West Texas Brain Injury Lawyer
A brain injury lawyer at the Hanna Law Firm will fight to make sure you receive the full compensation you deserve in the case of a traumatic brain injury. Call (432) 580-4878.
A brain injury is unlike any other. For one thing, your brain controls the rest of your body. It is responsible for your emotions, your ability to think and make decisions, your ability to connect with people, your ability to function day-to-day. It is the center of your identity as a person. And when your brain has been hurt, it’s not obvious to others — or even yourself — like a cut or a broken bone. It is not visible, and symptoms may not show up until weeks or even months after the injury occurred. When delayed symptoms do begin to appear, it can take a long time for you and medical professionals to connect the dots back to the original incident.
But in addition to being uniquely difficult to pinpoint, brain injuries can be uniquely devastating, leading to paralysis, confusion, mood changes, headaches, and a host of other physical, mental, and emotional symptoms. Recovery can be fast in the case of a mild concussion — or, in more serious cases, take years. Some people never fully come back from their traumatic brain injury (TBI).
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Why You Should Contact a Brain Injury Lawyer
If you’ve suffered a brain injury and you believe it may be due to someone else’s negligence, you may be entitled to compensation. The West Texas brain injury lawyers at the Hanna Law Firm are experienced in handling these difficult cases. We will painstakingly investigate the circumstances around your injury, whether another party’s negligence is to blame, and calculate the entirety of your losses — past, present, and future. We’ll make sure you are compensated fairly and the responsible entities are held to account.
Our West Texas Brain Injury Lawyers Are Ready to Help You Today
Call us at (432) 580-4878 or request an appointment online. We have offices in Abilene, Odessa, Sweetwater, and Midland. Initial consultations are free, so you have nothing to lose — but, potentially, a lot to gain.
Common Questions Asked of a Brain Injury Lawyer
We cannot tell you how much your brain injury case will be worth until we investigate your accident, the resulting injuries, and calculate your total losses. The experienced head injury lawyers at the Hanna Law Firm have handled many TBI cases, and no two have been exactly the same. Brain injuries can be mild, severe, or anywhere in between, so medical costs vary widely. Lost income, of course, is calculated based on the victim’s income before the incident, so someone who made $50,000 per year will receive less than someone who made $100,000 per year. No matter the circumstances surrounding your accident, a good West Texas Brain Injury lawyer will conduct a thorough investigation and make sure to account for every loss you suffered.
As in any personal injury case in Texas, damages in a traumatic brain injury case fall into two categories: special damages and general damages.
Special Damages in a Brain Injury Case
Special damages are actual economic losses, so they are generally more concrete and easier to calculate. They include:
- All past, current, and future medical expenses related to the accident: medication copays, hospital bills, medical equipment, etc.
- Lost wages from missed work — and loss of earning capacity in situations of long-term work loss
- Property damage: for example, if you suffered a head injury in a car accident, repair or replacement for your car and damaged property that was inside the car
General Damages in a Brain Injury Case
General, or non-economic, damages, are those very real but less easily quantifiable losses. They include:
- Emotional, mental, and physical pain and suffering
- Loss of quality of life
- Emotional trauma or distress
In rare cases, victims may be eligible to receive additional damages called punitive damages. These are awarded only in situations in which the injuries are determined to be a result of gross negligence or deliberate action.
Texas is a comparative fault state. This means that as long as the other party is determined to be at least 51% at fault for the incident that caused your TBI, they or their insurer will be responsible for damages. But if you are found to be partially at fault, the money you receive may be reduced by that percentage.
As a real-world example, take a motorcyclist who was hit by a car whose driver was distracted from texting and ran a stop sign. Clearly, the car driver broke the law and is responsible for the accident. But if the motorcyclist was not wearing a helmet, the insurance company may argue that they are partially at fault for their TBI — even though Texas state law does not require drivers over the age of 21 to wear helmets.
As you work on recovering from your TBI and try to keep above water with all your bills — possibly without an income — you may be hesitant to hire a brain injury lawyer, fearing you can’t afford this additional expense. Perhaps you’ve already been approached by the party that caused your brain injury or their insurance company with an offer of easy cash.
Here’s the thing: the other party’s motive in offering you a quick settlement is to discourage you from hiring a lawyer and taking things further. They are well aware that if you do hire professional representation, they will likely end up parting with far more money. An experienced traumatic brain injury attorney will use their experience and deep knowledge of Texas law to accurately calculate the full cost of your losses. They will research the accident and find all responsible parties. And they will negotiate with the other party on your behalf — taking them to court if necessary. At the Hanna Law Firm, we don’t get paid unless you do so there is no downside to giving us a call.
In order to have a legitimate traumatic brain injury case, a few elements must be proven. First of all, you must have suffered actual damages, or losses, for which you need compensation. These may be actual financial losses like bills and lost wages, or other losses for which a value must be defined, like pain and suffering. Your brain injury lawyer must prove that a party had a duty of care, that they breached that duty by acting negligently, and that their negligence caused your injury. A traumatic brain injury attorney at the Hanna Law Firm will be happy to go over the facts of your case and help determine whether you have a strong claim.
My Loved One Died of a TBI. Can the Hanna Law Firm’s Head Injury Lawyers Help Me?
When a person dies as a result of a traumatic brain injury, the effect on the family is devastating. They are mourning the unexpected loss of their loved one. They may have sudden additional financial burdens as well. If you are a close relative of someone who’s died from their brain injury, you may have a case for a wrongful death claim. You must be the deceased person’s spouse, child (minor or adult), or parent. Grandparents and siblings are not eligible. As in a personal injury case, there must be established that there was a duty of care, the duty of care was breached, and that the plaintiffs suffered losses as a result.
At the Hanna Law Firm, our attorneys can help you get justice if your loved one died as a result of a traumatic brain injury, and someone else’s negligence is to blame. We understand that we can’t bring your relative back or stop your pain. What we can do is ease your financial burden and make sure the people who caused your family member’s death are held responsible. Typical damages in a wrongful death suit include compensation for:
- Funeral and burial costs
- Lost wages or earning capacity of the decedent
- Lost care, services, support, or counsel that the deceased family member would have provided
- Loss of comfort, companionship, and love
- Pain and suffering / mental and emotional anguish
- Loss of inheritance or what the deceased person likely would have left to surviving family members over a full career
Call the TBI Lawyers at the Hanna Law Firm
A traumatic brain injury is an especially challenging type of injury. You may be suffering its effects years down the road, and it’s critical to have an expert lawyer on your side who understands the singular challenge of a TBI, what it may cost you long term, and who is willing to stand up to Big Insurance and fight for your needs.
The brain injury lawyers in West Texas at the Hanna Law Firm are committed to every one of our clients. We ask the right questions, conduct the right research, and work hard to make sure you receive the money you need to recover. Call us for a free consultation at (432) 580-4878 or request an appointment via our online form. We have offices in Abilene, Odessa, Sweetwater, and Midland.