New York Brain Injury Lawyer

A traumatic brain injury (TBI) results from a violent blow or strike to the head, damaging tissues, nerves, and fibers. How serious this injury can range from a minor concussion that requires a few days of rest to a severe brain injury that leaves the victim in altered states of consciousness. Seeking prompt medical care is paramount to keeping the injury from getting worse. After you’ve received treatment and reached a stable condition, it’s time to talk to a New York brain injury lawyer to figure out who caused this harm.

If you sustained a brain injury in an accident, our brain injury attorney in New York can help you hold the at-fault party accountable. At Shulman & Hill, our team can help you recover compensation for your medical care bills, lost income, and other damages. Connect with our firm today for a free consultation. We’re standing by to hear your story and see how we can help you during your recovery.

An Overview of Brain Injuries

According to Johns Hopkins Medicine, a traumatic brain injury occurs when a sudden and physical jolt damages the brain. Physicians have classified this injury into two categories:

• Closed brain injury: This injury does not penetrate the skull. It stems from the brain shaking back and forth inside the skull, breaking blood vessels and bruising brain tissue. Falls, traffic accidents, and sports injuries usually cause this type of injury.
• Penetrating brain injury: These are brain injuries where there is a fracture to the skull.

Sometimes, the injury can be mostly complete at the time of impact. For others, the injury takes time—usually a few days—to fully develop after the incident. Either way, it’s best for you to get medical attention right away.

Common Symptoms of a Brain Injury

Depending on the severity of your injuries, you may experience symptoms such as:

• Confusion
• Poor judgment, concentration, and memory
• Poor balance and coordination
• Spasticity
• Tremors
• Changes in sensation and perception
• Problems with speech
• Headaches
• Dizziness
• Fatigue
• Changes in mood and apathy

A brain injury can affect all aspects of a person’s life. If it goes untreated, the victim may face serious and long-lasting consequences, like seizures or entering into a coma or vegetative state.

Statistics of Brain Injuries Throughout the United States and New York State

Unfortunately, traumatic brain injuries are common throughout the United States. According to the New York State Department of Health, someone suffers a brain injury that results in a permanent disability every 10 seconds, especially if they don’t get treatment.

Also, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC):

• In 2019, over 223,000 people were hospitalized due to TBIs.
• In 2020, nearly 65,000 people lost their lives to complications related to TBIs. That’s about 176 people each day.
• People over 75 are the most high-risk group, accounting for almost a third of TBI-related hospitalizations and 28% of deaths.
• Males are twice as likely to suffer a TBI than females.

Here in New York, there are 400 incidents of TBIs every day. Data shows that every year there are approximately:

• 112,000 emergency room visits
• 19,000 hospitalizations
• 2,000 deaths

The most common causes of brain injury in New York include car accidents, assaults, and falls.

How Our Brain Injury Attorneys in New York Can Assist You

Putting all of your energy into your recovery should be your top priority. You don’t have to manage your case on your own, especially when you’re dealing with such a debilitating injury. You may want to consider retaining legal representation.

Whether you’ve suffered your brain injury because of a traffic accident, slip and fall, or another negligence-based incident, our New York personal injury attorneys may be able to help you seek a financial recovery for your related losses. While you’re in treatment, we can represent you during the claims process and handle a variety of tasks, such as:

• Speaking to your medical team to understand your injury and prognosis
• Gathering your medical records and other documentation of the accident that caused your TBI
• Determining who caused the injury and holding them accountable
• Assessing all of your losses
• Communicating with the negligent party and their representatives
• Negotiating a settlement that covers your losses
• Taking your case to trial if we cannot secure a fair settlement beforehand

Our team understands that most clients want to know what’s going on throughout their case. That’s why we provide you with regular case updates and make ourselves available to you whenever you have questions or concerns about the process.

Defending Your Brain Injury Claim

Insurance companies operate with one very important goal in mind: to protect their bottom line. Therefore, they will likely look for gaps in your case or even your life prior to the accident so they don’t have to pay the compensation you deserve. For example, the adjuster could claim that you don’t need the amount you’re asking for because:

• You don’t have any other injuries, like broken bones or a herniated disc
• You never lost consciousness
• You have another disability
• You performed poorly at work or school prior to the accident
• You waited too long to get treatment after you were injured, so it’s your fault that you’re in poor condition
• Something else caused your brain injury

It wouldn’t be the first time we see claims like these, so we know the resources and evidence we can use to combat them. Your medical records, statements from your friends, family, and employers that describe your pre-injury and post-injury conditions, and documentation of the accident can help paint a picture of your life and how the incident has affected you.

How You Can Help Safeguard Your Brain Injury Claim

Even though the accident is over, that doesn’t mean you can’t do anything to help your claim. Here are some examples of things you can do to support your claim:

• Get prompt medical attention: The longer you wait to see a doctor, the more time you give your brain injury to worsen. Getting medical attention sooner rather than later can help alleviate any symptoms that result. Not only that, but the closer you get treatment to the date of your accident, the better you can link the incident to your injuries. When you seek medical attention right away, there’s little room for the insurance adjuster to dispute your claim.
• Follow medical advice: Be sure to see your treatment through to the end. If you suddenly stop, not only do you risk setting yourself back and worsening your symptoms, but the insurance company may not accept responsibility for paying some of your medical bills and other losses since you caused further damage.
• Don’t speak to the insurance adjuster: We’ve seen this far too many times. The adjuster calls you and asks how you’re feeling, you say you’re fine, and they claim that since you said you’re okay, they don’t have to pay out a claim. This is just one of the many ways an adjuster can use your words against you. Let us handle all communication with them.

Fighting for Our New York Brain Injury Clients on a Contingency Fee Basis

Paying for medical treatment and taking time off work to recover can make a major dent in your financial status. It’s easy to think that hiring a New York brain injury lawyer might only exacerbate the situation—but that’s not the case when you hire Shulman & Hill.

Our team represents clients on a contingency fee basis. So, you don’t have to worry about paying us any upfront, retainer, or hourly fees. Our attorney’s fees come directly from the financial award we recover for you. If we don’t win your case, you owe us nothing. This way, we can begin investigating your case immediately and reduce any financial risks.

Damages You Can Seek in a New York Brain Injury Case

After sustaining a traumatic brain injury in New York, you could have grounds to recover damages in a claim or lawsuit. Knowing how much you can seek and what you’re specifically entitled to collect can be tricky.

At Shulman & Hill, we have obtained many favorable results for clients who suffered head injuries. For example, we won a $650,000 settlement for a 26-year-old taxi driver who sustained injuries to his head, back, neck, and shoulder in a truck accident.

We cannot promise a specific outcome for your case. However, you can rely on us to use our experience and negotiation skills to procure the best possible compensation amount. We’ve seen TBI survivors recover damages for:

Past and Projected Medical Bills

According to Mayo Clinic, those who have suffered a brain injury may require:

• Diagnostic tests (e.g., CTs, MRIs, imaging scans, etc.)
• Emergency care
• Hospital stays
• Medications
• Surgeries
• Rehabilitation
• Ongoing care

If you’ve already received these or other brain injury treatments—or expect to receive them in the future—you can claim them in your case.

Lost Income

Depending on the severity of your injury, the doctor may order you not to work for a few days, weeks, or even months while you recover. In this event, you may have lost income such as:

• Hourly pay
• Salary
• Bonuses
• Tips
• Employee benefits
• Commissions
• Promotions
• Business opportunities

Compensation for this missed income could help you regain financial stability.

Reduced Earning Capacity

If you face a long-lasting or permanent brain injury, it could put you out of work—or at least your previous job—for the rest of your life. Claiming damages for reduced earning capacity can help you make up for this anticipated lost income.

Pain and Suffering, Mental Anguish, and Other Intangible Damages

Because physical and emotional pain don’t come with a price tag, you may think that asking for compensation for them is out of the question. However, that’s not always true.

Talking to your doctors about the extent of your injuries and their impact on your life will help determine how much we can seek. These types of damages take multiple factors into account, including:

• Pain and suffering for the discomfort and physical hardship of your brain injury
• Disfigurement and scarring for the restraints the injury has brought on your body
• Mental anguish for the trauma you’ve endured from the accident, injury, and treatment

Wrongful Death Damages

Tragically, some victims don’t survive their brain injury. Surviving family members may be able to receive compensation after this expected loss to account for:

• Funeral and burial expenses
• Loss of consortium
• Loss of inheritance and financial support
• Loss of household services
• End-of-life medical expenses

Although the surviving family members (e.g., spouse, children, or parents) get the damages, a personal representative of the decedent’s estate usually files the wrongful death suit on their behalf.

How Long You Have to File a Brain Injury Lawsuit in New York

Because you or a loved one suffered a serious injury, you may have grounds to file a lawsuit against the liable party. However, you have a limited time to take action. The state of New York imposes time limits on these types of cases:

• Under CPLR § 214, brain injury survivors typically have three years to file a personal injury lawsuit.
• Under EPT § 5-4.1, claimants usually have two years to file a wrongful death lawsuit.

Exceptions to your applicable statute could apply, so don’t count on them. Waiting too long to submit your lawsuit in court may prompt a judge to throw it out of court altogether. Then it won’t be the other party’s responsibility to pay for your losses—it will be yours.

If you get our New York brain injury lawyers involved in your case right away, we can help you avoid this negative outcome and file your case before the statute expires.

Connect With Our New York Brain Injury Lawyers Today

If you or a loved one sustained a brain injury in New York, our attorneys are ready to take on your case while you recover. We’re here to listen to what happened to you and help you seek the compensation and justice you deserve.

To learn more, contact Shulman & Hill today for a free, no-obligation case review. Call 212.221.1000.