Injuries To Children

injuries-to-childrenChild Injuries in Georgia

There are few things worse than seeing a child suffer immense physical or emotional trauma. If your child sustained a serious injury, you deserve a personal injury lawyer who is a parent and will do everything he can to hold the right person responsible.

Children in Car Accidents

Crash-related injuries are a leading cause of death for children ages 5 to 19, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. You may be one of the most cautious drivers on the road, but nobody can control the behavior of other drivers. At our firm, we have seen children suffering with terrible injuries. We have represented children who suffered dislocated joints, concussions, broken teeth, and fractured limbs. Paralysis or facial disfigurement cause life-long physical and emotional trauma to a child and the child’s family. Hiring a compassionate personal injury lawyer who understands what it is like to care for a child does make a difference.  We pride ourselves on our work ethic, our knowledge of the court system, and our ability to communicate a winning case, but most of all we pride ourselves on our ability to communicate with our injured clients.

When you send your children off to school in the morning, you rely on the bus driver to keep everyone safe. Unfortunately, school bus accidents happen. In some cases, an accident occurs because the driver makes an error or disobeys local traffic laws. Because bus accidents typically involve several children, they are more complicated than an accident involving two cars. Our lawyers know how to investigate bus crashes and hold the right people responsible. Depending on the cause of the accident, we may be able to go after the school district, the bus driver, or the manufacturer of the school bus. As personal injury attorneys we are hired to hold the right people accountable for the injuries they cause.

O.C.G.A. §40-6-163 explains when drivers must stop for school buses.

  • If a school bus stops on a two-lane road or a four-lane road that does not have a median, all traffic must stop. This applies to drivers on both sides of the road.
  • If a school bus stops on a four-lane road that has a median, only the traffic behind the bus must stop.

If a school bus accident occurs because a driver does not stop when required, we can go after the driver in court.

Children Accidents in Daycare

Georgia children playing at a day careDaycare facilities are supposed to be safe places for children to spend time. Unfortunately, not all daycare workers are prepared for the task of caring for several children at a time. O.C.G.A. §49 outlines the rules Georgia daycare facilities must follow when obtaining licenses and performing background checks on employees. If an employee hurts your child because a daycare facility ignored the law, you have every right to take the daycare owner to court.

In Georgia, daycare operators have an obligation to act as any reasonably prudent parent would act in the same circumstances. This means daycare workers must make sensible decisions with regard to each child’s safety and health. If your child is injured while in the care of daycare employees, we can request public records from state agencies and your local police to determine if the facility has a history of negligence. Because young children are often unable to provide a lot of detail about what happened at the time of the injury, it’s important that your lawyer conduct an independent investigation.

Playground Injuries

Every year, more than 200,000 children under the age of 14 visit the emergency room for treatment of playground-related injuries. Nearly half of these injuries are severe, causing accidental amputations, concussions, internal injuries, dislocated joints, and broken bones. It doesn’t make sense to go to court over a simple cut or bruise, but we can fight for you in the event your child sustains a serious injury on the playground.

In some cases, playground injuries occur because equipment is poorly maintained. Older pieces of playground equipment may have rusted metal, splintered wood, broken support beams, or exposed nails. If your child sustained an injury after using poorly maintained equipment, we can go after the playground owner for negligent maintenance.

We may also be able to pursue a claim against the equipment manufacturer. If the equipment was designed or manufactured in a way that created unsafe conditions for your child, the manufacturer may be liable.

Defective Children’s Products

Georgia child in a car child seat

Toys, cribs, walkers, baby seats, and other children’s products are supposed to be safe for your kids. Unfortunately, many products have major defects that make them unsafe for babies, toddlers, and school-age children. If your child sustains an injury as the result of using a defective product, you may be able to file a lawsuit against the manufacturer. In Georgia, you must be able to prove the following before you can pursue such a claim:

  1. The Product Was Defective
  2. The Defect Caused An Injury Or Death
  3. The Time The Injury Occurred, The Product Was In Substantially The Same Condition As It Was When It Left The Premises Of The Manufacturer
  4. The Product Was Being Used As Intended At The Time Of The Accident

Defective product claims have many parts, which is why it is so important to work with an experienced legal team. Our firm knows how to investigate this type of accident and go after the responsible party.

Wrongful Death

The wrongful death of a child is every parent’s worst nightmare. Although there’s nothing that we as personal injury lawyers can do to bring your child back to you, we can help you file a claim against the person or company responsible for the fatal accident. The parent(s) of a child are the people who have the right to bring a lawsuit when a child dies. If, however, the child is married or has a child at the time of her death, then the surviving spouse or surviving child would bring the case. O.C.G.A. §19-7-2

If the child’s parents are married or living together, they have the right to pursue one civil action against the responsible party. In the event of divorce or separation, both parents have the right to file separate lawsuits against the person or company responsible for the accident. If one of the parents is deceased, the surviving parent retains the right to file a wrongful-death lawsuit. A compassionate wrongful death attorney can help determine the best course of action if you are ever confronted with the need to file this type of claim.

Statute of Limitations

Under O.C.G.A. §9-3-33, you usually have two years to file a personal injury claim. However, injuries to children are treated a little differently. The clock does not start running until the child turns 18, so most claims must be filed before the child turns 20. If your child’s injury results in significant medical expenses, it may be better for you to file within two years of the date of the accident so that you don’t have to bear the cost of those expenses on your own. When we review your case, we’ll explain the options and let you know which one makes the most sense for your particular circumstances.

We can’t turn back the clock and erase your child’s injury, but we can help you take legal action against the person or company responsible. As husbands and as fathers of children, we understand what family means.

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