Personal Injury, Wrongful Death, & Survivor Damages in Wilmington & Clinton County Ohio

Injuries caused by the negligence of someone else give you a right to recover monetary damages to compensate you for your losses. However, if you or a loved one has suffered an injury, you likely know that money alone often cannot fully compensate for personal injury losses. Be that as it may, money is the only legal remedy available in these difficult situations and you should receive monetary damages for your loss. Wilmington personal injury lawyers and Wilmington wrongful death lawyers are experienced in assessing monetary awards and know what type of a settlement or award you might be able to expect from your claim.

When determining the value of a Wilmington personal injury case, you must first consider the type and degree of loss or injury involved. The most severe loss is death, and there is a body of law dealing specifically with death. For more information on Wilmington wrongful death claims, visit our Wrongful Death Damages page, or view the brief summary of wrongful death law below. Although death is one of the most tragic types of losses, many other personal injury claims can be devastating on an individual or an entire family. Wilmington personal injury lawyers deal with all types of injury and accident cases, and know what types of damages you might expect to recover in your situation. Contact one of the qualified Wilmington personal injury lawyers listed on this page to discuss your options.

Wilmington Wrongful Death Lawyer

When someone is killed and the surviving family members believe a lawsuit may be in order, a Wilmington wrongful death lawyer can help them assess the legal issues and prepare necessary documents and expert witnesses for trial. A Wilmington wrongful death attorney will first assess who the proper parties are to make a claim.

The following are some of the people who commonly recover in Wilmington wrongful death actions:

1. Spouses — If the person who died (the decedent) was married, then the spouse can generally recover.
2. Children — Natural and adopted children of the decedent may also collect damages in an Ohio Wrongful Death lawsuit.
3. Parents — Parents of minor and of major (adult) natural and adopted children may also be able to recover.
4. Estate — The decedent’s Estate itself has a claim.

What Are the Types of Damages Available When Someone is Killed Through Negligence?

The discussion above centered on which relatives and close family members have status to file a wrongful death claim. This section will explain what monetary damages are recoverable under Ohio law. Wilmington area claimants are entitled to damages for:

Negligent Infliction of Emotional Distress or Intentional Infliction of Emotional Distress

In some cases, Wilmington families may be put through severe emotional trauma and anguish due to the negligence, recklessness, or intentional wrongdoing of another party. When this occurs, a Wilmington personal injury attorney can help them pursue a claim for Negligent Infliction of Emotional Distress (NIED) or Intentional Infliction of Emotional Distress (IIED). This claim may be brought in addition to other claims for monetary damages, and is often brought by the family members of an injury victim, for example, after witnessing a severe trauma inflicted upon their loved one. To recover as a bystander, a plaintiff must establish that he or she: (1) was located near the scene of the accident, as contrasted with one who was a distance away from it; (2) suffered shock as a result of direct emotional impact upon the plaintiff from a sensory and contemporaneous observance of the accident, as contrasted with learning of the accident from others after its occurrence; and (3) was closely related to the primary victim of the accident.

If you or your family members have witnessed a loved one who is a close relative being injured due to negligence or intentional wrongdoing, and are now suffering mental anguish as a result, you may be entitled to compensation. Contact a Wilmington personal injury attorney or Clinton County personal injury attorney today to discuss your legal rights and remedies.

Wilmington personal injury attorneys and Wilmington wrongful death attorneys represent clients in claims involving a wide range of injuries and accidents and have the experience and skill necessary to get the job done right. Knowledge of a potential damage award is crucial to settling or successfully prosecuting any claim for personal injury or wrongful death, and a Wilmington personal injury lawyer or wrongful death lawyer’s experience with these types of cases can help you assess your options from the get-go.

What are some common types of injuries for which Wilmington and Clinton County residents may be compensated?

(1) Back, Neck, & Spinal Injuries — Spinal injuries are the most common injuries seen in car accidents and work related injuries. This is because the spinal vertebrae, soft tissue, discs, and ligaments extend from the base of the skull all the way down to the hips and are especially vulnerable to auto accidents, other high velocity impacts, and repetitive motion and occupational injuries. Spinal injuries are best treated by an orthopedic surgeon but neurosurgeons may also treat the spine, though they tend to concentrate more heavily on the cervical (neck) region rather than the lumbar (lower back) region. In Wilmington, there are also an abundance of chiropractors, and, in less severe cases, they may treat the injured victim. Since a chiropractor cannot perform spinal surgery, they are generally limited to physical therapy including whirlpool, ice pack treatments, heat treatments, and electrical stimulation. There are a wide array of spinal injuries including:

(a) Whiplash or back and neck strain.

(b) Herniated Discs — Usually diagnosed by a cervical MRI (magnetic resonance imaging) or a Lumbar MRI.  Herniated discs can also be diagnosed by a CAT scan (computed tomography) and/or a Cervical or Lumbar Myelogram. However, a myelogram is an invasive procedure and the MRI has consequently been the preferred diagnostic procedure since about 1987. The normal course of treatment, if the disk herniation is not emergent, is a conservative treatment program involving physical therapy (PT). If, after 6 to 12 weeks of PT, the pain does not resolve itself, a prudent doctor will order an MRI. If the MRI is “positive,” which actually is bad in the sense it has demonstrated a problem in the disc, the next step is epidural steroid injections, which consist of injecting a corticosteroid directly around the disc and joint in question. This may resolve the problem entirely or it may resolve it temporarily. If relief proves to be only temporary, it may be repeated after a month or so. If the pain is not tolerable, the orthopedist or neurosurgeon may discuss spine surgery as an option. Surgical options may range from a laminectomy to a removal of the disc and a fusion. Some fusions are done with natural bone while others are done with “instrumentations.” If you have suffered a herniated disc, you should pursue necessary medical treatment and contact a Wilmington area personal injury attorney.

(c) Paraplegia or Quadriplegia — In truck, car, and other serious accidents, the trauma to the spine can result in a severe injury to the spinal cord. Depending upon the level of trauma, the result can be horrific and sometimes even permanently disabling. A victim may be paralyzed from the waist down or from the neck down, depending on the specific spinal injury involved. Most rollover accidents result in injuries to the C2/C3 or C3/C4 region of the cervical spinal vertebrae and result in full quadriplegia.

(2) Brain Injuries — Brain Injuries range from extremely noticeable to very minor; however, despite the severity of the brain injury, it can affect your ability to perform a variety of daily tasks. Memory, motor function, or other complicated neurological processes may be compromised or fully destroyed. If you believe you may have suffered a brain injury, you should contact a doctor as well as one of the experienced personal injury attorneys listed above.

(a) Birth Brain Injuries — Infant brain trauma is just one of many areas of medical malpractice law; however, it is a unique area because the long lasting effects of a birth brain injury will impact all areas of a child’s life. For every 1,000 births in Wilmington, Ohio, 4.5 babies do not survive the birthing process. In 2007 alone there were 2,541 deaths due to the birthing process. The high strain placed upon the woman’s and baby’s body is extremely dangerous. The baby must deal with compression, contractions, twisting down the birthing canal, and being choked on the umbilical cord. As a result, many babies suffer injuries due to their oxygen supply being cut off or from the general strain from the birthing process. While the birthing process is difficult, the sad truth is that many times a baby’s injury is the result of hospital, doctor, or nurse negligence during the birthing procedure that could have been avoided altogether. Your baby may suffer from a long list of injuries such as: cerebral palsy, brachial plexus, birth hypoxia, shoulder dystocia, or Erb’s palsy. If you believe that your child’s brain injury, learning disability, or physical or mental impairment might have been sustained during birth, you may have a legal claim against the doctor, nurse, and/or hospital. Contact a Wilmington medical malpractice attorney or Clinton County medical malpractice attorney to discuss your options. For more information on brain injuries sustained at birth and medical malpractice law, click here.

(3) Burn Injuries - Burns can happen anytime, anywhere and can change a person’s life forever, leaving painful, difficult-to-mask scar tissue and, many times, requiring painful skin grafts. Burns can also leave the injury victim subject to long, excruciating rehabilitation and lifelong social stigma, resulting in a variety of damages. Perhaps even more critically, burns leave a person extremely vulnerable to infection and a variety of complications can occur following a severe burn. Burn injuries might occur in an industrial explosion, or due to another party’s negligence or the negligence of their employees. Although a monetary award cannot heal the burns themselves, it can go a long way in terms of helping a burn victim and their family during their rehabilitation. Moreover, rising healthcare costs have made recovering from a traumatic burn injury more expensive and difficult for many families affected by the trauma. If you or a loved one has been affected by a severe burn injury and you believe you may have a claim against the party responsible, contact one of the attorneys listed for a consultation.

Wilmington personal injury attorneys and Wilmington wrongful death attorneys represent clients in claims involving a wide range of injuries and accidents and have the experience and skill necessary to get the job done right. Knowledge of a potential damage award is crucial to settling or successfully prosecuting any claim for personal injury or wrongful death and a Wilmington personal injury lawyer or wrongful death lawyer’s experience with these types of cases can help you assess your options from the get-go.

Wilmington Area Florists:

Personal Injury & Wrongful Death Attorneys Serve Wilmington and Surrounding Cities

Serving clients throughout Southwestern Ohio, including Beavercreek, Carlisle, Centerville, Cincinnati, Columbus, Dayton, Delhi, Fairborn, Fairfield, Florence, Forest Park, Gahanna, Goshen, Hamilton, Highland Heights, Hillsboro, Huber Heights, Independence, Kettering, London, Mason, Miami Heights, Middletown, Mount Orab, New Moorefield, Norwood, Pickerington, Piqua, Reynoldsburg, Springfield, Trotwood, Upper Arlington, Urbana, Westerville, Wilmington, Xenia, and other communities in Clinton County.

Clinton County personal injury attorneys and Wilmington wrongful death attorneys will zealously pursue your case through settlement negotiations or a trial. Call now for an explanation of your legal rights and options.