Experienced Kansas City Brain Injury Attorney

If you or a loved one has suffered a TBI due to another’s negligence or wrongdoing, our Kansas City traumatic brain injury law firm is here to help. Our personal injury lawyer has a proven track record of success in handling Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI) cases throughout Missouri and Kansas.

Our experienced legal team can answer your questions about TBI and guide you through the difficult and confusing legal issues that arise in brain injury cases. Our law firm has helped countless TBI victims and their families maximize every aspect of recovery, so head and brain injury victims can live the life they deserve. For a free, no obligation consultation, call us at 816-203-0143.  

Do You Need Our Brain Injury Lawyer? 

Head and brain injuries are sometimes referred to as a "silent epidemic" because they can be difficult to diagnose by medical providers. Head and brain injury symptoms may not be immediately obvious, which may result in lapse of time from the accident until you are diagnosed.  Your family and friends may notice that something is not quite right, but it can be difficult to prove to insurance adjusters and juries that you suffered a traumatic brain injury due to the accident.

The seriousness of the injury often requires the treatment of medical specialists, which can be expensive. This leaves you in a very challenging situation.  Medical bills and lost wages continue to grow, but you may not be able to obtain fair compensation for your injury.

Insurance companies may refuse to compensate victims of traumatic brain injuries for a variety of reasons:

  • The brain injury was not diagnosed immediately after an accident.  It can take time and multiple appointments to detect and diagnose a brain injury. Insurance adjusters know this and try to use it to their advantage.
  • The brain injury was categorized as a concussion and described as "mild".  This medical definition is misleading. Concussions are brain injuries, and no brain injury is insignificant. However, this can be a reason why the insurer denies payment for ongoing treatment. 
  • The brain injury was not caused by an impact to the head or skull.  Brain injuries can occur without impact and with deceleration or whiplash injuries, but this does not stop insurance adjusters from  doubting the existence or seriousness of a head injury.

Due to the challenges presented in brain injury claims, most brain injury victims will benefit from consulting with an experienced brain injury attorney. Our Kansas City brain injury lawyer can help you in a number of ways.  But it's important that you do not delay.  

Call our Kansas City brain injury lawyer today for a free, no obligation consultation by using the contact form below or by calling 816-203-0143.  We want to hear your story and are ready to offer answers, guidance and support.

 

Types of Brain Injuries

All brain injuries are unique.  A slight bump to the head may give one person a headache for a short time, but the same impact could cause irreparable harm and lifetime of difficulties for someone else. This is why it is critical that you seek medical evaluation for all head injuries to determine the extent of the injury and what treatment may be needed.

There are many different types of brain injuries, including concussionsdiffuse axonal injuries, contusions or coup-countrecoup injuries, intracranial hematomas, and skull fractures.  If the trauma results in a crack or break in the skull itself, the trauma is considered a penetrating head injury.

However, if the skull is not damaged but the brain is still injured, you have sustained a closed head injury.  Closed head injuries can be more difficult to diagnose.  They can result from a blow or impact or from back-and-forth shaking, such as whiplash from a vehicle accident.  Most people know that whiplash can cause an injury to your neck or spine but that is just one type of injury that can result in an accident. It is also important to note that you do not need to lose consciousness to sustain a brain injury.

Brain Injury Symptoms

Your brain is a intricate and delicate organ.  Neuroscientists do not know all of the brain’s complex functions and capacities. Nonetheless, scientists have made clear that your brain can be injured easily and that brain damage can be permanent. For that reason, it is critical to diagnose and treat a brain injury promptly and with comprehensive medical care.

A traumatic brain injury can cause loss of short- and long-term memory, coordination and motor skills, and even of bodily functions.  It can cause headaches, confusion, anxiety and concentration issues.  It may also result in changes to one’s emotional temperament and personality, such as an increase in anger, depression or even suicidal thoughts. These changes to one’s bodily functions and personality can be permanent in nature if damage to the brain is severe.

If a person suffers a traumatic brain injury, it may take years of therapy and other treatments for them to recover. In severe cases, a full recovery from a brain injury may simply not be possible. As a result, it is critical that anyone suffering from a TBI caused by the negligence or wrongdoing of another person or business seek the advice of an experienced TBI lawyer who can ensure that a recovery is maximized to the fullest.

How to Diagnose and Treat a Brain Injury

TBI checklist of brain injury symptoms by a brain injury attorney in Kansas City, MOAnyone who sustains an impact or whiplash-like injury to the head should be evaluated by a medical professional to determine if he or she has experienced a brain injury.

Some brain injury symptoms may be so slight that the victim may not realize the seriousness of the brain injury.   A good place to start is to download our free Brain Injury Checklist, which details common brain injury symptoms to help you identify the warning signs.

Many times, brain injury symptoms may not be apparent for many hours after an injury until the swelling in the brain reaches a level that is painful to a victim.  Medical treatment and care should be sought as soon as possible to avoid an exacerbation of the brain injury.  Failure to treat brain injuries can cause serious complications and can even be fatal.

No brain injury is the same, and symptoms can be complex and difficult to diagnose and treat. As a result, many brain injury victims benefit from the professional care and expertise of a multi-specialty, inter-disciplinary medical team.  A multi-specialty, inter-disciplinary medical team may include: neurologist, neuropsychologist, physical therapist, speech therapist, physical and rehabilitation medicine specialist, psychiatrist, psychologist, occupational therapist, and rehabilitation and behavior therapist.  There are also local support groups and nonprofit organizations that can help.

Our injury law firm in Kansas City, MO, can help TBI clients find the best team of medical professionals for their particular circumstances. Getting the best medical treatment early on is critical for your recovery. It is also critical for documenting and ultimately proving your legal case and right to a financial recovery.

Compensation For Brain Injuries in Missouri & Kansas

If a person suffers a brain injury due to the negligence, recklessness or wrongful conduct of another, the injured person has the right to seek compensation under the law. A brain injury will one’s life in a dramatic and potentially permanent way. The injured party will need specialized medical care both now and in the future. The law requires the party that is determined to be negligent to cover these medical expenses and any other losses, such as lost wages, lost earning capacity, and pain and suffering, that the injured person has endured and may endure in the future due to their brain injury.

To protect their legal rights and ensure a maximum recovery, parties who suffer brain injuries need to obtain experienced legal representation from a lawyer who understands the complex issues related to traumatic brain injuries.

Depending on the circumstances that caused the brain injury, there may be additional types of compensation that the injured party can seek, such as punitive damages. An experienced brain injury attorney can help you determine the potential value of your brain injury case and if your case qualifies for additional compensation.

For all the above reasons, it is so important for a brain injury victim to consult with an experienced brain injury attorney as soon as possible after an accident. The sooner you obtain qualified legal counsel the better your legal rights will be protected.


FAQs

Q: Must there be an impact to the head or loss of consciousness to suffer a brain injury?

A: No. This is a common misconception about brain injuries. Traumatic brain injuries in car accidents are often suffered without sustaining an impact to the head. In these cases, the brain injury occurs due to a rapid acceleration or deceleration force that causes the brain to be jarred inside the skull. Also, you do not need to lose consciousness to suffer a brain injury.

Q: Can I file a personal injury claim for my brain injury?

A: Generally speaking, you may have a legal claim, or right to compensation, for your traumatic brain injury if the injury was caused by negligence, recklessness or an intentional act of another. All injury cases are unique, so the answer to this question depends on how you were injured and whether another party was at fault.

Brain injuries may result from accidents involving car collisions, truck crashes, motorcycle accidents, slip and falls and assaults. In each of these contexts, you could have a claim for compensation due to the personal injury that you suffered.

Q: Why should I consider filing a clam for my brain injury?

A: Filing a claim or lawsuit after a brain injury can have several benefits:

  1. You may be able to recover financial compensation for your injuries, including amounts to cover your past and future medical bills, lost wages, lost future earning potential, pain and suffering, long-term disability and more.
  2. If successful, you may have more resources to pursue top medical care in the future, which could help your recovery.
  3. By holding the at-fault party accountable, you can right the wrong that was done to you, and also may stop the same injuries from happening to another person in the future.

Contact Our Kansas City Brain Injury Lawyers

If you or a loved one has suffered a brain injury you need to seek the advice of our attorney who has experience in the complexities of TBI cases. Please contact our Kansas City office using the contact form below, or call us at 816-203-0143, for a free, no obligation consultation of your brain injury case. We can answer your questions and provide helpful guidance on what steps you may want to consider for a maximum recovery.

 

Kevin J. McManus
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Kevin McManus is an accident injury and disability lawyer in Kansas City, MO, and Overland Park, KS