Child Injuries
Battle-Tested Advocacy for the Injured
Louisiana Attorneys for Injured Children Due to the Negligence of Another
As a parent, one of your key duties is keeping our child safe. Unfortunately, parents cannot prevent every injury or accident from occurring, no matter how hard they may try. After all, it’s impossible to control the actions and decisions of other people. If another person’s negligence or recklessness injured your child, an experienced child injury lawyer can make sure you receive fair and just compensation.
We understand the financial and emotional toll that families carry when a child is injured, which is why you can trust the experienced team at Joubert Law Firm to guide you through this difficult process. Our Louisiana personal injury attorneys have been helping Baton Rouge and Louisiana residents fight for fair compensation for over 25 years. If you are trying to recover compensation on your child’s behalf, look no further than the Baton Rouge child injury attorneys at Joubert Law Firm. For a free and confidential consultation, call us today at (225) 777-8853.
What is Considered a Child Injury?
A child injury is an unintentional injury, usually caused by negligence or recklessness. An injured child is among any parent’s worst fear. When parents first learn of an injury, their initial thought is the health of the child and how fast they can get to them. Parents are not thinking about blame or which law firms to call, but in accident cases involving another person’s negligence, contacting a personal injury lawyer (after getting the child the appropriate medical care) is an important step.
Whether the child was injured in a car accident, on an unsafe property, or under any other circumstance of negligence, the parents of the child have a right to file a lawsuit against the responsible party and obtain damages for their child’s injuries.
What Causes Child Injuries?
Children are curious creatures who love to explore the boundaries of their world. Unfortunately, this can mean that they are prone to unintentional injuries. It’s impossible to go through childhood without scrapes and bruises. Most childhood injuries usually consist of bumps and bruises, maybe a few broken bones. In more serious cases, injuries can lead to long-term disability and seriously affect your child’s development. Accidental injuries are also the leading cause of wrongful death among those under 19.
There are a number of things that may cause these injuries. For example, child injuries may be caused by a motor vehicle accident, drowning, or falls. Child injuries can also be caused by the negligence of the people you entrusted your children with. We’ll share some examples of this below.
Birth Injuries (Medical Malpractice)
Birth injuries are injuries caused during birth, and often these injuries are made by medical providers. Common injuries during birth include fractured bones and brain injuries. These injuries can result in lifelong issues like cerebral palsy and Erb’s palsy.
Daycare Negligence
Daycares are where many children spend the majority of their day learning and growing with their peers. If a daycare facility is under poor supervision, the teacher and the daycare facility can both be responsible for the injury. Depending on the extent of the injury, the average settlement for daycare negligence ranges from a few thousand dollars to hundreds of thousands.
School Negligence
Schools are responsible for children for eight hours a day most of the year–not including school-sponsored sports, extracurricular activities, and bus rides. School buses may be the safest option for children, according to the National Highway Traffic Administration, but that doesn’t mean they’re without fault. With schools, there are many levels of liability. Bus accidents may be thought to be the driver’s fault, but if the school board failed to perform a driving screening to make sure the bus driver had no prior car accidents and was properly trained for the job, the liability is now shared.
Playground Injuries
Playgrounds are open, fun areas for children to play. However, if the playground equipment is not properly maintained, the structure can easily cause harm to children. In extreme cases, structures can collapse or crush children.
Amusement Park Injuries
Amusement parks may be fun, but these fantasy rides can also cause serious mayhem. According to the Center for Injury Research and Policy, between May and September every year, an average of 20 children per day are hospitalized for amusement ride-related injuries.
Premises Liability
Property owners have a responsibility to keep their property safe. A child injured while trespassing onto a neighbor’s property is not the same as an adult being injured in the same scenario. For example, if the neighbor fails to maintain a swing set that a child then becomes injured on, or if they do not take appropriate measures to contain an open and obvious hazard like a swimming pool and a drowning occurs, they are liable for the injury.
Product Liability
We’ve all seen the ‘choking hazard’ warning on many unsafe toys that are not appropriate for children. This is why children have a whole world of fun, safe toys that they can play with. Unfortunately, even toys deemed safe can have a defective batch that can cause a variety of injuries, including choking or burn injuries. If a defective toy caused your child’s injuries, you may have a product liability claim on your hands.
Who is Liable for My Child’s Injuries?
When you entrust someone to care for your child, you are expecting them to exercise reasonable care and provide adequate supervision. Unfortunately, this doesn’t always happen. Unlike a car crash that can usually be easily proven, liability in a child injury case can be complicated. If your child suffered injuries at school due to negligent supervision, the teacher and the school administration may share responsibility. In car accident cases, an injury sustained from a poorly manufactured car seat can mean the car seat manufacturer may share liability.
A child injury lawyer will explore every avenue of liability to make sure you get the compensation your child’s case deserves. Call the Joubert Law Firm today at (225) 777-8853 to schedule your free consultation with a Baton Rouge child injury lawyer.
What Damages Can I Receive for My Child’s Injuries?
In many child injury cases, the child is not the only one to suffer injuries. Parents and guardians can suffer from emotional trauma, and they are also the ones to bear the brunt of financial losses. Injured children are entitled to much of the same compensation as their adult counterparts. This includes compensation for the child’s medical bills (including future expected medical expenses), pain and suffering, permanent disability, and more.
The biggest difference is the loss of income. Children cannot get compensation for lost wages because they have no wages to lose. However, if the injury is severe enough to cause the loss of earning potential, the child can receive compensation for that. Some injuries, such as spinal cord injuries or traumatic brain injuries, can cause developmental issues that will have an impact on future career options.
How Are Child Injury Cases Different Than Adult Cases?
Unlike adults, children cannot pursue a lawsuit against a negligent party after an injury; someone has to file a suit on their behalf. Depending on the nature of the accident, the negligence can also be drastically different than in an adult personal injury case. For example, if an adult trespasses on someone’s property and injures themselves, the adult is not able to file a personal injury claim.
For children, this is often not the case. If a property owner does not properly secure things on their property that may attract children, they can be found negligent under Louisiana premises liability law. Things like pools and swing sets are a few examples. These are often referred to as an “attractive nuisance.” If a child’s injury comes from falling into a neighbor’s ungated pool, the neighbor is responsible for the injury. Their negligent behavior (not gating the pool and securing the attractive nuisance) allowed the child to be injured.
Do I Need A Lawyer For My Child’s Injury?
If your child suffered serious injuries due to someone else’s negligence or recklessness, you should seek the help of an experienced personal injury attorney. Child injury claims can be difficult to navigate alone, and you may not receive the maximum amount of compensation you are entitled to without the help of qualified personal injury attorneys. At Joubert Law Firm, we are skilled in a diverse range of personal injury matters, including cases of child injury, so you can be sure that our Louisiana personal injury lawyers are equipped to handle your case.
How Long Do I Have to File a Child Injury Lawsuit?
Louisiana’s prescription for when a personal injury lawsuit must be filed is one year from the injury date. This means that you have one year to pursue a claim against a negligent party on behalf of your child. After a year has passed, you lose your right to recover financial compensation. In an ideal situation, the investigation for neglect should begin almost immediately to preserve evidence and eyewitness memories. There are a few exceptions that extend the time in which to file a lawsuit. So, it is best to talk to our Baton Rouge personal injury lawyers as soon as possible so you can fully understand your rights.
Call for a Free Initial Consultation With the Baton Rouge Child Injury Lawyers at Joubert Law Firm
Child safety is a major concern for parents, and when that safety is violated, everyone suffers. If your child was injured due to the neglect or abuse of someone else, contact a qualified child injury lawyer at Joubert Law Firm as soon as possible. We believe every injured child deserves someone fighting for their legal rights. We are prepared to handle everything from catastrophic injuries to wrongful death cases and help you explore all available legal options while fighting aggressively for fair compensation.
Call us today to begin your attorney-client relationship and schedule your free consultation at (225) 777-8853.
**As a thank you to all military members and veterans and to show our appreciation for your sacrifice and service, we would like to offer a discount for your legal cases.
“Johnny went above & beyond to help me in a very difficult time. If you need someone to advocate for you, he’s the one to call! So thankful for him & how he handled a case I thought was impossible to help. Give him a call!”
