Serious Injuries

The Pennsylvania injury attorneys at Caroselli, Beachler & Coleman, L.L.C., understand that any type of accident can change a person’s life in an instant. A serious injury can leave you with steep medical bills, lost wages, and lasting pain and suffering.

Whether your injury was the result of negligence on the part of a third party or something that happened at the workplace, or both, it’s important to explore your legal options. Our experienced injury attorneys have been fighting for the rights of accident and injury victims and their families throughout Pennsylvania since 1972.

Whether your case requires standing up to an insurance company, an employer, or any other responsible party, we promise to advocate for your rights and fight for the compensation you deserve. Contact our Pittsburgh office today to schedule your free, no-obligation consultation.

Types of Serious Injuries We Handle

While some accident victims walk away with only minor injuries, many people aren’t so lucky. A serious injury can be caused by any number of circumstances, and these can have life-altering consequences.

Severe and life-changing injuries can happen because of motor vehicle accidents, industrial accidents, defective products, medical malpractice, and injuries on dangerous premises.

Serious injuries can result in an impairment of a bodily function, a chronic illness, permanent disfigurement, or death. Some of the severe injuries that we handle on behalf of clients include, but are not limited to:

Amputation Injuries

There are few injuries more traumatic than the loss of a body part. Whether a hand, arm, foot, or leg, the victim’s life will never be the same. They may experience severe pain, limited movement, and trouble enjoying prior hobbies or completing basic activities for the remainder of their life.

Burn Injuries

Many burns are minor and heal quickly, and others can take many years to heal. A severe burn injury can require multiple surgical treatments, including skin grafts, and the victim often experiences heavy scarring, movement limitations, and intense pain.

Electrocution

Injuries caused by electric shocks can be incredibly traumatic and result in devastating injuries. An accident victim can suffer severe burns, loss of a limb, brain damage, and cardiac damage.

Scarring and Disfigurement

Injuries that result in scarring and disfigurement can lead to long-term physical and emotional effects. Not only can scars be painful and limit range of motion, but they can also be constant reminders of a traumatic accident and impact a person’s self-esteem.

Spinal Cord Injury

An injury to the body’s spinal cord is likely to lead to paralysis. Without feeling in the extremities and movement, many tasks that were taken for granted can become impossible. Accident victims with these injuries can suffer from limited respiration, bladder and bowel issues, and limitations to basic everyday living and hygiene.

Traumatic Brain Injury

As the human body’s control center, the brain is a vital organ. When a person receives an injury to their brain, they risk cognitive deficits, severe physical limitations, mood changes, altered personality, and even death.

Fractured and Broken Bones

On the surface, fractured and broken bones don’t sound like severe injuries. But, when these are not given the acute medical treatment they need in the short-term, and rest and rehabilitation in the long-term, they don’t heal properly and can cause lifelong issues.

Paralysis

Paralysis is a devastating result of serious injury. Our attorneys can help you recover damages for paralysis that you suffered as a result of someone else’s negligence.

Compensation for Serious Injuries

If you have suffered a serious injury, it’s vital that you explore all potential avenues of compensation. Depending on how and where your injury was caused, we can help you pursue compensation and damages through one or more sources.

Personal Injury

If your injury was caused by the negligent or reckless actions of another party, you have the right to pursue damages for such things as the cost of medical care, lost wages, pain and suffering, and emotional distress. If a loved one was seriously injured and later died due to the negligence of another party, you may be able to file a wrongful death suit.

Workers’ Compensation

If you were injured during the course of your employment, we can help you obtain workers’ compensation benefits to cover your medical expenses and up to two-thirds of your lost wages. Our experienced injury attorneys will help manage all aspects of your workers’ compensation case and appeals.

Social Security Disability

If a serious injury leaves you disabled, you may be eligible for Social Security Disability Insurance (SSDI) benefits. Our attorneys are well-versed on SSD’s requirements and can guide you through the complex claims and appeals process.

Damages and Effect on Families

The very nature of catastrophic injuries is such that they result in serious physical injuries. Such injuries also present a higher risk for permanent or lasting consequences, which may include prolonged and painful recoveries, permanent damage, or life-changing disabilities and impairments.

The damages suffered by every catastrophic injury victim are unique. However, victims of such injuries often experience extensive emotional, physical, and financial losses. Catastrophic injuries can cause substantial financial losses arising from:

• Medical care: Including surgery, emergency treatment, numerous procedures, medicines, inpatient/intensive therapy and rehab, and more.
• Future medical requirements: Reasonably expected to address future deficits and secondary medical issues, such as surgery or additional treatments, accommodative devices or changes, in-home or daily living assistance, medical monitoring, etc.
• Lost income: Due to leave taken from work and temporary disability.
• Loss of future wages: Due to reduced earning capacity (the inability to undertake the same work as earlier or being entirely unable to work and earn a livelihood).
• Financial losses: Economic implications on families who must pay for injury-related medical expenses, take leave from work to care for disabled or severely injured family members, and other expenses of this kind.

Besides financial losses, victims of catastrophic injuries and their families can suffer substantial non-economic losses as well, such as those related to:

• Prolonged and painful recoveries or rehabilitation.
• Physical pain and suffering.
• Psychological injuries, emotional turmoil, and mental anguish.
• Lost companionship, emotional support, and consortium.
• Lost quality or enjoyment of life.

Long-Term or Life-Long Consequences

The damages above highlight that seriously injured victims often suffer damages, which can result in drawn-out if not permanent repercussions. In general, these persistent or recurring damages result from:

• Temporary partial or total disability.
• Loss of bodily or sensory function (i.e., hearing/vision loss).
• Permanent disfigurement (i.e., amputation, facial injuries, scarring).
• Cognitive or physical deficits (i.e., impaired mobility/memory issues).

Assessing the nature of such injuries and their long-term or permanent effect on victims is vital to a correct evaluation of damages. In general, this will warrant collaborating with relevant experts who can augment claims that injuries will cause ongoing losses and impairment, as well as economic specialists who can help determine expenses for the needs that are reasonably anticipated in the future.

Our Pennsylvania Serious Injury Lawyers Are Ready to Fight for You

If you are currently dealing with a serious injury, you shouldn’t have to bear the burden of worrying about financial issues such as paying for medical care and other daily expenses. Our experienced Pennsylvania serious injury attorneys have more than four decades of experience helping people just like yourself.

Our goal is to obtain the maximum compensation that will enable you to deal with your injuries, whether you were seriously injured or permanently disabled. We meticulously investigate the circumstances and facts of every case and provide personalized service to our clients.

Our legal team and investigators work to identify all potentially liable parties by working with law enforcement, witnesses, accident re-constructionists, and other experts. We also develop a detailed explanation of the true cost of your injury so that we can prove damages and maximize your recovery.

Have You Suffered a Serious Injury? Contact Us Today

Serious injury cases can not only be complex but also have time limitations. Depending on who you pursue for damages, you only have so much time after an accident to make a claim. For most personal injury cases in Pennsylvania, the statute of limitations is two years. We provide free consultations, and we take all cases on a contingency fee basis – which means no out of pocket risk to you.

At Caroselli, Beachler & Coleman, L.L.C., we will aggressively pursue compensation on your behalf. If you or someone you love has been seriously injured, contact us today to schedule your free and confidential consultation. Reach out to us online through our contact form or by telephone at 412-391-9860 or toll-free at 866-466-5789.