Buffalo Child Injury Lawyer

Was your child injured in Buffalo, New York, because of someone else’s negligence? Could the accident have been avoided had the responsible party been more careful or upheld their legal responsibility? If so, you might have a valid personal injury claim that you can lodge against the at-fault party to seek compensation and accountability for your child’s injury. 

A Buffalo child injury lawyer from O’Brien & Ford Buffalo Car Accident and Personal Injury Lawyers can review your case and explain who is responsible for your medical bills, lost wages, and child’s pain and suffering. Your child deserves justice, and we are here to help demand it in Buffalo, NY. Contact us today to speak with one of our dedicated Buffalo child injury attorneys at (716) 222 2222 during a free consultation.

How O’Brien & Ford Buffalo Car Accident and Personal Injury Lawyers Can Help My Family After a Child Injury in Buffalo

How O'Brien & Ford Buffalo Car Accident and Personal Injury Lawyers Can Help My Family After a Child Injury in Buffalo

The compassionate Buffalo personal injury attorneys at O’Brien & Ford Buffalo Car Accident and Personal Injury Lawyers know that you are going through a difficult time after someone else’s negligence injures your child. You need to be able to care for your child while knowing that the responsible parties are held accountable for their careless actions. You can count on an experienced Buffalo child injury lawyer from O’Brien & Ford Buffalo Car Accident and Personal Injury Lawyers. to protect your child’s legal rights while you focus on protecting them in other ways.

Our law firm has been recognized as Western New York Legal Elite and Top 50 Upstate New York Super Lawyers. Our Buffalo personal injury lawyers have successfully obtained over 25 million- or multi-million dollar awards for our deserving clients. We are prepared to put our more than 84 years of combined legal experience to use to help you seek fair compensation, too. 

When you hire our Buffalo, NY, team, you can count on us to:

  • Evaluate your case and explain your legal options during a free case review
  • Investigate the accident and gather evidence to prove liability
  • File claim paperwork and other necessary forms 
  • Compile evidence regarding the full extent of your child’s damages
  • Handle communications and negotiations with the insurance company 
  • Advise you on the best way to structure your child’s settlement 

Call us today for a free case review with a Buffalo child injury attorney to learn more about how we can help.

Common Causes of Child Injuries

Children can be injured in any number of accidents, including:

If you believe someone else’s negligence caused your child’s injury, reach out for help from a personal injury attorney in Buffalo. We can investigate the case, determine how it happened, and identify the parties responsible for it.

Who Is Responsible for My Child’s Injury?

The party responsible for your child’s injuries will depend on the circumstances surrounding the accident and who is legally responsible for them. Potential at-fault parties may include:

Caregivers

Schools, daycares, and other caregivers have a duty to protect the children in their care. This extends to care while they are on school grounds for school, lunch, sports, and after-school activities.

They may be responsible for injuries caused by:

  • Failing to supervise children properly
  • Failing to store harmful chemicals and substances out of reach of young children
  • Failing to train staff adequately
  • Failing to maintain school grounds properly
  • Failing to protect them from harm from other students
  • Failing to take necessary precautions to prevent foreseeable injuries

An experienced personal injury lawyer can review your case to determine if you have valid grounds for a personal injury claim.

Property Owners

Property owners are responsible for maintaining their property so visitors are not injured there. If they fail to do so, they may be liable for the injuries due to the state’s premises liability laws. This duty extends to children.

Property owners have additional duties to protect children under the state’s attractive nuisance doctrine. This law acknowledges that young children often do not recognize risks due to their age or lack of maturity.

Some features on a property may serve as an “attractive nuisance” that could potentially harm children, such as:

  • Swimming pools
  • Abandoned cars or farm equipment
  • Trampolines
  • Playground equipment

Suppose the property owner fails to repair such an attractive nuisance, limit risks, or properly secure it, and a child is injured. In that case, the property owner can be held responsible for the child’s injuries.

Dog Owners

Dog owners are required to maintain control over their dogs and prevent them from attacking others. If they fail to do so, the dog may be considered dangerous, and the owner can be held responsible for the resulting injuries.

Negligent Motorists

Motorists have a legal duty to follow the law and drive safely. If they fail to do so and injure a child, grounds may exist to file a claim against the negligent motorist.

What Types of Compensation Can Child Injury Victims Recover?

A child who is injured due to someone else’s negligence or intentional wrongdoing may be entitled to economic and non-economic damages.

Economic damages compensate for the financial losses suffered, including the following:

  • Medical bills
  • Property damage
  • Out-of-pocket expenses
  • Rehabilitation
  • Physical therapy
  • Diminished earning capacity

Non-economic damages compensate for the emotional suffering your child may endure, including the following:

  • Pain and suffering
  • Emotional distress
  • PTSD
  • Mental anguish
  • Reduced quality of life

A skilled Buffalo personal injury attorney can help your family evaluate damages and fight for your child to receive the just compensation they deserve for their injuries and other losses.

Common Types of Child Injuries

Children’s bodies are still growing, so injuries to them can lead to stunted development, defects, or other long-term issues.

Child injuries can take many forms, including:

  • Childbirth injuries caused by medical negligence
  • Soft tissue injuries, traumatic brain injuries, and broken bones from falls
  • Scarring, avulsions, and disfigurement from dog bites
  • Bruises, cuts, abrasions, and broken bones from violent attacks
  • Emotional and psychological injuries, including Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder, depression, and anxiety

An experienced child injury lawyer can help you seek compensation from the parties responsible for your child’s injury.

What if My Child is Partially at Fault for the Injuries?

New York is a pure comparative negligence state. This means that your child can still recover compensation even if they are partly at fault for their injuries. However, the amount of compensation they can receive is reduced by their share of blame.

How Much Is My Child’s Injury Case Worth?

When a child suffers an injury because of someone else’s negligence, they have the same right to collect compensation as an adult would under similar circumstances. However, it can be difficult to calculate child damages because it is hard to estimate how the injuries may impact the child. The child is still growing and developing, but the injury could have long-term consequences on them. A Buffalo personal injury lawyer may hire an expert to help calculate projected financial costs for injuries.

An expert may estimate how much a child would have been able to earn over their lifetime and compare that to the child’s long-term earning capacity while considering the injuries.

Child victims can also recover compensation for disability, loss of function, lost opportunities, and pain and suffering.

Parents of an injured child may be able to be reimbursed for medical bills they paid for the child, as well as for ongoing medical treatment and wages they lose for taking their child to medical treatment.

The court must approve any child injury lawsuit and compensation held until the child reaches the age of 18.

How Long Do I Have to File a Personal Injury Lawsuit In New York State?

Statutes of limitations are the deadlines by which a party must take certain legal action. In New York, the general deadline is three years to file a personal injury lawsuit. However, this is more complicated when dealing with child injuries.

There are typically two options when dealing with child injury cases because children do not have legal standing to sue. The first is for parents to file a lawsuit on their child’s behalf. The second is to wait for the child to turn 18 to sue. If the child waits to sue, they typically have until their 21st birthday to file a lawsuit.

The best way to determine the deadline that applies to your child’s injury case is to work with an experienced personal injury lawyer who is familiar with the deadline that applies to the case and can take prompt legal action.

Contact an Experienced Buffalo Child Injury Lawyer for a Free Consultation

Few situations are more heartbreaking than seeing your child injured. You want to protect your child from harm and may feel a sense of injustice knowing that your child was injured because of someone else’s negligence.

A Buffalo child injury lawyer from OO’Brien & Ford Buffalo Car Accident and Personal Injury Lawyers can explain your legal rights and options during a free case review. We can help seek compensation and accountability from the at-fault party in Buffalo, New York. Call us today for your free consultation, we proudly serve al throughout Erie County and surrounding areas.

Our Personal Injury law firm in Buffalo also provides:

Visit Our Personal Injury Law Office in Buffalo, NY

O’Brien & Ford Buffalo Car Accident and Personal Injury Lawyers
4549 Main St Suite 201 Buffalo, NY 14226
Phone: (716) 222-2222
Opening Hours: From 7:00 am to 7:00 pm
7 days a week

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