify about the kind of long-term care, treatment, and rehabilitation you’ll need and may even estimate the cost.
Contact a Kansas City brain injury lawyer today
If you or a loved one have experienced a brain injury in Kansas City, you need an attorney immediately. At Langdon & Emison, our experienced attorneys have a proven track record of helping victims through the complex legal process of recovering damages from a brain injury lawsuit.
Our attorneys know what you need: compassionate care. That’s why we treat every client like they are our family. We wouldn’t want our family to feel confused or undervalued or just another case number on a desk. Our attorneys work closely with you to ensure your comfort, help protect your rights every step of the way, and get you the compensation you deserve.
Do you need a Kansas City traumatic brain injury lawyer? Call (866) 931-2115 as soon as you can.
