NYC Slip and Fall Brain Injuries

If you or someone you love is dealing with a slip and fall brain injury in New York City, you already know how much has changed. Recovery can be slower and less predictable than with other injuries, and it can affect far more than just your physical health. When a fall happens because a property owner failed to keep their premises reasonably safe, New York premises liability law allows you to hold that owner responsible for your losses.

A slip and fall lawyer at Friedman, Levy, Goldfarb, Green & Bagley draws on the firm’s more than 50 years representing injured New Yorkers. Our attorneys protect your rights and negotiate directly with the defendants’ insurance companies to pursue the maximum compensation for your injuries and other damages.

While most slip and fall brain injury claims are settled, our attorneys are prepared to litigate your case if the insurer does not agree to a fair settlement amount.

How a Brain Injury Can Change Your Life

The effects of a traumatic brain injury extend well beyond the initial recovery period. It can permanently change how you or a loved one works, moves, connects with others, and experiences daily life:

• Work. Memory loss, slowed processing, and difficulty concentrating can make it hard to keep up with a job you once handled easily, leading to reduced hours, a change in role, or an inability to work at all.
• Mobility. Balance and coordination problems can require a cane, walker, or wheelchair, along with home modifications to maintain independence.
• Relationships. Personality changes, irritability, and impulse control issues affect spouses, children, and friends, often shifting a loved one into a caregiving role.
• Mental health. Depression, anxiety, and mood swings are common, recognized effects of TBI.

Because a brain injury reaches into all of these areas at once, a fair settlement or verdict needs to account for more than medical bills. For that reason, brain injury claims tend to award higher compensation amounts than many other slip and fall injuries, and insurers are more likely to dispute the diagnosis, question whether the injury was caused by the fall, or push back on the value of the claim.

An experienced brain injury attorney knows how to counter these tactics by working with medical experts to document the injury, connecting it clearly to the fall, and building a case that reflects its true, long-term cost.

Slip and Fall Brain Injury Compensation

Compensation, or damages, in a slip and fall brain injury case may include:

• Medical expenses, current and future — emergency care, hospitalization, imaging, neurologists, and any ongoing treatment the injury requires
• Rehabilitation costs — physical, occupational, speech, and cognitive therapy
• Long-term or in-home care — attendant care, nursing support, or assisted living, if the injury requires it
• Home or vehicle modifications — ramps, adaptive equipment, or other changes needed to accommodate the injury
• Lost wages — income already lost while unable to work
• Loss of future earning capacity — the difference between what you could have earned and what you can now realistically earn
• Pain and suffering — the physical and cognitive toll of the injury itself
• Loss of enjoyment of life — the activities, relationships, and routines that the victim once enjoyed

How Comparative Negligence Can Affect Your Compensation

There are situations in which the slip and fall victim is partly responsible for their accident. For instance, the person may have been looking at their phone instead of where they were going. Under New York’s pure comparative negligence statute, accident victims can still receive compensation even if they are partially at fault.

Compensation is reduced by the plaintiff’s percentage of fault, whether that percentage is negotiated in a settlement or decided by a judge or jury. For example, if the plaintiff is found 25 percent responsible for the accident, a $100,000 settlement or award is reduced to $75,000.

Contact a New York City Slip and Fall Attorney

If your slip and fall brain injury in New York occurred due to property owner negligence, contact an experienced slip and fall lawyer at Friedman, Levy, Goldfarb, Green & Bagley. Schedule a free, no obligation consultation today. We serve clients throughout Manhattan, the Bronx, Brooklyn, Queens, Staten Island, Long Island, Westchester, Rockland, and the Hudson Valley. Since we work on a contingency basis, you pay no fee unless you receive compensation.

While the statute of limitations in New York for filing a personal injury lawsuit is three years from the accident date, it is critical to obtain legal counsel as soon as possible. Otherwise, crucial evidence can disappear.