Long Island Traumatic Brain Injury Lawyers

Common Causes of Traumatic Brain Injuries

Vehicle crashes are the leading cause of traumatic brain injuries in New York. Your head doesn’t even have to hit anything for your brain to get injured. The sudden stop or change in direction causes your brain to slam against the inside of your skull. Whiplash isn’t just a neck injury. It can cause serious brain trauma.

Slip and Fall Accidents

Falls cause more traumatic brain injuries than most people realize. We secured a $375,000 settlement for a 76-year-old woman who slipped on untreated ice outside a convenience store and suffered a serious brain injury. Property owners have a legal duty to keep their premises safe. When they don’t salt icy walkways, fix broken stairs, or clean up spills, people fall and hit their heads.

Workplace and Construction Injuries

Construction sites are full of brain injury hazards. Workers fall from scaffolding, get struck by falling objects, or are injured in equipment accidents. We’ve handled cases involving:

• Falls from ladders and roofs
• Struck-by accidents with tools or materials
• Trench collapses
• Crane and hoist failures
• Electrocution injuries affecting the brain

New York’s labor laws provide strong protections for injured construction workers. We use these laws to hold contractors and property owners accountable when their safety violations cause brain injuries.

Symptoms and Delayed Effects of Brain Injuries

Brain injury victims often can’t remember the accident. They struggle to form new memories or recall information they used to know easily. They lose their train of thought mid-sentence. They can’t focus on tasks that used to be simple.

These cognitive problems make it hard or impossible to work. Imagine trying to do your job when you can’t remember instructions, can’t concentrate for more than a few minutes, or need extra time to process basic information. Employers don’t always understand or accommodate these limitations.

Emotional and Behavioral Changes

Traumatic brain injuries change personalities. A patient, an easygoing person, becomes irritable and quick to anger. Someone who was organized and responsible becomes impulsive and reckless. Depression and anxiety are common. Some brain injury victims have suicidal thoughts.

These changes devastate families. Spouses feel like they’re living with a stranger. Children don’t understand why mom or dad is different now. The emotional suffering extends far beyond the injured person.

Physical and Sensory Difficulties

Brain injuries affect the whole body. Victims experience:

• Chronic headaches and migraines
• Dizziness and balance problems
• Vision problems and sensitivity to light
• Hearing loss or ringing in the ears
• Loss of taste and smell
• Seizures
• Chronic pain
• Sleep disorders

These physical symptoms compound the cognitive and emotional challenges. It’s hard to heal when you’re in constant pain and can’t sleep.

Proving a Traumatic Brain Injury Claim

We work with neurologists, neuropsychologists, and other medical experts to document the full extent of your brain injury. These experts review your medical records, examine you, and provide detailed reports explaining your diagnosis, prognosis, and future care needs.

Expert testimony is often necessary to prove that your symptoms are real and caused by the accident. Insurance companies hire their own doctors to claim you’re exaggerating or that your problems existed before the accident. We counter their experts with stronger medical evidence.

Linking the Injury to the Accident

One of the biggest challenges in brain injury cases is proving causation. The insurance company will argue that your symptoms are from something else, like a prior injury, aging, or a pre-existing condition. We gather evidence showing that you were fine before the accident and that your symptoms started immediately after or shortly after the incident.

This requires a thorough investigation. We obtain your complete medical history, interview witnesses who can testify about how you’ve changed since the accident, and work with experts who can explain the medical connection between the trauma and your symptoms.

Compensation for Traumatic Brain Injury Victims

You’re entitled to compensation for all medical treatment related to your brain injury. This includes:

• Emergency room care and hospitalization
• Surgery and medical procedures
• Medications
• Rehabilitation and therapy
• Medical equipment and assistive devices
• Future medical care

We work with life care planners and economists to calculate the full cost of your future medical needs. Brain injury victims often need care for decades. Your settlement must reflect that reality.

Lost Income and Reduced Work Capacity

If your brain injury prevents you from working, you can recover compensation for lost wages and lost earning capacity. This includes the income you’ve already lost and the income you’ll lose in the future if you can’t return to your previous job or can only work part-time.

Pain, Suffering, and Loss of Enjoyment of Life

Money can’t undo a brain injury, but it can compensate you for the physical pain, emotional suffering, and loss of life’s pleasures you’ve endured. You deserve compensation for the headaches, the frustration of not being able to think clearly, the depression, and the loss of activities you used to enjoy.

Traumatic Brain Injuries in Children

Brain injuries in children are especially tragic. A child’s brain is still developing. An injury can affect their ability to learn, socialize, and reach developmental milestones. They may need special education services, tutoring, and behavioral support throughout their school years.

Future Care and Support Needs

Children with traumatic brain injuries may need support well into adulthood. They may struggle to live independently, maintain employment, or manage their own affairs. Parents worry constantly about what will happen to their child when they’re no longer around to provide care.

Compensation in pediatric brain injury cases must account for a lifetime of needs. We work with pediatric neurologists and life care planners who specialize in projecting the long-term needs of brain-injured children.

How Long Island TBI Lawyers Help

We start by thoroughly investigating how your injury happened. We visit accident scenes, interview witnesses, obtain police reports and surveillance footage, and consult with accident reconstruction experts when necessary. We identify all potentially liable parties, not just the obvious ones.

In brain injury cases, the investigation must also focus on the medical aspects. We obtain all your medical records, consult with treating physicians, and arrange for independent medical evaluations when needed.

Coordinating Medical and Legal Evidence

Building a strong brain injury case requires coordinating medical evidence with legal strategy. We work closely with your doctors to ensure they document your symptoms and limitations thoroughly. We arrange for the right diagnostic tests and expert evaluations at the right times.

We also help you access the medical care you need, even if you don’t have health insurance or can’t afford treatment. We work with medical providers who treat patients on a lien basis, meaning they wait for payment until your case settles.

Preparing for Settlement or Trial

Most brain injury cases settle before trial, but only after we’ve prepared the case as if it’s going to trial. Insurance companies pay more when they know you have lawyers who are ready and able to take the case to a jury.

We prepare detailed settlement demands that lay out every aspect of your damages with supporting documentation. If the insurance company won’t offer fair compensation, we file a lawsuit and take the case as far as necessary to get you justice.

Traumatic Brain Injury FAQs

How much time do I have to file a lawsuit?
Generally, you have three years from the date of injury to file a personal injury lawsuit. However, there are exceptions. If the injury involves a government entity, you may have as little as 90 days to file a notice of claim. Don’t wait. Contact us as soon as possible.

What if I didn’t realize I had a brain injury right away?

Many brain injury symptoms don’t appear immediately. The statute of limitations may start when you discovered or should have discovered the injury. This is a complex legal issue. Call us to discuss your specific situation.

Can I still recover compensation if I was partially at fault?

New York follows a pure comparative negligence rule. You can recover compensation even if you were partially at fault, but your recovery will be reduced by your percentage of fault. For example, if you’re found 20% at fault, you can still recover 80% of your damages.

How much is my brain injury case worth?

Every case is different. The value depends on the severity of your injury, your medical expenses, your lost income, and many other factors. We provide honest assessments based on our experience with similar cases. Call us for a free consultation.

Contact Long Island Traumatic Brain Injury Lawyers

If you or someone you love has suffered a traumatic brain injury on Long Island, in Nassau County, Suffolk County, or anywhere in New York, we want to help. We offer free consultations. We work on contingency, which means you don’t pay attorney fees unless we recover compensation for you.

Contact Sullivan & Sullivan by calling (516) 271-1617 or use our contact form to schedule a consultation about your case. Let us put our experience to work for you while you focus on healing.