Burn injuries can be catastrophic, causing severe pain, prolonged treatment, and lasting impacts on a victim’s life. Recovery can be long and expensive, often involving multiple surgeries, skin grafts, rehabilitation, and psychological therapy. If you or a loved one has been in a serious burn caused by someone else’s negligence, let our experienced Tyler burn injury lawyers help you pursue justice and fair compensation. The Monsour Law Firm understands the complexities of a burn injury claim, including how to calculate future medical costs, lost income, and emotional trauma.
How Could The Monsour Law Firm Help You Fight for Compensation
When a burn injury claim is filed, one does need aggressive legal representation, putting one’s rights and financial recovery first. Full and fair compensation for your suffering is guaranteed by our firm, availing comprehensive legal support. We conduct extensive investigations, gather evidence that compels, and negotiate with insurance companies to obtain the best result for your case.
Having been in service for many years handling complex cases involving personal injuries, we have represented victims in Tyler, Texas, in recovering medical expenses, lost wages, and compensation for emotional distress. From settlement negotiations to trying cases before a jury, our experienced lawyers are committed to fighting relentlessly on behalf of their clients.
Our Results Speak For Themselves
Settlement
$30 million
Dangerous Drugs
Settlement
$29 million
Dangerous Drugs
Verdict
$18.5 million
Defective Medical Products
Settlement
$1.425 million
Car Accidents
Settlement
$600,000
Wrongful Death
Settlement
$820,000
Oil Field Injury
Settlement
$700,000
Truck Accidents
How Much Compensation Can You Receive for a Burn Injury Claim?
It includes many factors: how serious your burn injury may be, what extent of medical treatment may be involved, and even how much this injury could alter the path of your future life. Attorneys of repute here look into every such case and then decide upon a comprehensive view as to how far you are covered by the compensation scheme.
Though settlements and verdicts vary, burn injury victims may be compensated for both economic and non-economic damages, and in some cases, even punitive damages for extreme negligence.
Compensation may also involve future medical treatment, including continuous treatments, surgeries, and therapy to be needed for rehabilitation. Individuals with permanent disabilities or disfigurements may receive increased damages due to their suffering throughout the rest of their lives as a result of the injuries.
The insurance carrier will try to lower your claim by offering less than what you actually deserve. We fight hard on behalf of our clients, using expert testimony and medical records to prove the full value of their damages.
What Damages Are Available in Burn Injury Claims?
Economic Damages
Economic damages compensate an individual for economic losses that are concrete and arising from the burn injury, which may also include:
- Medical Expenses: These include hospitalization, surgery, skin grafting, rehabilitation, and follow-up care with specialists such as plastic surgeons and dermatologists.
- Loss of Income and Reduced Earning Capacity: Compensation covers lost wages and loss of future earning potential if a victim cannot work temporarily or permanently because of the severity of their burns.
- Transportation: Ambulance and transportation costs to and from doctor visits, including long-term transportation needs; this may include special adapted vehicles for victims who have sustained serious mobility impairments.
- Adaptive equipment: Prosthetics, special compression garments to manage scarring, and other adaptive equipment to help in activities of daily living.
- Home health services: Most patients with burns require home health nursing or personal care for activities of daily living. Wound care may also be necessary to assist in dressing changes, rehabilitation exercises, and daily hygiene routines.
- Prescription medications: Pain management prescriptions, antibiotics to prevent infections, and topical treatments to assist in healing and scar reduction.
- Psychological counseling and therapy: Many burn survivors suffer from emotional trauma and require counseling to cope with the mental toll of their injuries, including therapy for anxiety, depression, and PTSD.
Non-economic damages
Non-economic damages compensate burn injury victims for pain and suffering. This may include:
- Physical pain and suffering: The excruciating pain of their burn injuries, continued treatments, and permanent nerve damage. Severe burns can result in chronic pain that lasts a lifetime.
- Disfigurement and permanent scarring: Serious burns usually leave scars that are permanent and affect the appearance of a victim.
- Loss of enjoyment of life: The severity of the burns can impact the patient’s ability to enjoy activities he or she previously enjoyed, like sports, hobbies, and even socializing.
- Loss of consortium: Damages for the stress a personal relationship has gone through because of physical and emotional distress due to burn injuries. Many times, family members suffer emotionally and sometimes financially when a loved one is suffering from a debilitating injury.
- Psychological Suffering: Extreme changes in physical appearance and limitations to locomotion introduce enormous emotional and psychological disturbances. Victims often have a hard time accepting themselves and adapting to a new life.
- Sleep disturbances: Severe burn injuries may lead to chronic pain, nightmares, and insomnia that generally affect a victim’s recovery process and quality of life.
- Neurological or cognitive impairment: The severity of the injury in a burn can also lead to neurological complications, particularly electrical burns that could affect cognition and bestow motor skills.
Punitive Damages
Punitive damages are those that are granted in cases of gross negligence or intentional injury. These kinds of damages also act as a form of punishment, thus holding responsible parties liable. The courts apply punitive damages as a way of punishing the wrongdoer and ensuring that similar conduct does not happen in the future. They are normally awarded in cases where the defendant’s conduct was so bad that it caused serious injury, such as gross medical negligence, manufacturing defective products, or serious safety violations by employers.
In workplace burns, for example, punitive damages could be sought if an employer has failed to provide appropriate safety equipment or has ignored industry regulations. Punitive damages are also sought when a company knowingly releases a hazardous product without proper safety warnings.
Degrees of Burn Injuries You May Suffer in Tyler, Texas
Burns occur when the skin is exposed to heat from flames, flash burns, hot objects, grease, scalds, chemicals, or electricity. Burn injuries are highly variable, as is their severity.
First-Degree Burns
First-degree burns: This affects the outermost layer of the skin. The burns present themselves as redness, swelling, and mild pain. First-degree burns usually heal without further damage but could still result in some medical expenses and discomfort.
Second-Degree Burns
Second-degree burns involve deeper layers of skin, resulting in blistering, intense pain, and possible infection. Such burns require medical treatment, after which scarring may result if they are not well treated.
Third-Degree Burns
Third-degree burns destroy outer and inner skin layers and often damage nerves, leaving resultant scarring. Skin grafts and months of rehabilitation are commonly needed for the victim to recover from such injurious wounds.
Fourth-Degree Burns
Fourth-degree burns involve skin but an extension to the muscles, tendons, and bones, which results in life-threatening complications. Injuries of this horrific nature require immediate emergency care and long-term medical treatment.
According to the American Burn Association, two to three days after a burn, if it becomes more painful, increases in redness and swelling, or if visible skin darkens in the burn sites, it needs evaluation.
What Are the Top Causes of Burn Injuries That Law Firms Fight?
Workplace Accidents
Many burn injuries occur in industrial settings, construction sites, and manufacturing plants. Exposure to chemicals, flames, and electrical hazards can cause severe burns, often requiring workers’ compensation claims or personal injury lawsuits.
Defective Products
Faulty electrical appliances, heating equipment, and flammable materials can lead to serious burns. Manufacturers may be held liable for unsafe products that cause injuries.
Automobile Accidents
Car accidents can result in burn injuries from explosions, fuel leaks, and airbag deployment. Victims may pursue claims against negligent drivers or vehicle manufacturers.
Residential Fires
House fires originating from faulty wiring, gas leaks, or negligence can lead to devastating injuries. Homeowners, landlords, or utility companies may be responsible for damages.
Ameriburn said that 73% of burns occur in the home. Because many families spend much time in their homes, especially those balancing work and childcare responsibilities, safety measures can help avoid household burn injuries.
Medical Negligence
Burns from surgical procedures, radiation treatments, or chemical exposure in medical settings can result from malpractice. Legal action may be warranted if a healthcare provider’s negligence led to your burn injury.
Scalding Accidents
Hot liquids, steam, or boiling water can cause severe burns, particularly in young children and the elderly. Negligence in public places, daycares, or nursing homes may result in liability.
Electrical Accidents
High-voltage electrical currents may result in burns to the internal tissues of a person’s body and to other internal organs, such as the heart. Property owners, employers, and utility companies could be held liable for unsafe electrical conditions.
Gas Explosions
Gas explosions may result in severe burns, including leaking gas lines, exploding propane tanks, or malfunctioning equipment. Claims can involve landlords, contractors, or utility companies.
Have You Suffered a Serious Burn Injury in Tyler, Texas? Contact Our Lawyers and Attorneys
If you or your loved one have suffered a severe burn injury, the Monsour Law Firm is here to help. Our team of Tyler burn injury lawyers is committed to seeking maximum compensation. Contact us today to learn how we can help you seek justice.
Doug Monsour
Douglas C. Monsour, or Doug Monsour, is a trial lawyer who handles important and significant injury cases in Texas and across the nation. He is one of a handful of trial lawyers who have successfully tried multiple pharmaceutical, medical device, and mass tort product liability cases as the lead lawyer. He also vigorously represents injured oil field workers, victims of 18-wheeler wrecks, industrial accident victims, and those that have been severely burned.
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What Our Clients Are Saying About Us
Stassi R.
August 2024
I couldn’t thank these people and this firm enough! Excellent communication. I highly recommend!! Christina was amazing, truly professional and understanding. She made me feel like a priority. I wasn’t sure how to handle certain things for my situation but the wonderful staff brought me in and guided me through. I am so grateful! Thank you guys!