- Make sure to HIRE A DAMN GOOD LAWYER!
- Make sure your burn injury LAWYER UNDERSTANDS THE COMPLICATIONS OF BURN INJURIES and the long term needs of burn injury victims
- Make sure your burn injury LAWYER HAS THE STABILITY AND FINANCIAL RESOURCES to fund burn injury litigation
MAKE SURE YOU HIRE A DAMN GOOD LAWYER!
Burn injuries are caused by many different things. There is not one type of burn injury case. While your burn injury is the result, the causes of the burn injury are varied. To illustrate this point with real world examples, here is a summary of a few burn injury cases I have litigated over the years in Virginia:
Gas tank rupture – A meter maid was operating a three wheeled vehicle when she rounded a curve a flipped over. The gas cap dislodged and fuel spilled into the passenger compartment of the vehicle where the driver was trapped. Heat from the engine ignited the gasoline and an intense fire ensues, badly burning and disfiguring the driver.
Smoke detector failure – A rental house caught fire in the middle of the night. The smoke detector did not alarm. One occupant was awakened by the flames and escaped. The second occupant was disoriented by the smoke, but eventually made her way to the front door. Unfortunately, the front door was dead bolted and no key was in the lock. The flames trapped her and she was found badly burned, huddled in a corner by the locked door.
Power line electrocution – A man was painting his tin roof with a roller on an extension pole. When he drew back to bring the roller closer, the pole contacted the overhead power lines carrying 18,000 volts of energy. The man literally had both arms and both legs dislodged from his body on contact before he fell from the second story roof onto the ground.
Roofing glue ignited by welding spark – A roofer was applying highly flammable glue to a rubber membrane roof. A welder was working on the same project nearby. A welding spark ignited the glue vapors and a fire/ explosion broke out around the roofer badly burning him.
Convenient store explosion – A gasoline tanker truck was filling the UST’s of the store. The UST’s were vented alongside the store building just above the roof line. During an earlier remolding of the building a facade was installed at the roof line to hide it, which unfortunately trapped the fumes on the roof. Someone went in the store’s bathroom and activated the exhaust fan. Gasoline vapors are heavier than air, so they sunk into the bathroom and eventually filled the store. The cashier rung up a sale and a massive explosion occurred blowing the occupants through the store windows and into the parking lot.
Scalding bath water – A babysitter drew a bath of water for an 8 year old boy. As the boy was disrobing while sitting on the edge of the tub, he slipped and fell in. A new hot water heater had been recently installed in the apartment complex and the hot water setting was improperly set at too high. The boy was instantly scalded and suffered serious burn injuries.
So, you see that your burn injury attorney must first be a damn good lawyer, experienced in handling many complex cases. How do you figure that out? One way to find out if you’re on the right trail is to search the lawyer on Martindale.com. Martindale-Hubbell has been rating lawyers for years and is recognized in the legal world as the unbiased source for lawyer evaluation. It reports how other lawyers and judges rate the lawyer. An AV Peer Review Rating is the highest rating and reflects that the lawyer has reached the height of professional excellence, has practiced for many years, and is recognized for the highest levels of skill and integrity. To compliment Martindale-Hubbell I recommend you review the lawyers personal CV, or resume. Do they appear to have the experience you want? Are they a member of the Million Dollar Advocates Forum, which indicates they have successfully represented a client in a case where they obtained at least a one million dollar result? Last, interview them. Ask tough questions. Not only are their answers important, but you have to like them. If you don’t like them then odds are a jury won’t either.
UNDERSTANDING THE COMPLICATIONS OF BURN INJURIES
I have seen over and over again lawyers who simply focus on the fact that the clients skin is burned as the basis of their claim and not the other, often more critical, aspects of the burn injury. Wound infection, scar and skin contracture management, respiratory limitations, amputations, sensitivity to light and household chemicals, etc, make a burn injury victim’s life unique. Make sure your burn injury lawyer understands this. Make sure your burn injury lawyer has experience dealing with this.
Here is an example of one such thought process that should be second nature to your burn injury attorney: If the burn injury victim has lost an ear or nose, are prosthetic devices available? If so, how long will they last? Will the victim need three or four new ones throughout the course of their life? What other procedures, now and in the future, must the victim undergo to prepare for them? Will posts need to be installed to receive the prosthetics? Will the posts ever need to replaced or adjusted? Are the risks of infection too great? What are the projected costs of all of this now and over the course of the victim’s life? Will the costs be more in 5 years, 10 years? What amount of money do I need today to guarantee these costs are covered throughout my client’s lifetime, and has a qualified Economist or Accountant confirmed the figures?
The same analysis holds true for prosthetic limbs, plastic or reconstructive surgery, home modifications, wheel chairs, respiratory management, psychological counseling, etc. Many, many factors need be considered before knowing the full financial impact that a burn injury will have on the life of a burn injury victim. Your burn injury attorney must know how to supervise a full and comprehensive life care plan for you to assure financial security as you recover and live a productive life. Your burn injury attorney must know how to manage your medical and recovery team.
STABILITY AND FINANCIAL RESOURCES
This is last in order, but certainly not least. The worst thing for your burn injury case is a lawyer who does not have the business stability and financial resources to do everything necessary on your case, and the ability to stand toe to toe with big insurance companies and businesses who will try and outspend you. It will generally cost thousands of dollars to properly investigate and litigate a burn injury case. The main reason is that burn injury cases are expert heavy. By that I mean that expert witnesses are needed to prove how and why a burn injury occurred. The plaintiff, or burn injury victim, has the burden of proving who is responsible and why. Unless it is freely admitted, which is extremely rare, experts need to be hired to prove the case. Oftentimes multiple experts are needed. Engineers, Life Care Planners, and Doctors are a few necessary members of the burn injury victim’s team in almost every case.
So what do you ask the burn injury lawyer? Three things. 1) How long has your firm continually been in business? 2) Are you prepared to advance all costs and expenses necessary to successfully prosecute my case? 3) Do you have proof that you have the financial ability to do that? 4) Will you advance all costs throughout the case and deduct those from my recovery when the case concludes? 5) Do you have malpractice insurance? 6) What is the amount of your malpractice insurance and may I have a copy of the declarations page of your policy confirm it?
These questions will not be offensive to a seasoned and qualified burn injury lawyer. The malpractice insurance question is critical to ask. Not all states require lawyers to have malpractice insurance. Not all lawyers who have malpractice insurance have enough. Example: What happens if you a three million dollar case. Your lawyer makes a simple mistake and your case is lost. Your lawyer freely admits his mistake and tells you to make a claim against him, which he will not contest. You do so and find out he has a one million dollar insurance policy……… ASK THE QUESTIONS!