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(253) 272-5226A catastrophic injury could upend your life when you least expect it. These injuries could occur in motor vehicle accidents, sports-related injuries, or a violent crime. In any of these cases, you could be entitled to monetary compensation if someone else’s reckless behavior caused your injury. A Tacoma catastrophic injury lawyer could help you file a claim and sort through the many issues of your situation.
Here at Ladenburg Law, we offer free case reviews. A case review is an opportunity for one of our experienced lawyers to hear what happened and help you understand your legal rights. Rest assured that all these meetings are confidential.
First off, you should know that there is not an official, legal definition for “catastrophic injury.” However, we use the term to describe severe injuries that leave a victim with lasting or permanent effects. Injuries like these can impact your quality of life or your ability to keep your job. They also impact your family, who may now need to assist you with everyday tasks.
Some examples of catastrophic injuries include:
Any of these conditions could be difficult to cope with. While a settlement won’t undo the damage, it could help ease the financial burdens you’re facing.
To learn more about injuries and personal injury law, read our blog post entitled Is My Injury Serious Enough for a Lawsuit?
Sometimes, we get hurt because we weren’t paying attention or made a risky choice. But what happens if you suffer a severe injury because of someone else? If you can prove that someone else’s careless or malicious behavior caused your injury, you may be able to seek compensation. In the legal world, we refer to this kind of behavior as negligence.
Examples of a catastrophic injury caused by negligence could include a:
Remember, the key to having a claim is being able to prove that the other party’s negligence resulted in your injury. A skilled attorney could help you accomplish this.
What if you are partially responsible for your injury? For instance, perhaps you weren’t wearing a helmet at a time of your motorcycle crash and that contributed to the severity of your injury.
In Tacoma, you can still file a claim and receive a reduced settlement if you’re partly to blame (see RCW 4.22.005). The court will assign a fault percentage and your award will be reduced accordingly. Take our helmet example above. Let’s say the court determines you were 30% at fault in this situation. Your settlement would then be reduced by 30%.
Working with an attorney is key in these situations. A skilled attorney can fight to lower your fault percentage as well as negotiate a maximum total settlement award.
Understandably, you’d like to know if you have a case and if so, what kind of settlement you could hope to get. However, it’s difficult to provide a range on a simple webpage like this without knowing your exact circumstances.
Many factors go into determining a settlement amount. And some of these are shifting. These could include:
Here’s another key factor to consider: the quality of your attorney. One good way to select an attorney is to read their online reviews. What are other clients saying about them?
Sometimes, law firms take on as many cases as possible and try to settle them quickly. At Ladenburg Law, we work hard on every case, no matter how big or small. We will not hesitate to file a lawsuit if we feel negotiations aren’t producing a fair offer. However, it’s always your decision whether to accept an offer or move forward with a lawsuit.
In most cases, you have three years from the data of the accident to file a personal injury claim (RCW 4.16.080). If you are past this deadline (also referred to as the “statute of limitations”), you will be ineligible to recover compensation.
We recommend you seek the counsel of a qualified injury attorney as soon as possible after your accident. There are several reasons for not delaying:
Ultimately, all this results in boosting your chances to receive the maximum settlement possible.
Why not carve out a few minutes right now to speak with a Tacoma catastrophic injury lawyer from our team? As a reminder, it’s free to do so. In fact, we only charge a fee for our services if we’re able to win you a settlement.
Please contact us today. We’d love to see how we can assist you during this difficult time.