Personal Injuries Resulting in Paralysis
Accidents can result in catastrophic injuries that temporarily or even permanently compromise a person’s day-to-day functions. Personal injuries resulting in paralysis are especially damaging.
Personal injury attorney Lynn C. Harris helps clients from Salt Lake City, UT, Provo, UT, and surrounding areas hold liable parties accountable for the losses stemming from an accident. He understands the unique damages associated with paralysis injuries, and works hard to get his client the maximum financial compensation they are due.
Paralysis Injuries
Paralysis is an inability to feel or control parts of the body. This condition can affect a person temporarily or permanently and typically occurs following a spinal cord injury. The nerves of the spinal cord are meant to deliver messages between the brain and the body. If these messages cannot be transmitted properly, a person will be unable to control their movements.
Paralysis typically affects the body from the point of the injury and below, but how severe it is depends on how extensive the injury is and exactly what part of the spinal cord was damaged. Personal injuries may result in one of four types of paralysis:
- Monoplegia - Paralysis affecting one single part of the body, such as one arm or one leg
- Hemiplegia - Paralysis affecting one side of the body (i.e. both the right or left arm and leg)
- Paraplegia - Paralysis below the waist, including the legs, bowels, and sex organs
- Quadriplegia - Paralysis below the neck, including the torso and all four limbs
Types of Damages You Can Sue for in Paralysis Cases
Paralysis affects all areas of a person’s life and these effects are often long-term or lifelong. When representing paralysis victims in the Salt Lake City area, attorney Lynn C. Harris carefully considers all potential economic damages, including:
- Immediate and future medical expenses (diagnostic testing, surgical fees, treatment costs, physical therapy fees, etc.)
- Costs of medical equipment, such as walkers or wheelchairs
- Cost of necessary in-home modifications
- Cost of in-home nursing care
- Lost wages
- Loss of future earning capacity
- Pain and suffering
- Emotional distress
- Diminished quality of life
How Are Paralysis Damages Calculated?
Calculating the damages of a personal injury case is complex. There are many future damages to consider, as well as emotional and physical damages, which cannot be easily quantified. Despite these difficulties, it is important that paralysis injury victims are justly compensated.
To determine appropriate compensation, attorney Harris must understand his clients’ condition, their difficulties, and the prognosis of their injuries. Our legal team will consult with each client’s medical team, as well as with medical experts and economists who can help us calculate losses. Compensation for non-economic damages and anticipated future financial losses are largely dependent on:
- The severity of injuries
- Whether paralysis is temporary or permanent
- How much the injury impacts the person’s personal life
- Whether the injury victim is able to continue working
- The extent of accommodations and modifications needed
- Whether personal nursing care is required
Contact Us
If you’ve been involved in an accident that has left you paralyzed, attorney Lynn C. Harris can help you hold liable parties accountable for injury damages. To discuss the details of your case and learn more about your right to financial compensation, send us a message at your earliest convenience or call (801) 521-3200 to set up a consultation.
