Texas Brain Injury Lawyer

The Texas Division of the Brain Injury Association of America estimates that at least 144,000 Texans experience a traumatic brain injury every year.

Brain injuries can be life-altering. In fact, about 381,000 Texans are currently attempting to cope with a TBI-related injury right now.

Not only can a TBI lead to permanent health consequences, but it can also impact a person’s personal relationships, professional life, and even their personality. What’s more, you can experience long-term side effects even when a TBI seems “minor,” like when you temporarily get knocked out for a few seconds.

For that reason, it’s critical to get treatment after any kind of head trauma. A medical diagnosis can help you better understand your potential losses. If you’re worried about paying for your medical bills, you may need to consider your legal options for recovery, especially if your TBI was the result of an accident caused by someone else.

A solid legal team, like the attorneys here at DFW Injury Lawyers, can help you better understand your options. Find out more about TBIs in Texas, the losses associated with these injuries, and how a Texas brain injury lawyer can help you recover financially.

Head Trauma and Brain Damage: The Basics

In medical terms, head injuries are a broad category of injuries that occur to the skull, scalp, brain, and blood vessels in the head. A head injury can be mild, causing few symptoms, or extremely serious (like a traumatic brain injury).

Some brain injury symptoms may be delayed or not immediately obvious which is why it’s best to get a full physical if you suspect you hit your head. You’ll also want to have someone monitor you if you suspect you injured your head.

In the aftermath of a traumatic brain injury, you should surround yourself with support team that includes your closest loved ones, your healthcare provider, and a personal injury lawyer. Your loved ones assist with your immediate needs, while a healthcare provider can guide you on how to recover safely. A lawyer helps you learn more about your legal options and pursue potential injury claims while you focus on healing.

Types of Brain Injuries

Traumatic brain injuries and other types of head wounds range in severity.

Here is a broad overview of the different types of brain injuries on a basic spectrum:

• Mild: A mild brain injury can occur with or without the loss of consciousness. It typically results in post-traumatic amnesia for under an hour and mild symptoms like dizziness, confusion, disorientation, and sensitivity. A concussion is an example of a mild TBI.
• Moderate: Moderate brain injuries lead to a loss of consciousness anywhere from 15 minutes to six hours. Symptoms of amnesia can last up to 24 hours, and the patient almost always needs to be hospitalized for monitoring overnight. Moderate TBIs have more of an impact on a person’s total physical, mental, and emotional well-being. Moderate TBIs also usually impact a person’s ability to work. Recovery periods can take up to a year.
• Severe: A brain injury is considered severe when the person remains unconscious for more than six hours and experiences amnesia symptoms for over 24 hours. These individuals usually experience debilitating symptoms that prevent them from returning to their post-injury lifestyle.
• Very Severe: These extreme TBIs usually result in loss of consciousness for over 48 hours. Serious amnesia symptoms can last over a week; the person likely experiences life-altering impacts later on.

In general, the longer a person is unconscious, the more severe and lasting the impact. This isn’t always the case as even mild TBIs can cause life-altering symptoms.

What is an Acquired Brain Injury?

Traumatic brain injuries are a type of acquired brain injury. Acquired brain injuries are defined as damage to the brain (excluding brain birth injuries).

Many events can cause an acquired brain injury like a car accident, a slip and fall, or a violent strike to the head. Brain injuries that develop due to degenerative diseases, like Alzheimer’s, are not considered TBIs.

Acquired brain damage leads to a host of whole-body symptoms like:

• Severe headaches
• Confusion
• Loss of consciousness
• Vomiting and nausea
• Dizziness and disorientation
• Trouble walking or performing physical tasks
• Disturbed vision or speech
• Weakness of the extremities
• Fluid or blood draining from the ears or nose

If you suspect another party was at least partially at fault for your accident, a brain injury attorney can help you determine if you may be able to file a lawsuit to recover compensation.

Traumatic Brain Injuries vs. Non-Traumatic Brain Injuries

The word trauma typically conveys an experience that’s distressing — it makes sense that brain trauma is a category of damage that causes the patient to experience symptoms that impact their quality of life.

Brain trauma happens when there is a clear change in the way a person’s brain functions due to external or internal factors. In general, TBIs are caused by external factors.

Non-traumatic brain injuries tend to develop due to internal factors like a lack of oxygen or pressure from a tumor. A non-traumatic brain injury can lead to equally agonizing symptoms.

What is a Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI)?

A traumatic brain injury occurs when the brain is damaged by an external force. The damage ranges in severity and can lead to fatalities. Below, we’ll get into more detail about the various types of TBIs and what causes them.

Types of TBIs

In general, there are three main types of TBIs:

• Diffuse Axonal Injury: When the brain shifts and rotates, it can tear the brain’s connecting nerve fibers (axons). This usually results in a coma.
• Closed Brain Injury: When a brain is violently shaken back and forth inside the skull, it can tear or bruise brain tissue and blood vessels.
• Penetrating Brain Injury: When a skull is breached, layers of the brain can be penetrated which can cause significant damage.

Unfortunately, brain damage is generally irreversible. Once a brain cell is damaged or destroyed, it likely can’t renew itself. That being said, people can still recover after a brain injury, especially when young.

The brain is fascinating and can survive even the most severe trauma. Sometimes, the brain learns to re-direct information and continue to function. At other times, other areas of the brain can compensate for the damaged parts.

Common Reasons Behind Brain and Head Injuries

Here are some of the top causes of head injuries in the US:

• Car accidents are the leading cause of TBIs. During a crash, a person goes from traveling at a high speed to a complete stop, which causes the brain to violently slam back and forth in the skull.
• Truck accidents are another common cause of brain injuries.
• Motorcycle crashes can lead to extremely serious head injuries when riders fail to wear the proper protective gear. With the right helmet, the risk of sustaining a brain injury is reduced but never completely negated.
• Pedestrian accidents can cause massive injuries, including death, due to the level of exposure involved.
• Slip and falls can lead to severe brain injuries regardless if they happen from a height or at ground level.
• Boating accidents also often lead to TBIs. According to Texas Parks and Wildlife, over 2,559 boating injuries were reported throughout 2019.
• Product liability incidents can lead to a TBI injury when the product is defective, was designed improperly, or otherwise causes an injury to a consumer.
• Sports injuries are a frequent cause of TBIs in children and teenagers. Since youth sports leagues are so common — yet dangerous — Texas passed Natasha’s Law (TX HB 2038) to protect young athletes. This law requires a coach to immediately remove a player from a game or activity if they suspect a potential head injury.

Do You Have a Brain Injury Case?

After a TBI-related accident, it’s an uphill battle to recover physically, identify your losses, and rebuild your life. One thing to consider along the way is whether or not you have the legal option of filing a brain injury lawsuit.

To determine if you have a case, talk to experienced Texas personal injury lawyers who can go over the specific facts of your situation with you. In general, you could have a claim if another party had a legal duty to provide for your care, they failed to do so, and their action or inaction caused your accident.

Obtaining the right attorney who can provide legal services is an utmost priority because they’ll be able to help you determine if you have a case and whether it’s worth the time to seek one out.

Key Factors in a Brain Injury Case

The key factors that determine if you have a claim can include:

• Liability: whether the party causing the injury is legally at fault
• Damages: the extent of your losses
• Collectability: whether your damages are collectable from the responsible party

Who was at fault for your accident plays a major role in your ability to seek out a claim and the extent of the damages you can recover. For that reason, you need to know how fault is determined in accidents. Courts need to see evidence of fault, which might include things like police reports, eyewitness testimony, video footage of the accident, and other proof.

Wrongful Death Claims

According to the Texas Brain Injury Advisory Council, there were at least 64,362 TBI-related deaths in 2020. When a TBI-related accident leads to a fatality, the surviving loved ones may be able to seek out a wrongful death claim to recover losses like burial costs, medical bills prior to their loved one’s passing, a loss of financial support, and more.

How Much is a Brain Injury Case Worth?

Moderate and severe TBIs are very expensive to treat due to the consequences associated with them. Consequences of a brain injury often include physical symptoms, mental challenges, emotional disturbances, and more.

These individuals usually need to take a significant amount of time off of work, and they’ll incur substantial medical bills in the process. What’s more, they may need around-the-clock care from a loved one or healthcare professional.

As you can imagine, the costs of this type of care are usually pretty high.

The Texas Brain Injury Advisory Council estimates that over $40 billion is spent in the US annually on treating non-fatal TBIs. At least 5.3 million Americans need consistent treatment for stroke-related TBIs.

There are about 611 TBI-related hospitalizations and 176 TBI-related fatalities every day in the US. Keep in mind that all these figures are low because they don’t account for all TBI cases: They only include individuals who seek out treatment.

A successful brain injury lawsuit can help financially restore you to the position you were in prior to the accident. That means your compensation should be equal to your losses. A Texas brain injury lawyer can help you estimate the value of your past and future losses, and fight for a fair settlement or verdict that covers the full extent of the harm you suffered.

Outcomes vary but working with an experienced law group with successful results to their name, like DFW Injury Lawyers, may increase your chances of a more favorable legal outcome.

What Factors Go Into TBI Injury Compensation?

Here are some of the most common losses that you can recover through a claim:

• Medical Bills: These damages should compensate the injured for current and future medical bills.
• Lost Wages: These damages should compensate the injured for wages they could have earned if they weren’t injured.
• Pain and Suffering: These damages cover losses stemming from emotional distress. Though there is no specific monetary value attached to it, it is an important type of loss that should not be overlooked when pursuing compensation.
• Impairment: Damages for physical impairment cover a person’s inability to do things they normally enjoyed doing before their injury outside of work (which is covered by lost earning capacity), and outside of living pain free.
• Punitive Damages: These damages aren’t meant to compensate the injured but to punish and penalize the party responsible for the accident. The financial penalty is meant to discourage similar future behavior.
• Loss of Consortium: These damages compensate someone for a lost relationship and its benefits following the TBI.

Brain Injury Lawyer: FAQs

Below, we’ll go over some of the most frequently asked questions about brain injuries, personal injury lawyers in Texas, and how to leverage the law to your advantage and seek out compensation.

How Do I Find a Brain Injury Attorney Near Me?

To find Texas brain injury attorneys in your area, search online for local offices. From there, look for firms that have positive testimonials from past clients, substantial case outcomes, and free consultations. Take the time to talk with the injury law firm, and select the attorney who best meets your needs. DFW Injury Lawyers offers free legal consultations and can help answer any questions you may have about the process of filing a Texas brain injury lawsuit.

How Much Do Texas Brain Injury Lawyers Charge?

DFW Injury Lawyers offer its services on a contingency fee basis. That means you won’t have to pay your lawyer as the case moves forward. Instead, you’ll pay your attorney a percentage of your overall settlement amount. Your lawyer won’t get paid until you do.

This payment arrangement is very beneficial for injured individuals already struggling to cope with significant financial losses. Here at DFW Injury Lawyers, we understand the financial strain you’re experiencing. We’re prepared to work diligently to ensure you get paid in a timely manner.

How Long Do I Have to File a Brain Injury Lawsuit?

Statute of limitations laws in Texas give you two years from the date of an accident to seek out a claim. There are a few exceptions to this. Minors, for example, who get injured can still seek out a claim for up to two years after they turn 18. To make sure your claim is filed in a timely manner, talk to a Texas personal injury attorney as soon as possible after your accident.

Are You Ready for a Free Consultation With a Texas Brain Injury Lawyer?

Have you recently been in an accident that resulted in a head injury? Was another party at fault? If so, you may qualify to file a brain injury lawsuit.

If your injuries are substantial or your loved one has been diagnosed with a TBI, it’s time to be informed about your legal rights. Depending on the circumstances, you may be able to recover some financial compensation to help you cover medical losses and more. Our Texas injury lawyers can help you better understand your losses and potential legal options.

Contact us today to schedule your free consultation.