The instant a catastrophic brain or spinal cord injury hits, everything just comes crashing down and a whole new, scary world opens up in front of you, one you never asked for. We’ve dedicated ourselves to helping people get through this tough transition, and we know these kinds of impairments bring with them a whole host of challenges that filter into every aspect of life. The physical damage is just the beginning, because you’re also going to be dealing with cognitive challenges, emotional stress, financial pressures, loss of independence, and having to basically rethink your whole future, all while trying to make it through each day. And that’s just the tip of the iceberg, because on top of all that, you’ve also got to contend with the fact your family is already fighting for survival. Nursing home negligence occurs when residents suffer harm due to poor care or abuse. This may include medication errors, neglect, or unsafe living conditions. Families can take legal action to protect their loved ones and seek accountability.
Brain injuries most often occur due to some form of accident which can crop up in our daily lives, a car collision, a motorcycle accident, getting hit by a car, falling at work or from a building site, slipping on a patch of ice, getting hurt in a sport, having a bike accident, or getting physically attacked. Your brain controls everything that makes you who you are, so it’s pretty devastating when it gets injured. The extent of the damage can vary, and so can the effects. But often, you’ll see a mix of physical, cognitive, and emotional changes. The physical symptoms can be all kinds of things, chronic headaches, dizziness, vision problems, hearing issues, loss of coordination, weakness or paralysis, seizures, or just feeling exhausted all the time. Cognitive impairments can start to affect things like your memory, your attention span, how fast you can process information, your language skills, your judgment, or your ability to solve problems. And then there are the emotional and behavioral changes, sadness, anxiety, irritability, mood swings, impulse decisions, or just basically who you used to be has changed so much that your loved ones are left struggling to adjust to the person you’ve become. Wrongful death claims arise when a person dies due to someone else’s negligence or misconduct. Surviving family members may seek compensation for financial losses and emotional suffering. Legal action can help provide financial stability during a difficult time.
Spinal cord injuries are among the most crushing things a person can go through. The spinal cord is like the main information superhighway between the brain and the rest of your body, sending messages that tell your body how to move, feel sensations, and do vital stuff. When that gets damaged because of a fracture, a dislocation, or compression of the vertebrae, it can cause partial or full paralysis below where the injury is. If the injury is complete, then you’ve lost all use of your motor and sensory functions below the damage, but if it’s incomplete, then you might still have some sort of function in some of those areas. Where the injury is located is what decides which parts of your body will be affected, and high up injuries to the neck can leave you needing a ventilator to breathe, while lower injuries might leave you unable to walk or use your legs. But it’s not just the paralysis, the pain, the muscle spasms, the loss of bladder and bowel control, the sexual problems, the pressure ulcers, the breathing and heart problems, the autonomic dysreflexia, the blood clots, and the increased risk of infections and other health problems are all just the tip of the iceberg.
Families that aren’t ready to deal with a disaster like a brain or spinal cord injury get absolutely slammed financially. Emergency medical care, think ambulance rides, trauma care, surgery, intensive care, can run hundreds of thousands of dollars before your loved one even gets out of the hospital. And then there are the inpatient rehab facilities, where the injured person gets intensive therapy from a whole team of pros, but these places can cost thousands a day, and your loved one may end up staying for weeks or even months. And let’s not forget about the ongoing costs of outpatient therapy, regular doctor visits, prescription medications, and medical supplies, which are just going to keep piling up for the rest of their lives. And sometimes you need specialized gear like wheelchairs, hospital beds, patient lifts, communication devices, all that expensive stuff, and it’s only going to need to be replaced every now and then. And of course, there are home improvements, ramps, extra-wide doors, easier-to-reach restrooms and living spaces, which can run tens of thousands of dollars or require you to find a new home that’s already been set up to handle someone with a disability. Many people need to hire personal care attendants just to help with the basics like washing, dressing, eating, using the bathroom and so on. And the cost of around-the-clock care can be over $100,000 a year, for decades. Most people with severe injuries are basically out of the workforce, which makes things even worse.
At Singer Katz, we focus on helping people who’ve been hurt really badly, brain and spinal cord injuries, that kind of thing, get the money they need to pay for the medical care and rehabilitation they need, as well as the equipment and home changes they require, not to mention the cost of professional caregiving and just having some financial security so they can focus on their quality of life rather than constantly worrying about how they’re going to pay for everything. We promise to do our absolute best to make the strongest case we can and fight to get the injured person the maximum amount of money possible.
To get compensation for a catastrophic injury, we need to build a super-strong argument backed up by loads of evidence and expert testimony that makes sense. We talk to doctors who can explain what happened, what kind of therapy the person got, how they’re doing now and what the future looks like. We also talk to life care planners, these are experts who know all about catastrophic injuries and can figure out how much it’s going to cost for the person’s future medical care, medications, equipment and home changes. And then we have vocational rehabilitation experts who can work out how much money the injury has cost the person. And economists who put all this stuff together to figure out the total amount of damages. This is a pretty detailed, multidisciplinary approach, and it makes sure that we present a complete case that takes into account all the ways the injury has affected our clients and that we’re seeking compensation that actually matches up with their losses and needs.
Insurance companies are well aware that brain and spinal cord damage cases can end up with huge settlements or verdicts, sometimes millions of dollars, which is why they fight these cases so hard. They can say they’re not responsible for the accident, or argue about the severity of the injuries, or say the injured person will get better faster than we think they will, or claim that problems that were already there made things worse. And often they’ll try to settle the case early on, so they can get it wrapped up before the full extent of the long-term costs becomes clear. These offers may seem like a lot of money, but most of the time they don’t even come close to covering the costs for the rest of the injured person’s life. Having a lawyer on your side means you won’t get taken in by an unfair settlement and that we’ll fight hard to make sure you get the compensation you deserve.
There are always time limits when it comes to personal injury claims, including ones for very serious injuries. You can’t just launch a case whenever you like, there’s a deadline, and if you miss it, you usually lose your right to get compensation. And to be honest, the longer you wait, the harder it gets to gather evidence from the scene of the accident, find witnesses, and track down paperwork. Getting help right away after a brain or spinal cord injury helps protect your rights and gives us the best chance of collecting the evidence we need and building a solid case.
Dealing with the law can be a real nightmare when you’re already dealing with the aftermath of a serious injury. You’ve got medical treatments to worry about, therapy sessions, complications, getting used to new limitations, just dealing with each day can be tough enough. That’s why we take care of all the legal stuff so you can focus on what really matters. We deal with the insurance companies, investigate the accident, gather evidence, talk to specialists, work out settlements, and if need be, take the fight to court. You don’t have to go through this on your own.
People who are injured shouldn’t ever have to stress out about how they’re going to afford getting a good lawyer. We operate on a contingency fee model, which means you pay us nothing upfront and it’s only when we win your case and get you a settlement that we get paid. That way, everyone gets to have access to a lawyer who really knows what they’re talking about, without breaking the bank. Plus, our success is directly tied to yours, if you win, we win.
We’ve built a reputation in Owen Sound for being really down to earth, super knowledgeable and tenacious in our defence of people who’ve been hurt in ways that have pretty much turned their lives upside down. We’re acutely aware of just how devastating brain and spinal cord injuries can be, not just for the person who got hurt but for all the family members caught up in it too, and we make sure we approach every single case with all the care and attention that situation demands. We work tirelessly to get you the best possible outcome, and we treat you with the respect, understanding and patience that’s needed during what can be a really tough time.
At Singer Katz, we genuinely believe that people who’ve been hurt because someone else was slack deserve top-notch legal support and the chance to get their hands on the resources they need to get their lives back on track. If you or someone you care about has been badly hurt, with either a brain or spinal cord injury in Owen Sound, we’d love to hear from you. We can sit down and listen to what’s going on for you, answer any questions you may have, lay out your options, and give you a pretty clear idea of what to expect from the process ahead.
