What is a Catastrophic Injury?
When you suffer physical bodily harm after an accident, the extent of the harm you sustained could be mild, severe, or catastrophic. Catastrophic injuries or illnesses are the most serious, have considerable adverse impacts on one’s life, and may need the most medical treatments and interventions. These injuries are typically debilitating and can take a very long time, if ever, to heal. Some catastrophic injuries cause permanent, irreparable harm to a victim.
When an accident results in catastrophic injuries, if it was caused by the misconduct and negligence of another party, then the victim may be able to take legal action to secure financial compensation. Due to the complexity of catastrophic injury events, filing a claim can be difficult for a victim to take on by themselves. The Portland catastrophic injury attorneys at the Rosenbaum Law Group have the experience and knowledge to manage the claims process on a victim’s behalf so they can keep their attention on doing what they need to do to get better.
Valuing Catastrophic Injuries in Injury Claims
Catastrophic injuries can have widespread detrimental impacts on a victim’s life. Some of these can include but are not limited to:
- Immobility due to loss of limbs or loss of function in limbs.
- Reproductive harm.
- Substantial brain damage.
- Paralysis from spinal cord damage.
- Gastrointestinal problems.
Catastrophic injuries cause an excessive amount of pain and suffering, and due to their extreme nature, they can make it hard for a victim to cope with everything. As a result, catastrophic injuries may lead to a victim developing a mental health condition. It is not uncommon when someone’s life is altered so significantly by a catastrophic injury event to struggle with the new reality of their life circumstances and become depressed or experience intense anxiety, for instance.
Physical and mental degradation from a catastrophic injury event can also mean a victim may be affected in other parts of their life. For instance, they may become withdrawn and insecure, so they no longer engage in social situations. Their relationships with loved ones can also change and become strained.
A personal injury claim where a catastrophic injury was suffered may calculate the costs of all of these types of losses. So, damages can include medical expenses, costs for caregiving and home care, loss of household services, loss of current and future income, loss of quality of life, shortened life span, and more.
In some situations, when the injury event happened in an egregious way, then a victim may secure additional compensation. Often catastrophic injuries result when the behavior of the party that caused the incident was particularly shocking. As a punishment and to deter others from engaging in the same type of behavior, punitive damages may also be awarded to a catastrophic injury claim.
Speak to an Oregon Catastrophic Injury Attorney Today
The damages suffered after a catastrophic injury tend to be substantial. As a result, victims have the potential to receive large financial awards.
If you were harmed in a catastrophic injury event in Oregon, having a seasoned attorney on your side is imperative. Call an Oregon personal injury attorney at the Rosenbaum Law Group today at (503) 288-8000.
