Insurers often attempt to minimize the value of claims involving head injuries, using complex tactics to deny liability or dispute the severity of your condition. If a severe head trauma altered your daily life and future plans, you need a Meridian brain injury lawyer who can fight to secure financial recovery and protect your rights.
Richard Schwartz & Associates brings over 44 years of experience to families in Meridian and throughout the state of Mississippi. Our attorneys build strong cases to compel insurance companies to address your serious injuries, demanding full accountability from those responsible.
Call our team today at (601) 286-2774 to discuss your case and learn how we can help.
Meridian Brain Injury Guide
- Why Choose Richard Schwartz & Associates for Your Meridian Brain Injury Case
- Proving Liability in Traumatic Brain Injury Cases
- Calculating the Full Value of Your Claim
- How a Meridian Brain Injury Lawyer Counters Insurance Companies
- Wrongful Death Claims and Meridian Brain Injuries
- Life Care Planning and Your Future
- Mississippi’s Statute of Limitations
- FAQ for Meridian Brain Injury Lawyer
- Call Richard Schwartz & Associates Today
Why Choose Richard Schwartz & Associates for Your Meridian Brain Injury Case
Richard Schwartz & Associates combines the power of a large state-wide firm with a dedicated presence right here in Meridian. We’ve recovered more than $1 billion for our clients across Mississippi.
Unmatched Local Knowledge
Effective representation requires knowing the local landscape, and our Meridian TBI attorneys understand the specific traffic patterns on Highway 19 and the busy intersections near Bonita Lakes Park that often see severe collisions that lead to brain injuries.
We know the procedural nuances of the courts in Lauderdale County and can anticipate challenges unique to the Meridian area. We leverage this local insight to build a stronger foundation for your claim.
A History of Results
We let our track record speak for itself. With over 6,100 5-star reviews, our firm consistently delivers results that change lives. We treat every client with dignity and prepare every case as if it were to go to trial.
Insurance carriers know our reputation for relentless litigation, which often motivates them to offer fair settlements rather than face us in court.
Securing Your Long-Term Stability
A brain injury can impact your finances for decades. We calculate the total cost of your injury, including lost future wages and ongoing rehabilitation at facilities like Ochsner Rush Health. Our team prevents insurance companies from underpaying for your lifetime of care.
Call our Meridian office today at (601) 286-2774 to learn how we can secure the funds you require to maintain your quality of life.
Proving Liability in Traumatic Brain Injury Cases
Securing compensation after a traumatic brain injury (TBI) requires establishing clear negligence. Your Meridian brain injury lawyer investigates the incident to identify every party responsible for your trauma and analyzes the evidence to create a compelling narrative of fault.
Motor Vehicle Collisions
Car accidents on I-20 or 22nd Avenue often result in severe head trauma. We examine skid marks, vehicle damage, and black box data to reconstruct the crash. This data reveals if the other driver sped, texted, or ignored traffic signals.
We demonstrate how their specific actions directly caused the impact and your subsequent injury.
Defective Products
Consumers trust products to function safely, yet defective airbags, helmets, or machinery often cause severe head trauma. We hold large corporations accountable when their design choices prioritize cost savings over the safety of the consumers who use their products.
Common product liability issues include:
- Manufacturing Defects: Errors on the assembly line create individual products, such as a bicycle helmet with a cracked shell, that fail to protect you during use.
- Inherent Design Flaws: Some products contain unsafe blueprints, such as an all-terrain vehicle designed with a dangerously high center of gravity, which flips easily during standard turns.
- Failure To Warn: Our team demonstrates how a manufacturer’s failure to disclose non-obvious dangers or neurological side effects led directly to your injury.
Premises Liability and Falls
Property owners must maintain safe environments for visitors, but when they don’t, slips, trips, and falls are more likely to happen. Accidents at shopping centers like Uptown Meridian or local restaurants frequently can cause a TBI.
We investigate maintenance logs and security footage to prove the owner knew about a hazard but failed to fix it. Our Meridian TBI attorneys know how to connect wet floors, uneven pavement, or poor lighting directly to your fall.
Workplace and Industrial Accidents
Meridian’s industrial sectors pose risks for head injuries from falling objects or machinery malfunction, and we evaluate safety protocols and equipment maintenance records looking for negligence.
Third-party contractors often bear responsibility for negligence on job sites. We identify these third parties to pursue claims outside of standard workers' compensation restrictions.
Calculating the Full Value of Your Claim
Brain injuries often incur costs that extend far beyond the initial hospital stay. Richard Schwartz & Associates accounts for every current and future expense related to your care. We reject lowball offers that fail to cover a lifetime of needs.
Common damages after a TBI include:
- Immediate Medical Expenses: We tally every bill from emergency transport and surgeries to the diagnostic imaging required to diagnose complex neural damage.
- Ongoing Rehabilitation Costs: Our team projects the full price of the years of physical, occupational, and speech therapy you need to regain independence.
- Long-Term Care Services: Severe brain injuries sometimes necessitate in-home care or assisted living arrangements that we compel the at-fault party to fund.
- Necessary Home Modifications: We obtain professional estimates for essential adjustments to your living space, such as wheelchair ramps or accessible bathrooms.
- Lost Earning Capacity: Our Meridian TBI attorneys can collaborate with financial analysts to calculate the wages, promotions, and retirement contributions you lose over a lifetime if you cannot work.
How a Meridian Brain Injury Lawyer Counters Insurance Companies
Insurance adjusters prioritize their company's bottom line, often employing tactics to deny or minimize the value of TBI claims. At Richard Schwartz & Associates, we anticipate and counter these specific strategies, ensuring your well-being remains the priority.
Disputing the Severity of the Injury
Insurers frequently argue that your brain injury is pre-existing or less severe than you claim. They might point to a lack of immediate symptoms as proof of health.
Your Meridian brain injury lawyer uses detailed medical records and testimony from neurologists to refute these arguments and link your cognitive deficits and physical symptoms directly to the accident.
Shifting Blame to the Victim
Adjusters often try to pin part of the blame on the victim to reduce their payout. Mississippi follows a pure comparative negligence rule, which allows recovery even if you bear partial fault, but it reduces your award. We fight to minimize any assigned fault and protect the full value of your settlement.
Delays and Stall Tactics
Companies sometimes drag out the claims process with delayed responses and endless redundant requests, hoping victims will accept a lower settlement out of desperation.
We move your case forward despite obstruction attempts by applying pressure through strict deadlines and persistent communication.
Wrongful Death Claims and Meridian Brain Injuries
Tragically, some brain injuries prove fatal. Losing a loved one to someone else's negligence creates immense emotional voids and financial instability. We help families in Meridian pursue a wrongful death claim to find a measure of justice.
We identify every compensable loss under Mississippi law to provide your family with security:
- Funeral and Burial Costs: We seek full reimbursement for the funeral home services, casket, and burial plot required to lay your loved one to rest.
- Loss of Companionship: You may seek compensation for the loss of your loved one's society, guidance, and daily presence in your life.
- Lost Financial Support: Our financial analysts calculate the present net cash value of the income and benefits the deceased would have earned over a lifetime.
- Emotional Distress: We demand compensation for the mental anguish the survivors suffer due to the untimely death.
Understanding Survival Actions in Mississippi
A survival action differs from a wrongful death claim because it focuses on the losses of the deceased rather than the family. This legal action proceeds as if your loved one survived the accident and filed the lawsuit personally.
The estate may recover compensation for the physical pain and mental anguish the victim endured between the moment of injury and their death. This action can also secure payment for the medical bills the victim incurred during that final hospitalization.
Life Care Planning and Your Future
A successful claim for a severe TBI requires a comprehensive view of your future, so we utilize life care plans to illustrate your daily reality. This document serves as a roadmap for your legal demand, detailing every service and item you need. This ranges from wheelchair replacements to annual neurological checkups.
The plan also includes the cost of prescription medications and in-home nursing assistants. Since medical costs rise consistently over time, we calculate the value of your future needs based on projected inflation rates.
A settlement that looks good today must also cover bills twenty years from now. We fight for an amount that protects your financial security for life.
Mississippi’s Statute of Limitations
Mississippi generally allows three years from the date of the injury to file a claim. However, cases against government entities have much shorter deadlines. Failing to file within the time limit will result in the court dismissing your case permanently.
Additionally, evidence disappears, and witnesses move away as time passes. Immediately calling a Meridian brain injury lawyer is the best way to preserve crucial evidence and your right to sue.
FAQ for Meridian Brain Injury Lawyer
Will Returning to Work Hurt My Brain Injury Claim?
You should return to work only when your doctor specifically releases you to do so. Returning too early often signals to the insurance company that your injury no longer affects your daily life, which can severely reduce the amount of compensation you receive for pain and suffering.
We communicate with your doctors to ensure your legal actions align with your medical recovery plan.
Can a Family Member File a Lawsuit for an Incapacitated Victim?
Severe brain injuries often leave victims comatose or mentally unable to make legal decisions. In these situations, a court must appoint a guardian or conservator to act on the victim's behalf. A spouse or close family member usually assumes this role.
We assist families in establishing this legal standing so they can pursue justice for their loved one.
How Long Does a Brain Injury Case Take To Settle in Mississippi?
The timeline varies based on the complexity of the case and the clarity of liability. Some cases resolve in months, while others involving disputed facts require litigation that lasts much longer. Your recovery progress influences when we finalize the claim demand.
We push for a timely resolution, but never recommend settling too early for less than you need.
Can I Claim Compensation if My Brain Injury Symptoms Appeared Late?
Yes, symptoms of brain injuries often manifest days or weeks after the accident. You can still pursue a claim if medical records link the delayed symptoms to the incident. Seeking medical attention immediately after noticing changes protects your claim.
We use medical expert testimony to connect the timeline of your symptoms to the crash.
Does a Meridian Brain Injury Lawyer Handle Cases Involving Mild TBIs?
Yes, we represent clients with injuries ranging from mild concussions to severe permanent brain damage. Even mild brain injuries can cause significant headaches, memory loss, and mood swings that impact your life.
We take every head injury seriously and will fight for compensation that reflects your actual suffering.
Call Richard Schwartz & Associates Today
A traumatic brain injury introduces uncertainty and hardship into your life, but Richard Schwartz & Associates provides the strength, resources, and local experience necessary to challenge powerful insurance carriers.
We investigate your accident, calculate your total lifetime damages, and fight relentlessly for the settlement you need. Don't let an insurance adjuster dictate the value of your life. Take control of your future with an experienced Meridian personal injury lawyer and call our Meridian office at (601) 286-2774 for a free consultation.