Serving Hamilton, Brantford and surrounding areas of Ontario
April 24th, 2012
If you have been bitten by a dog, you may be able to receive compensation for many different types of damages. The most common types of damages are:
- Past and future medical bills–This includes both immediate and ongoing medical attention. One unfortunate characteristic of many dog bite injuries is that they are disfiguring. Disfiguring injuries may require reconstructive surgery to help you return to your normal life.
- Lost wages–If you had to miss work as a result of your dog bite, you may be able to recover lost wages.
- Pain and suffering–This includes both physical and mental trauma. Dog attacks are traumatic, and many dog bite victims live in fear, suffering recurring nightmares and may have ongoing difficulty during encounters with even non-threatening dogs.
- Punitive damages–People who knowingly harbour and even encourage dangerous dogs may be subject to punitive damages, especially if they routinely loose the dogs or fail to warn others about the dangerous animal.
Overall, compensation you receive for your dog bite depends heavily on the circumstances of your attack.
To learn what compensation you may be eligible to receive, please contact the Findlay Law Offices today for a free consultation. Helping dog bite victims in the Hamilton and Brantford areas of Ontario.
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April 17th, 2012
If you feel you have a valid claim against a landowner for injuries sustained as a result of a slip and fall, you should act quickly. You should go back to the scene of the accident within a few days and inspect the area. You should attempt to determine the cause. If the dangerous condition still exists, document it, preferably with photographs.
If the location is a business, you should talk to the owner/manager on duty at the time you return and ask them to make a record of your complaint. Identify employees who were at the scene when you had your accident and get names and contact information for any witnesses. Ask employees if yours was the first incident or only the most recent one. Also try to determine if anyone knew about the condition before your fall.
Next, you will need to have your potential claim evaluated by a lawyer to determine what legal options you have. Please contact Findlay Law Offices in Hamilton and Brantford, Ontario for a free case evaluation today.
Posted in Slip and Fall | Comments Off
April 10th, 2012
A dangerous or hazardous condition is any condition that could result in a slip and fall or other type of injury. Property owners have a responsibility to ensure their property is safe if they invite others to their property for social or business reasons. They are responsible for injuries that occur from a dangerous or hazardous condition on their property, if it can be shown that they either knew or should have known about the condition.
Some common hazards include:
- Broken step
- Loose or uneven pavement or floors
- Liquid spill
- Icy conditions
Property owners cannot always be held responsible for injuries suffered on their property. The key is demonstrating the property owner’s knowledge, or that failure to know constitutes negligence.
For example, it may be hard to hold a shop owner responsible for a spill that just occurred, but a puddle from water dripping off a cooler’s condensation coils develops slowly enough and is regular enough that a property owner should have known about it and prevented the hazard before a slip and fall accident occurred.
The best way to learn whether you can bring a lawsuit based on hazardous conditions is with a free consultation at Findlay Law Offices, helping clients in Hamilton, Brantford, and surrounding areas of Ontario. Please contact us today for your consultation.
Posted in Slip and Fall | Comments Off
April 3rd, 2012
Unfortunately, there are limited treatment options for TBI, or, rather, there are many treatment options, but their outcomes are uncertain. TBI treatment is often prolonged, expensive, and of limited effectiveness.
For physical injury to the skull and brain, there are surgical treatments that can stabilize the brain and diminish further injury, but for the invisible injuries, treatment is less certain. When talking about TBI treatment, we are not talking about a cure, but about rehabilitation with a goal of full recovery. Ongoing rehabilitation may include:
- Application of assistive technology
- Counselling for:
- Loss of socialization
- Depression
- Anxiety
- Physical therapy
- Speech therapy
- Medications
Treatment of TBI is a challenge both for the victim and for the medical professional. It can also be very expensive, and with lost wages and diminished earning capacity, you may have difficulty making ends meet.
A lawsuit can help you get compensation to pay for TBI treatment. To learn more about your legal options after a brain injury, please contact the Findlay Law Offices, representing clients in Hamilton, Brantford, and surrounding areas of Ontario for a free case evaluation.
Posted in Brain Injuries | Comments Off
March 28th, 2012
There are basically three main criteria to establish who can sue for a brain injury.
First, did you suffer a brain injury? This is partly straightforward and partly not. Although you know you suffered a brain injury, it can be very hard to document, especially for mild brain injury, which generally shows no abnormalities on neuroimaging scans. This is something that an experienced brain injury lawyer can help with documenting your injury, which can be helpful far beyond the lawsuit.
Second, is someone’s negligence to blame for your injury? You can’t sue unless someone else is responsible for your brain injury.
Finally, do you have damages to recover? In terms of brain injury, the problem is not so much whether you have damages, but how to document the damages in terms that a judge or jury will accept. Possible damages include medical expenses, rehabilitation costs, lost wages and earning capacity, and diminished quality of life.
If you are considering a lawsuit for traumatic brain injury, the best way to learn about your legal options is by talking to a lawyer. Please contact the Findlay Law Offices, representing clients in Hamilton, Brantford, and surrounding areas of Ontario for a free consultation.
Posted in Brain Injuries | Comments Off
March 23rd, 2012
Yes. Although it is a commonly believed that brain injury is associated with a loss of consciousness, this is not necessarily the case. A mild brain injury, also called a concussion, may or may not be associated with a loss of consciousness. You can see this in a number of guidelines released by major neurological organizations. The American Academy of Neurology, for example, notes that “Concussion is a trauma-induced alteration in mental status that may or may not involve loss of consciousness.”
Although it is described as a mild brain injury, a concussion is not necessarily a minor injury. In the “Consensus Statement on Concussion in Sport,” (2009), researchers note: “Concussion results in a graded set of clinical symptoms that may or may not involve loss of consciousness. Resolution of the clinical and cognitive symptoms typically follows a sequential course. In a small percentage of cases, however, post-concussive symptoms may be prolonged.” Prolonged means symptoms that last a year or more.
The emphasis on sport comes as increased awareness of the severity of concussions, especially multiple concussions, for cognitive function. In 2011, for example, the CFL introduced new concussion guidelines, including the adoption of the international SCAT 2 tool for identifying the presence of concussions. The tool includes a loss of consciousness as one criterion, but the overall score is based on many symptoms, such as nausea, confusion, and feeling “in a fog.”
Unfortunately, there are no doctors on the sidelines of a car accident to assess a possible concussion, and because you seem to have no injuries, you will likely go home without an on-site assessment. However, if you are suffering symptoms now, it is crucial to understand that you could have suffered a brain injury without a loss of consciousness.
If you have suffered a brain injury as a result of a car accident or other event, you may be able to receive compensation for your injury. To learn about your legal options, please contact the Findlay Law Offices, representing clients in Hamilton, Brantford, and surrounding areas of Ontario.
Posted in Brain Injuries | Comments Off
March 19th, 2012
Brain injury can be a life-changing event. When an individual suffers a brain injury, the consequences may be not only a diminishment of cognitive and motor skills, but also numerous significant emotional consequences. Studies have shown that brain injury victims are at risk for a number of emotional consequences, including:
- Decreased social contact
- Loss of joy in leisure activities
- Depression
- Loneliness
- Anxiety
These emotional consequences do not exist independently of one another. Instead, they often enhance one another. Decreased social contact, coupled with an inability to enjoy the same activities previously enjoyed, combine to create depression, loneliness, and anxiety.
Worse, studies also show that rehabilitation teams are not adequately prepared for stopping the downward slide that many brain injury victims suffer. Psychological well-being is as important as physical well-being, but is unfortunately neglected by many people in the rehabilitation community.
If you or a loved one has suffered a traumatic brain injury, compensation through a lawsuit may be able to help you get the care necessary to protect emotional as well as physical well-being. To learn more about your legal options, please contact the Findlay Law Offices, representing clients in Hamilton, Brantford, and surrounding areas of Ontario.
Posted in Brain Injuries | Comments Off
March 15th, 2012
Mild TBI is the most prevalent form of traumatic brain injury. It is also known as a concussion or minor head trauma, but it is not necessarily a minor injury. Most often this type of injury is missed at the time of first medical treatment. However, 15% of people with mild TBI will suffer symptoms that last for a year or more. In addition, once a person suffers a first mild TBI, risks associated with even more minor head traumas go up significantly.
So it’s important to be on the lookout for the symptoms of mild TBI, which include:
- Fatigue
- Headache
- Visual disturbance
- Memory loss
- Inability to concentrate
- Sleep disturbance
- Dizziness
- Emotional changes, including depression
- Seizures
If you or a loved one shows any of these symptoms after suffering even a mild blow to the head, including a low-speed car accident, you should immediately seek medical attention.
If you have suffered even a mild TBI, you may be able to receive compensation for your injuries. To learn more about your legal options, please contact the Findlay Law Offices, helping clients in Hamilton, Brantford, and surrounding areas of Ontario.
Posted in Brain Injuries | Comments Off
February 29th, 2012
If you suffered a serious personal injury or lost a loved one because of another person’s neglect or recklessness, you may have a personal injury claim. Personal injury law is designed to help victims of negligence recover compensation for costly medical bills, lost income, physical and emotional pain and suffering, and other losses you have suffered as a result of your injury.
However, in order to pursue a successful personal injury claim, you must be able to prove three things:
- You have suffered a personal injury
- A third party caused your injury
- You have financial damages as a result of your injury
These three points represent the structure and framework of any personal injury claim. Our experienced Hamilton personal injury attorneys at the Findlay Law Offices have decades of experience collecting the evidence and testimonies needed to build successful personal injury cases.
If we believe you have a valid claim, we will identify who is responsible for your injuries and gather the information we need to directly link your injuries to their negligence. Sometimes, more than one party may be responsible for your accident. We will pursue every avenue of compensation that is available to you.
If you live in the Hamilton or Brantford areas of Ontario and have suffered a personal injury, please contact us today to schedule a free case evaluation. We can help you fight for the justice and fair compensation that you deserve.
Posted in Personal Injury | Comments Off
February 27th, 2012
In a personal injury claim, the level of pain and suffering that you endured because of your injury will be evaluated to determine an appropriate amount of compensation. Unlike lost income, medical bills, and other financial hardships, pain and suffering is more subjective and intangible, making it difficult to put a price tag on. However, it is an important aspect of all personal injury cases.
An experienced personal injury attorney can help you properly assess how your injury has affected your life on an emotional and physical level. In order to establish pain and suffering damages, our Ontario personal injury lawyers at the Findlay Law Offices will examine things like:
- The severity and extent of your injuries
- How your injury will impact your life in the future
- How your injury will impact your ability to work
- The degree to which your injury will limit your interactions with friends and family
- The amount of pain associated with your injury
- The amount of pain associated with medical treatments for your injury
These and several other considerations will be made to establish your pain and suffering damages. Our Ontario legal team will then construct a strong case – based on evidence, medical records, and expert testimonies – that proves you deserve compensation for your physical and mental anguish.
If you have been seriously injured because of another person’s negligence in the Hamilton or Branford areas of Ontario, please contact our experienced Ontario personal injury attorneys at the Findlay Law Offices today to schedule a free case evaluation.
Posted in Personal Injury | Comments Off
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