Spinal Cord Injury vs. Traumatic Brain Injury: How the Legal Approach Differs

Two of the most serious accident consequences are spinal cord injury and traumatic brain injury (TBI). Victims have the right to seek monetary compensation. But various aspects of your personal injury lawsuit such as evidence and damages valuation will differ.

If you or a loved one suffered either a spinal cord injury or TBI, you can expect resistance from the at-fault party’s insurance company. Retaining a skilled Chattanooga personal injury attorney can help. Turn to Wagner Workers’ Compensation & Personal Injury Lawyers.

Signs of spinal cord injury and TBI

After being in an accident you may not realize you’ve been injured. On the other hand, you may only notice mild pain or discomfort. Certain injuries take time to reveal themselves, so seek immediate medical attention even if you don’t think you were hurt.

Understanding the signs of a serious injury can help you receive the treatment you need to recover. Here is what victims need to know.

Spinal cord injury

Injuries to the spinal cord affect movement, sensory perception, and the ability to control one’s body. Symptoms include:

• Sudden loss of movement, known as paralysis
• Unusual weakness in the arms or legs
• Coordination problems
• Decreased sensation, such as the inability to feel touch
• Extreme back or neck pain
• Muscle spasms
• Inability to control one’s bowels or bladder
• Trouble breathing

Spinal injuries are often more obvious, but should nonetheless be treated as an emergency. Attempting to move the victim could cause more injury, so call emergency medical services.

TBI

Some traumatic brain injuries are mild, like a concussion, while others present life-threatening situations. These symptoms may appear right away or over the course of several days:

• Severe headache
• Vision problems
• “Brain fog”
• Nausea or vomiting
• Loss of consciousness
• Slurred speech
• Numbness or weakness in the limbs
• Loss of coordination
• Fatigue

The effects of a TBI are not always easy to identify at first. But with time, a TBI can lead to a host of cognitive and behavioral issues such as memory loss and personality changes.

Differences in damages

Accident victims seek monetary compensation known as damages. These cover a number of personal losses such as medical bills and lost income. Spinal cord injuries and TBIs can both affect the damages amount, but in different ways.

Both are likely to have high economic damages. These are damages like medical bills and lost income that are fairly objective and easy to calculate. However, it might be easier to demonstrate those damages in a spinal cord injury case. Plus, paralysis-causing injuries qualify as catastrophic in Tennessee, meaning there is a higher damages cap for non-economic damages. Whether or not a TBI qualifies as catastrophic can be more difficult to predict.

Here are some other specific ways in which the damages can differ:

• Future medical expenses: Victims can seek compensation for reasonably estimated future medical bills. But because a TBI can have permanent and often unpredictable effects on a victim, calculating future medical needs can be more complicated.
• Medical equipment and accommodations: Anyone who has suffered a spinal cord injury and developed paralysis will need mobility devices and home accommodations like a wheelchair ramp. Brain injury victims are more likely to require cognitive aids and assistive technologies.
• Effects on lost income: Spinal cord injuries can make it difficult for a victim to perform physical labor due to effects like paralysis. Meanwhile, a TBI affects cognitive functioning, focus, and memory. Depending on the nature of your job, these injuries can impact you differently.
• Lost future income: Similarly, a spinal cord injury or TBI will have sometimes vastly different consequences for future earning ability. Lost future income is a category of damages that includes earnings, bonuses, promotions, and benefits like retirement.
• Decreased quality of life: Since spinal cord injuries affect movement, a formerly active person could lose that part of their life. Conversely, the behavioral and personality changes of a TBI can affect the victim’s quality of life in a different way.
• Long-term care: Spinal cord injuries are often more predictable insofar as the victim’s long-term care needs. Brain injuries, meanwhile, are not as easy to plan for. Either way, your attorney must factor this dynamic into your damages calculation.

These and other damages require a personalized approach to the victim’s accident claim. There is no one-size-fits-all solution. Expert witnesses will play a vital role in ascertaining the nature and amount of damages to request.

Differences in evidence

Accident victims have the burden of proof in a Tennessee personal injury lawsuit. This requires strong evidence, often acquired through discovery. However, since spinal cord injuries can be more obvious than brain injuries, the evidence will not necessarily be the same.

Spinal cord injury evidence

Your lawyer may produce such evidence as:

• Medical imaging results such as MRIs and CT scans
• Surgery records proving the extensive attempts to repair the damage
• Rehabilitation and physical therapy documents
• Mobility evaluation notes

TBI evidence

On the other hand, you should present this type of evidence for a brain injury claim:

• Counseling and therapy notes
• Cognitive test results
• Psychological evaluations
• Academic or work performance records
• Personal journals
• Eyewitness statements

Differences in legal timelines

While spinal cord injuries often show up right away, brain injuries may take more time to develop. This is particularly true with the cognitive and behavioral effects of a TBI. These differences can affect the overall duration of a personal injury claim. However, regardless of the injury type, Tennessee generally requires that you file your personal injury lawsuit within one year of the accident. While some TBI symptoms take time to appear, the ‘discovery rule’ is limited, and missing this deadline typically bars your claim forever, so never wait to contact a lawyer.

With this in mind, there are some specific ways that the two injuries differ in terms of the timeline:

• Medical treatment: Although both injuries require early medical attention, a brain injury victim may have extensive treatments such as rehabilitation and therapy. These can extend the treatment phase and delay resolution of the accident claim.
• Uncertain outcomes: Every brain is different, so the effects of a TBI will differ from one accident victim to another. This makes the prognosis of the injury difficult to predict. Expert medical witness testimony will be necessary to give a reasonable projection.
• Extensive settlement discussions: Since it takes time to understand the nature of a victim’s TBI, negotiations may be prolonged. It’s not unusual for accident claims to require multiple mediation sessions to determine a fair settlement amount.
• Insurance disputes: Insurance companies may disagree as to the extent of the victim’s damages or the element of causation, particularly for TBI cases involving less obvious symptoms. This could delay settlement.

Differences in litigation strategy

Considering the above, your lawyer’s case strategy will likely vary based on your injury. A spinal cord injury victim can rely more heavily on the visual impact of their mobility struggles. With a brain injury, more time may have to be spent on witness testimony from family and friends.

These differences can affect the case narrative and the work your attorney does to educate the jury about the nature of your injury. Additionally, expert witness testimony may play varying roles in making your case.

Our commitment to accident victims

Regardless of which type of injury you’ve suffered, let the dedicated attorneys of Wagner Workers’ Compensation & Personal Injury Lawyers help. We can review these differences with you and then develop a comprehensive strategy to seek the compensation you deserve. Contact us today to get started.