A severe burn injury can change your life forever. In addition to the tremendous pain you must deal with, you may have limited mobility, face follow-up surgeries and skin grafts, and be hit with mounting bills at a time you cannot work. You are likely to be worried about how to manage financially in the future.
When the burn occurred due to another party’s negligence or fault, you may be entitled to compensation through insurance or a personal injury lawsuit. While no amount of money can make up for the suffering you and your family are experiencing, this compensation can ease your financial burdens and pay for the care and treatment you need to rebuild your life.
South Carolina burn injury cases can be complex and require thorough investigation and aggressive litigation to secure the best possible outcome. Insurance companies and their lawyers will try to deny claims or get you to accept the lowest settlement possible, or even blame the injury on you, so you should not try to deal with them on your own.
The Greenville burn injury lawyers at Whalen Montalvo know how insurance companies operate and the tactics they use. We are skilled litigators and fully prepared to take your case to court if necessary.
We provide a free consultation to evaluate your case and determine the best way to move forward, so give us a call today: (864) 770-7710.
Burn injury cases are complicated, and proving liability is difficult, so it is important to hire an attorney you trust and feel comfortable with, who also has the experience and resources needed to efficiently handle your case. Here are some reasons why we believe that you should choose Whalen Montalvo:
We Offer: Advocacy. Service.
Results.
Severe burns are catastrophic injuries that can result in serious disability and disfigurement and require long-term treatment and care that is overwhelming to both victims and family members. When you have Whalen Montalvo on your side, we will take the burden off you and start working on your case immediately. We will:
At Whalen Montalvo, we know the importance of finding witnesses quickly and of collecting evidence before it can be tampered with.
The legal term “damages” refers to a payment made for harm done. South Carolina personal injury law allows the recovery of compensatory damages that consist of both economic damages to cover your monetary costs and non-economic damages, for effects from the accident that don’t have a specific dollar value but negatively impact your life.
Examples of economic damages are:
Noneconomic damages examples include:
South Carolina does not limit the amount of economic or non-economic damages that you can recover in burn injury cases, except for cases naming government defendants.
In some rare cases, when it can be proven that the defendant’s actions that caused your burn injury were “willful, wanton, or reckless,” you may also be awarded punitive damages. These are intended to punish a defendant and to deter such behaviors in the future.
Proving negligence and finding who was at fault for the accident that caused your injury is an essential part of every personal injury case. Doing so can be especially complicated in burn injury cases as there may be multiple factors and several liable parties involved. This is why careful investigation and use of experts in accident reconstruction may be necessary.
To win your case, our burn injury lawyers in Greenville must show that another party or parties, (the defendants in the case) were negligent by establishing the existence of the following elements:
In burn injury cases, there may be multiple parties who may have done something to contribute to the accident. For example, a restaurant fire may start because a cook was careless, but be complicated because the fire extinguisher and sprinkler system didn’t work. In this case, the cook, the owner of the restaurant, and the sprinkler and smoke detector manufacturers might all bear responsibility for the burn injuries. In addition to a personal injury negligence case, our attorneys may have a lawsuit based on product defects (when a product has a defect or design flaw that makes it hazardous) or premises liability (if a hazard on the property caused the burn injury).
Our attorneys would evaluate the case from every angle in order to name all potentially liable parties as defendants in the lawsuit, as they all may have insurance and assets that can go toward a settlement.
After a serious burn injury, you are bound to have questions. We can best answer individual concerns at your free initial consultation, but to get started, here are some answers to questions our attorneys are often asked:
How much will my settlement amount be?
There is a wide range of damage amounts victims can be awarded in a burn injury lawsuit, from the thousands to the millions of dollars, depending on the individual circumstances of the case. Burn injuries tend to have high settlement value due to the pain and disfigurement involved, but the biggest factors are the severity and permanence of the burn injury, the degree of fault of the defendants, and the availability of insurance and assets.
How much time do I have to file a lawsuit?
South Carolina has a statute of limitations for filing personal injury and wrongful death cases, including for burn injuries. There are some exceptions, but in general you have three years from the date of the accident to file, and if you fail to do so on time, the courts will most likely dismiss your case.
What if I did something to contribute to the accident that caused my burn injury?
Even if you contributed to the accident, you may still be able to get a settlement, due to South Carolina’s modified comparative fault rule. As long as you are not more than 50% at fault, you can recover damages, but damages are reduced by the percentage you are found to be at fault.
What if my loved one died from a burn injury?
If your family member died after suffering a burn injury, our attorneys can file a wrongful death claim for compensation. South Carolina’s wrongful death statute, Section 15-51-10 through 60, allows the deceased’s spouse and children to bring a lawsuit. If there are no spouse or children, compensation goes to the deceased’s parents, and then their heirs.
How much does it cost to hire a burn injury lawyer?
The good news is that it doesn’t cost anything up front to hire our burn injury lawyers. At Whalen Montalvo we work on a contingency basis, which means we take on all costs and expenses of your case, and you pay nothing unless and until we win, and then fees and costs come out of the settlement award.
Our Whalen Montalvo attorneys understand how much you have to deal with after a serious burn injury, and we will be there to answer all your questions, and keep you informed throughout the entire legal process.
If you or a loved one has suffered a burn injury caused by someone else’s negligence, the legal team at Whalen Montalvo is ready to help take the burden off you and fight for the maximum settlement you deserve.
Let us handle all investigations, negotiations, and legal hurdles needed to prove who was responsible for your burn injury, hold them accountable, and secure the maximum compensation you are entitled to.
Call us today for your free, no-obligation consultation.
Get Help Now (864) 770-7710
Get the best legal representation possible. Give the Greenville, SC attorneys at Whalen Montalvo a call today at (864) 770-7710 or use our online form.
