Tennessee Brain Injury Lawyer

Car accidents can completely alter a victim’s life, especially when he or she sustains especially severe injuries, such as traumatic brain injuries (TBIs). Whether the injury is caused by blunt impact to the victim’s head or by an object penetrating the skull and damaging brain tissue, a TBI comes with pain and suffering, a long road of recovery, piles of medical bills, and, often, emotional trauma. If you or a loved one have been severely hurt in an accident, suffering from a head, neck, or spinal cord injury, there may be legal options to help you physically, financially, and psychologically recover. In this article, our brain injury lawyers in Loudon, TN and the surrounding Knoxville, TN metropolitan area will outline traumatic brain injuries from car accidents and other accidents, potential legal options, and other frequently asked questions about TBIs.

Table of Contents

• What is a TBI?
• Average settlement for TBIs
• Common causes of traumatic brain injuries, head injuries, and neck injuries
• Signs and symptoms of TBIs
• Long-term considerations and complications of brain injuries
• Should I hire a TBI lawyer?
• What if I can’t afford a lawyer?
• Contact Ford, Nichols, and Frye Law Firm today
• Serving Loudon, Knoxville, and surrounding areas

According to the Centers for Disease Control (CDC), a traumatic brain injury is an injury that impacts how the brain functions. These injuries may be caused by a bump, blow, or jolt to the head, as well as a penetrative injury, such as a gunshot wound. The CDC recognizes three primary types of TBIs:

1. Mild TBI or Concussion
2. Moderate TBI
3. Severe TBI 

In 2019, there were an estimated 61,000 TBI-related deaths and about 1.7 million TBIs diagnosed yearly. Within the same report, the CDC recognized the most common causes of TBI injuries were motor vehicle accidents, falls, firearm-related injuries, and assaults.

Plaintiffs primarily recover compensation for brain injuries in one of two ways: through an out-of-court settlement or by a court verdict. In personal injury cases, such as those that involve brain injuries, sometimes parties will agree on a fair and appropriate settlement out of court. If an appropriate settlement cannot be reached, your brain injury lawyer will take your case to court to let a judge or jury decide. 

Court settlements are a matter of public record, however, out-of-court settlements are not subject to public record and are often kept private. This makes calculating the average settlement for traumatic brain injury impossible. Similarly, every personal injury case is unique, which means different facts and damages will apply to each case, directly impacting the settlement amount. To get a closer look at your potential brain injury settlement, your lawyer will help you factor in certain elements that may impact your compensation. These elements will include the damages you’ve suffered because of your injury. Potential damages may include both economic losses (such as medical bills and lost wages) and non-economic losses (such as severe physical pain and emotional trauma). 

Potential Economic Damages:

• Current and future medical bills
• Lost wages
• Loss of earning capacity
• Property repair costs
• Loss of earning capacity
• Rehabilitation expenses
• Home modification expenses (modifications needed due to your injury, such as installing wheelchair ramps)
• Home cleaning or maintenance costs (in the case that you are unable to maintain your home due to your injury)
• Medication costs
• Physical therapy expenses
• More

Potential Non-Economic Damages:

• Severe pain
• Pain and suffering
• Emotional trauma
• Depression and anxiety
• Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD)
• Loss of enjoyment of life
• Loss of companionship
• Severe physical pain
• Loss of consortium
• Wrongful death
• More

Your lawyer will help you determine which damages should be included in your TBI settlement to facilitate your financial, physical, and psychological recovery. 

Other elements that impact the average settlement for TBI amount may include the severity and extent of your injuries, whether the case goes to trial, and your level of fault in the accident, if any. To understand what your potential settlement may include, schedule a free initial case review with our TBI lawyers in Loudon, TN.

The CDC has reported that motor vehicle accidents are the second-leading cause of TBIs, making up about 17.3% of all TBIs yearly. Fall accidents make up about 35% of overall TBIs every year. Typical personal injury cases that may involve brain injuries include:

These accidents can also cause serious head, neck, and spinal cord injuries, which may display similar symptoms. It’s important to seek medical attention as soon as possible to understand the specifics and extent of your injuries in order to properly heal. Contacting a head or neck injury lawyer as soon as possible is also recommended. Time is of the essence, especially in Tennessee, where the statute of limitations on most personal injury cases is only one year. TN Code § 28-3-104.

TBIs may present several cognitive, psychological, and physical symptoms. These symptoms include:

Some people are more at risk of severe head injuries – children, adolescents, older adults, and males in any group are more likely to suffer from TBIs after an impact or jolt to the head.  

If you are injured in an accident, it’s important to seek medical attention as soon as possible. Adrenaline can mask symptoms, delaying any signs of a serious head injury for hours or even days. Seeking prompt medical attention may be a matter of life or death in these situations. Additionally, obtaining important medical documentation will likely be a crucial piece of your injury claim.

TBIs are the leading cause of disability in the United States. The CDC reports that, in the US, about 5.3 million people are living with a disability as a result of a traumatic brain injury. Long-term complications of severe spinal cord, neck, and brain injuries may be serious and impact various parts of a victim’s life. From medical to financial concerns, relationships issues, psychological effects, and more, TBIs often have significant repercussions. In this section, we will discuss long-term concerns for victims of TBIs, and potential legal options that may offer some remedy.

Continued Medical Expenses

To recover from severe brain injuries, victims must seek continued medical care. Depending on their specific injuries, TBI sufferer rehabilitation expenses may include:

Inability to Work

In combination with the physical and emotional symptoms of TBIs, sufferers are often also forced to deal with the stress of not being able to work to pay compounding medical bills. It’s estimated that about 60% of typical brain injury victims remain unemployed two years after their injury. If you are injured due to someone’s negligence, you are entitled to compensation for lost wages and future lost wages. Lost wages are typically a significant portion of TBI settlement offers. Calculating these losses will depend on certain factors, including the victim’s age, extent of their injury, their occupation, lost employment benefits (pension, health insurance, etc), post-injury earning capacity, and professional skills.

Other economic damages pertaining to a victim’s inability to work as a result of a TBI may include vocational training, modifications needed for car or other transportation costs, and more.

Psychological Concerns

Unfortunately, TBI patients have a higher risk of developing certain psychological, mental, and emotional disorders. These are often factored into the non-economic costs (discussed above). Some non-economic losses that victims of TBI may suffer are mental anguish, severe pain, pain and suffering, loss of enjoyment of life, loss of consortium, loss of companionship, and more.

Higher Risk of Future Problems

TBIs put victims at risk for additional long-term complications, which should be factored into an injury claim. A fair settlement should calculate the heightened risk of certain concerns, which may include:

1. Dementia and TBIs – Studies show that victims of brain injuries are 2.3 – 4.5 times more likely to suffer from dementia.
2. Chronic severe headaches and migraines – A third of TBI victims suffer from chronic headaches or migraines after their injury.
3. Mental illness – The likelihood of certain mental illnesses increases for some TBI sufferers. Some disorders that TBI victims are more likely to suffer after their injuries include schizophrenia, anxiety, depression, post-traumatic stress disorder, and bipolar disorder.
4. Substance abuse – Studies also show that TBI sufferers are more likely to develop addiction or substance abuse disorders after their injuries.

As a result of the various long-term concerns that are typical in TBI cases, maximum medical recovery (MMR) is essential to ensure that victims obtain fair and appropriate compensation that can help them recover. MMR is determined when a doctor deems that your condition will not further improve with more treatment. While this doesn’t mean that full recovery is impossible, it is a point where we can understand the expenses you have incurred as well as the amount you will incur as a result of your prognosis, future medical expenses, and capacity to work.

If you or a loved one has been severely injured due to someone else’s negligence, you should schedule a free consultation and case review with our experienced personal injury lawyers in Tennessee as soon as possible. Hiring a lawyer can help you in a variety of ways including:

1. Assisting you in navigating complex legal issues
2. Handling communications and negotiations on your behalf so you can focus on healing
3. Collecting the right and necessary evidence to present and prove your case
4. Conducting investigations into the incident to gather and preserve all available evidence and identify all liable parties
5. Protecting you from any insurance company tactics meant to diminish or decrease your settlement
6. Calculating the value of your losses to ensure you receive the settlement you need and deserve
7. Developing your legal strategy to demonstrate how your brain injury has impacted your life
8. Providing you with legal advice and guidance throughout your case

For many who are suffering from an accident, finances are a primary concern. At Ford, Nichols, and Frye Law Firm, we provide free, no-obligation case reviews. We’ll review your case at no cost and advise you of the best next steps forward. Additionally, our injury lawyers work on a contingency basis, so you won’t pay unless we secure a settlement.

Hiring a lawyer helps you cover your bases so that you have a better chance of receiving the compensation to which you are entitled. With 60 years of combined experience, our lawyers have helped many clients like you get their lives back on track following an accident. To set up a free consultation, call us at 865-458-4301. You may also fill out our convenient and confidential online contact form on this page.

We’re located at
501 Mulberry Street
Loudon, TN 37774

We serve Loudon, Knoxville, Sevierville, Lenoir City, Maryville, Alcoa, Blaine, Farragut, Oak Ridge, Rutledge, Clinton, Bean Station, and Maynardville.