Settlements for Paralysis

Paralysis involves the loss of ability to move some or all of your body. There are different reasons paralysis occurs. Based on the cause and the location of your spine that was injured, paralysis could be temporary or permanent. If you are concerned with getting a settlement for paralysis caused by another party, you should discuss your situation with the seasoned Syracuse personal injury lawyers of DeFrancisco & Falgiatano. We have recovered millions in awards and settlements.

A primary symptom of paralysis is not being able to move a portion of your body or not being able to move, period. Paralysis can happen quickly or gradually, and it can be intermittent. It may impact your face, hands, an arm or leg, a side of your body, both your legs and both your legs and arms. With paralysis, your body could also be stiff with spasms, numb, tingly, or painful. When your paralysis is the fault of another, our lawyers may be able to recover damages.

If you suffered paralysis, you may be able to recover compensatory damages to make up for your tangible and intangible losses. In some cases, insurance adjustors or other entities are willing to pay a settlement to an accident victim rather than take a case to trial, which can be expensive and can take one to two years, depending on the nature of the case. Prior to trial, our Syracuse attorneys will conduct discovery to determine who should be held responsible for the damages arising out of paralysis and obtain evidence to make a case against those parties.

The circumstances of the accident and the results of discovery will determine whether settlement is appropriate. The value of the case can dramatically shift based on facts that come out. In a car accident case involving paralysis, for example, our personal injury lawyers will need to seek evidence to prove that the defendant was actually and legally at fault for the accident that caused your paralysis. Negligence requires evidence that: (1) the defendant owed you a duty to use reasonable care, (2) breach of the duty to use reasonable care, (3) causation, and (4) damages.

The context will determine whether a duty was owed and how it was breached. For example, in a truck accident case, a driver may breach the duty to use reasonable care to others with whom he shares the road by taking prescription medication that makes him drowsy. Or, for another example, in a premises liability case that involves a trip and fall in a landscaped area, we may need to show evidence that there was a dangerous property condition on which you were injured, and that the property owner knew or should have known about it.

If discovery reveals that you might not have been paying attention to where you were walking in the landscaped area and you weren’t supposed to be in that area as a visitor, we may not be able to make that showing. In that situation, the defendant would have some bargaining power to either refuse to settle or to offer a low-ball settlement just to get rid of the case.

Settlements are agreements reached between the parties. Their written terms can bar you from seeking any further damages from another party. Both parties may be required to submit to certain stipulations, such as confidentiality. The terms of a settlement agreement should be negotiated by a trustworthy attorney who can protect your rights, particularly when catastrophic injuries like paralysis are involved. Sometimes these settlements are reached informally, but in other cases, they are reached through alternative dispute resolution processes like mediation or arbitration.

In some cases, such as paralysis involving children, it may be appropriate to develop a structured settlement with payments made each year for the child’s care.

If you suffered paralysis through the fault of another, call our seasoned Syracuse lawyers. DeFrancisco & Falgiatano Personal Injury Attorneys has more than 30 years of experience seeking best results for accident victims in Herkimer, Elmira, Oswego, Lowville, Auburn, Canandaigua, Buffalo, Oneida, Utica, Rochester, Albany, Wampsville, Watertown, Lyons, Ithaca, Cooperstown, Binghamton, and all of Upstate New York. For a free consultation, complete our online form or call us at 833-200-2000.