PERSONAL INJURY ATTORNEY BRONX

New York may be one of the most productive, prosperous cities in the world, but it can also be a dangerous place to live. With 8.6 million residents (1.5 million living in the Bronx alone), the chances of you or someone you know getting injured in an accident is unfortunately high. If you are hurt in an accident, you could be facing exorbitant medical bills, lost wages, and pain and suffering. You should not be responsible for covering the costs of an injury that was not your fault. A professional Bronx personal injury lawyer, like the legal professionals that you’ll find at Rosenberg, Minc, Falkoff & Wolff, LLP, can represent you in your negotiations with your insurers and assist you in your road to recovery. Call today to receive a free consultation.

Understanding Personal Injury Law

As a victim of a personal injury, you will quickly discover that the entire personal injury law process is complicated and stressful. In fact, if you are focusing on recovering from injuries after an accident at the same time that you are attempting to get yourself the money you deserve after your accident, it may simply be too much to handle. Insurance companies benefit when you are stressed and overwhelmed while they are attempting to settle an injury case, but when you work with an attorney you will be able to focus on your recovery while you have a legal professional fighting for your best interests. 

No matter the situation, you can be certain that the party responsible for your injuries, and their legal defense team, will be working aggressively to identify every possible way to limit the amount of money that you ultimately receive for your settlement. 

Common Injuries in Personal Injury Cases

Since there are so many possible situations that can be considered under tort and personal injury law, there are no injuries that can be specifically mapped to these accidents. All types of accidents are unpredictable, meaning that there is an infinite number of factors that go into determining the type and severity of an injury, but the following are a few common injuries that we represent in the New York court system for our clients. 

WHIPLASH

Whiplash is an extremely common injury in car accidents, and is the result of damage to the soft tissues in the neck and shoulder area when the head is snapped forward, down, and back in a rapid “S” motion. Since this injury is specifically focused on soft tissues, and since you will likely be surging with adrenaline after an accident, it can take a few days to recognize the true extent of your injuries if you have suffered from whiplash.

BRUISING

Bruising is another common type of injury that someone can experience after any type of impact accident, including a slip and fall, car accident, motorcycle crash, and any other situation where the victim’s blood vessels are ruptured near the surface of their skin. If the damage is bad enough, a bruise may turn into a hematoma, which is a type of bruise that is extremely painful and may require additional attention in order to be drained or alleviated. These are also common as seatbelt injuries, which are caused when a person is restrained in an accident but the seatbelt injures them.

Common Personal Injury Actions in the Bronx, NY

Not all New York personal injury firms represent plaintiffs in all types of accident cases. Before you commit to a particular attorney or law firm, you should make sure that their team has specific experience representing clients in your particular type of case. With over four generations of personal injury litigation experience in the state of New York, the Law Firm of Rosenberg, Minc, Falkoff & Wolff offers a wide array of services. The following is a breakdown of the types of suits that we handle for our clients.

CAR AND MOTOR VEHICLE ACCIDENTS

The most recent statistical data offered by the New York State Department of Health indicates that there were on average 1,098 deaths, 12,093 hospitalizations, and 136,913 emergency room visits per year due to traffic accidents. Even in a state with a population the size of New York, that’s a staggering sum. Insurance companies are usually quick to make an offer to accident victims, but those offers are rarely sufficient to pay for much more than the medical bills of the injured party. If you are injured while driving, on a bicycle, or on foot, don’t accept a settlement without speaking to a motor vehicle accident lawyer.

PREMISE LIABILITY CASES (SLIP AND FALL)

The custodians and owners of property owe a duty of care to their invited guests. Whether it’s a retail store, a government facility, or the common areas of an apartment building, if you have legal permission to be on someone’s property, you also have the right to reasonable safety. That means that it should be clear of hazards, have adequate warnings of dangerous situations, and proper security measures. It’s essential that you contact a personal injury attorney as close to the time of the accident as possible. Precious evidence for your case can be lost in the immediate days following your accident.

MEDICAL MALPRACTICE CASES

When you see a physician or check into a medical facility, you have a legal right to a reasonable standard of care. That doesn’t necessarily mean that the doctor or staff will cure you or improve your condition, but that they will use the best tools at their disposal and give you the competent, professional medical advice. It also means that they’ll advise you of the risks involved in any course of action that they recommend. If you’re injured by a doctor, nurse, medical facility, or pharmacist, you have the right to compensation.

CONSTRUCTION SITE ACCIDENTS

According to the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA), 20% of worker fatalities in the United States were construction accidents. Construction is by far one of the most dangerous industries for employment in the Bronx. Many New York City construction workers are hired as independent contractors by construction companies, but they’re still protected under the Construction Industry Fair Play Act. Under this law, you are considered an employee unless all three of these conditions are met:

• You are free from direction and/or control in your job performance.

• You’re performing work that isn’t part of the type of work that the business that hired you normally does.

• You have your own independent business.

In most cases, if you’ve been injured in a construction accident, your employer is responsible for your workplace injury. Contact a Bronx personal injury lawyer immediately.

NEW YORK’S SECTIONS 240 AND 241

In addition to the protections afforded to all workers under New York law, the state offers additional protections for construction workers. Under these sections of the code, contractors and building owners can be held liable for unsafe conditions that result in injury. In addition to Worker’s Compensation benefits, which are rarely sufficient to cover a serious workplace injury, Sections 240 and 241 of the New York code, allow injured construction workers to sue employers for additional remuneration for things like lost earnings, diminished work capacity, and pain and suffering.

WRONGFUL DEATH

Accidental death is always tragic, but there are times when in addition to their grief, the survivors are impacted economically as well. When an individual dies due to the negligence of a person or organization, their family members may be able to hold the responsible parties accountable through civil action. Family members are often entitled to full economic compensation, remuneration for lost future income, their emotional pain and suffering as well as any trauma suffered by the deceased prior to their departure, and punitive damages. Talk about your case with an attorney.

Bronx Personal Injury Statistics

According to information available through the NYC Open Data Portal, there were a total of nearly 90,000 car accidents reported in the Bronx between 2016 and the beginning of 2020, resulting in a total of 68 deaths and 25,167 injuries from car accidents. While car accidents are only a portion of personal injury cases that a lawyer will represent throughout any given year in New York City, this can give you an idea of how many people are injured as a result of someone else’s actions in one particular type of accident.

Whether you are a cyclist, pedestrian, medical patient, or any other type of victim of someone else’s actions, negligence, or malice, then you deserve to be compensated fairly for your suffering and the costs associated with your injuries. Working with an attorney is one of the best ways to make sure that you are not just another statistic through this process.

New York Personal Injury Law

MOST PERSONAL INJURY SUITS IN THE STATE OF NEW YORK ARE SETTLED AT THE STATE LEVEL. THAT MEANS THAT THE LAWS OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK ARE APPLICABLE WITH REGARD TO DAMAGE CAPS AND THE STATUTE OF LIMITATIONS ON PERSONAL INJURY LAWSUITS.

Damage Caps

The state of New York does not cap damages on personal injury lawsuits. Damages are decided by a jury.

Statute Of Limitations

In most instances, the statute of limitations if three years from the time of the accident that caused the injury. With malpractice cases, there is a 30-month statute of limitations, but it starts from the time that the medical malpractice injury was discovered. Medical malpractice sometimes goes unnoticed until some time after the medical accident occurred. Wrongful death suits must be filed within two years of the date of death, regardless of when the accident occurred.

Pure Comparative Fault

In New York, a judge or jury determines the percentage of fault of the plaintiff and then awards their damages based on the proportion. If, for example, a plaintiff is 20% at fault, they can recover 80% of their damages.

Frequently Asked Questions about Bronx Personal Injury

During your initial consultation, you will be able to ask us a variety of questions that specifically relate to your accident and injuries. Keep in mind that even if you have the same questions listed below, the answers will likely be different because your case is so unique. We will be happy to take the time to answer these questions during your free consultation. 

DO I HAVE A CASE?

Knowing whether or not you should pursue legal actions against the party who caused your accident is one of the most important questions to ask at the start of this process. We will go through the details of the situation such as the type of accident, the details that went into the cause, and determine whether or not the other person involved is truly at fault, and if they are responsible to compensate you for the costs associated with your accident. 

HOW MUCH IS MY CASE WORTH?

Once we have determined whether or not you have a case, we will need to take a period of time in order to calculate the actual damages that you have suffered, and therefore the damages you are entitled to in terms of compensation. We will first go through all of your economic damages, such as all associated bills, expenses, and income-based impacts, in order to establish a basis for your case. Once we have gotten these calculations finalized, we will then consider your non-economic impacts such as pain and suffering and all other “intangibles.”

DO I NEED TO WAIT UNTIL MY CLAIMS INVESTIGATION IS COMPLETED TO HIRE AN ATTORNEY?

Many people think that they need to go through their insurance claim first, but this is not the case whatsoever. When you have an attorney representing you from the start, you can be confident that every action is taken with your best outcome in mind, from the moment that we first make contact with the insurance company or legal team representing the responsible party, until we get you the final payment amount that you deserve in your case.

Personal Injury Lawyers for the Bronx, NY

If you or a loved one has been injured or tragically killed in an accident, you deserve compensation. The Bronx Law Firm of Rosenberg, Minc, Falkoff & Wolff provides a free consultation for potential clients. In addition, we work on a contingency basis, which means that we only get paid if you receive a settlement or jury award. Contact us immediately to speak with one of our veteran New York trial attorneys.