Are You an Amputation Victim in New Jersey?

The effects of amputation on someone’s life can be devastating. You must relearn to do simple things that you may not have ever thought about before. Whether you have lost limbs, fingers, or toes, your life will be different afterward. If you have suffered the amputation of one of your limbs because of someone else’s negligence, you are most likely entitled to compensation. An amputation attorney can help you recover money to deal with the costs and issues you’re likely to face because of your injury.

Amputation Injuries in the US

In the United States, there are nearly 2 million people that have suffered the loss of a limb. Of those people, almost 45% of amputations happened because of a traumatic event, according to the Amputee Coalition and National Limb Loss Resource Center. Of the remaining, about 54% of people required amputation because of vascular disease such as diabetes, and the remainder needed amputation because of cancer. Approximately 185,000 amputations occur every year. A study done by Johns Hopkins determined that projected lifetime healthcare costs for amputees was well over $500,000.

Dismemberment Versus Amputation

Dismemberment and amputation are not quite synonymous, though the result is the same in effect. Generally speaking, amputation is the surgical removal of a limb, including hands, feet, fingers, and toes. Amputation happens when a doctor finds it medically necessary to remove part or all of a person’s limb. Body dismemberment, on the other hand, happens because of a catastrophic event. The limb is severed in an accident. Dismemberment can require surgical amputation. 

Most importantly, even if the doctor was able to reattach your limb or you received a prosthetic, the initial loss still counts as an amputation injury. You are still likely entitled to compensation to cope with that injury. 

Causes of Traumatic Amputation

Amputations can occur as a direct result of a catastrophic event or because a doctor found it necessary after the event occurred. Most commonly, these are the types of accidents where amputations happen:

Regardless of how it happened, your amputation injury attorney can help you recover for the financial damages involved through a personal injury lawsuit. 

Amputations Can Severely Impact Your Life

It is not difficult to see how an amputation can dramatically alter your entire life. Everyday activities that most people take for granted are suddenly much more difficult when you have to do them without one of your limbs or extremities. Seemingly simple actions like walking, cooking, getting dressed, making a phone call, or using a computer can involve much more effort or even be impossible after an amputation. Suddenly you can no longer do things you enjoyed or maybe even work to earn a living. If you have lost a limb because of someone else’s fault, at least you should receive the financial compensation to make up for the costs associated with caring for yourself and adjusting to your new life, and hopefully to ease some of the burdens. 

Possible Financial Damages Available to Amputation Victims

The following types of compensation are generally available in personal injury lawsuits involving amputation injuries:

  • Medical costs—including surgeries, hospitalizations, prescriptions, physical or psychological therapy, costs of traveling to appointments, and any other past or future damages related to your injury;
  • Loss of wages—including the income you lost because of the injury itself and because of treatments, and also the loss of your future earning capacity;
  • Loss of enjoyment of life—meaning loss of the ability to do things you enjoyed engaging in prior to your amputation;      
  • Loss of consortium—payment to your significant other for the ways that your injury has damaged your relationship and intimate life;
  • Pain and suffering;
  • Emotional or mental distress—meaning the mental trauma associated with these injuries, such as post-traumatic stress disorder, anxiety, and loss of sleep; and
  • Punitive damages—available in limited cases where the at-fault party’s actions were especially egregious or reckless.

Your amputation lawyer will go over all the damages available to you as well as help you determine the amount you could recover from a successful lawsuit or settlement.

Why Do I Need to Hire an Amputation Injury Lawyer?

Your amputation attorney will aggressively pursue a claim on your behalf for compensation for your injuries. You have already dealt with enough trauma, pain, and heartbreak because of your injury. Your focus should be on healing and getting back to living as normal a life as possible. An amputation attorney will do all the legal legwork involved to get you the compensation you need to do that. Litigating a personal injury case, even if it ends up settling rather than going to court, usually involves the following:

  • Identifying the responsible party by investigating the event, interviewing witnesses, and possibly working with accident reconstruction experts;
  • Consulting medical experts such as doctors and therapists to determine the extent of your injuries and their impact on your future;
  • Working with financial experts to determine how your injuries will impact your financial future, including the loss of your earning capacity;
  • Communicating with courts, insurance companies, and the at-fault party’s attorneys;
  • Participating in settlement negotiations with the insurance companies; and
  • Pursuing a lawsuit in court if negotiating does not yield a fair settlement amount.

It is essential to hire an amputation attorney that has experience dealing with these kinds of catastrophic injuries.  

Contact a New Jersey Amputation Attorney

The loss of a limb can have an indescribably drastic impact on your quality of life. Aside from the necessary adjustments to nearly every facet of your life, the financial impacts can be truly destructive. You don’t need to live with the financial burdens on top of the physical, emotional, and mental ones. Our amputation injury lawyers at O’Connor, Parsons, Lane & Noble pride themselves on their abilities to obtain successful results for our clients. We are recommended by our peers and adversaries and have no weak links on our team.

Our record of successful verdicts and settlements speaks for itself. You can also read testimonials from some of our clients on our website. Our firm’s success has been notable in all areas of civil litigation and personal injury. Our attorneys are New Jersey’s best, and we would be honored to work with you. Our client relationships are of utmost importance. Contact us today to speak with one of our attorneys about your case.