Have you or a loved one suffered a traumatic burn injury due to the neglect or misconduct of another? You may be eligible for proper monetary compensation for the damages you and yours have endured. At the top-rated Normandie Law Firm, our skilled Orange County burn injury attorneys can assist you in suing the school, employer, daycare, manufacturer, hospital, doctor, company or any other liable party for damages. Contact our law offices today, and we can discuss the incident, the aftermath, your injuries, and the path to filing your lawsuit and reaching a suitable claim. Our expert attorneys have tons of experience handling burn injury claims and are able to provide you with a free review of your case and give you the legal advice that you need.
Burn Injuries
Burn injuries are described as minor to severe damage to the layers of skin on an individual. These burns can range from minor scalding injuries from a hot pan, or clothing iron, to severe burning wounds caused by an electrical current or harsh chemical. Below we’ve compiled a list of some of the leading causes of burn injuries as a reference for you and your case:
- Fire
- Hot liquid or steam
- Hot metal, glass, or other similar objects
- Electrical currents
- Radiation from x-rays
- Sunlight or ultraviolet light from a sunlamp or tanning bed
- Chemicals such as strong acids or alkaline.
Treatments for burns depend on the location, cause, and severity. For instance, a minor burn from a hot pan or stove can be easily remedied with a bit of, cold water or over the counter burn cream. However, a severe burn from a stray electrical current may require immediate professional medical attention. The cause of these burns also affects their appearance. For instance, the electrical burn we mentioned prior may not be visibly apparent, and as such hard to diagnose its severity. However, a severe burn from contact with hot steam may be relatively easier to diagnose as the severity is in most cases visually apparent. Regardless, in all severe cases of burns, it is recommended that you seek medical attention, as at home treatments can only do so much. Below, we’ve compiled a list of the varying degrees of burns an individual can suffer as well as likely treatments and their characteristics:
- First-Degree Burns: first-degree burns, often regarded as ‘superficial burns’ most commonly occur at the home, and as such can in most cases be treated with at home remedies. These remedies include dousing the wounded area in cold water, and applying burn cream to the affected area. First-degree burns are often characterized by a deep reddening of the skin.
- Second-Degree Burns: Second-degree burns are often considered to be the most immediately painful, but that is up for debate. Depending on the severity of a second-degree burn, treatment can include simple cleaning and administering burn cream, or it could require intensive immediate medical attention. This is particularly the case if the burn spreads to sensitive regions of the body. This degree of burn is often characterized by a blistering and reddening of the skin.
- Third-Degree Burns: Third-degree burns are incredibly severe and in almost all cases require immediate medical care. Unlike first, and second degree burns, third-degree burns inflict long-lasting damage to all layers of the skin. Third-degree burns are often characterized by a charring of the skin and a rough leathery texture of the affected area.
- Fourth-Degree Burns: fourth-degree burns are the most severe degree of burn, as they not only damage all layers of the skin, but can also deliver long-lasting damage to deeper tissues such as the muscles, tendons, and even bone. Fourth-degree burns should always be treated with immediate medical attention. The treatment of fourth-degree burns often requires intensive surgical procedures that would need a skilled healthcare professional. Fourth-degree burns are often characterized by a blackening of the skin and a potential loss of the burned region.
Burns can be incredibly severe wounds, and if one occurs due to the fault of another, that secondary party can be held liable for the damages. If you or a loved one attempts to file a lawsuit against the at-fault party, it is recommended that you employ the assistance of a skilled legal professional. Pursuing legal action can often time be a complex and challenging to take on alone. A skilled attorney can also help in figuring out the best strategy in pursuing your lawsuit. Every case is different, and as such requires a different legal process towards a successful claim. At Normandie Law Firm, our qualified attorneys with experience in burn injury cases can guide you through the course of discerning the essential elements of your case and file a viable lawsuit against the party responsible.
Burn Injury From Defective Product
If a defective product causes any sort of injury the manufacturer, assembling company, or retailer of that manufacturer can be held liable for the damages under Product Liability Laws. Product Liability Laws protect consumers from receiving faulty and possibly harmful products. These laws are put in place so that a consumer can more easily pursue legal action against the company responsible for dangerous product defects. That is not to say that filing a lawsuit against a production company is easy, however. Filing a lawsuit against any company can be a challenging task as they have the resources to employ a whole team of skilled lawyers who will turn out to dispute your case. For this reason, an accomplished attorney who has experience in burn injury cases may be particularly useful in pursuing your claim. The first steps in filing a lawsuit against a company is to determine where the defect occurred in the product’s manufacturing chain. Below we’ve compiled a list of likely defects that can happen to a product:
- Design Defects: Design defects occur before the product is even assembled and put on store shelves. This form of defect occurs during the initial design stage of the product. These defects are inherent in the product from the start and can often lead to large-scale recalls.
- Manufacturing Defects: This form of defect occurs during the assembly of the product. In these cases, the company that stages the assembly can be held liable for damages. These form of defects can range from individual product faults to widespread mistakes across a whole product line.
- Marketing Defects: This type of defect occurs when there is a harmful error in the product’s marketing. Marketing errors can include things like inadequate safety warnings, insufficient instructions, and improper labeling.
If you plan on pursuing legal action against the company of a faulty product that caused harm to you, it is best to seek out skilled legal consultation. At Normandie Law Firm, our experienced lawyers from Orange County can assist you in suing the company liable for your damages.
School or Day Care Burn Injuries
If you or a loved one suffered a burn injury at a school or daycare, you might be able to sue the school or daycare for a breach of Due Duty. Due Duty is defined as the level of care in which any other reasonable school or daycare would provide for its students under similar circumstances. This duty can range from things like safe classrooms, to having the appropriate equipment to help treat injuries as they occur. If at any point this duty of ‘Due Care’ is breached, that school or daycare can be held liable for the damages. An attorney with expertise in burn injury lawsuits can help you file a claim against the responsible facility. Listed below are the two key elements that a court will evaluate when you attempt to prove a breach of Due Care.
- The Cause of The Injury: To establish a breach of ‘Due Care’ you must be able to define the cause of your child’s injury. This can be from a lack of supervision to improper safety protocols by the school or daycare faculty.
- The Nature and Foresight of Injury: You must be able to prove that the injury could have been reasonably prevented at any other daycare or school. If so, then you can sue the school or daycare for a breach of Due Care.
Home & Apartment Burn Injuries
While burn injuries occur most frequently at home, not every home burn injury can result in a lawsuit against the homeowner or property management company. That is not to say that a property owner or management company cannot be held liable in the event of a burn injury. If, for instance, a real estate owner fails to fix a reoccurring faulty wire or does not respond to tenant repair requests, that owner can be held liable in the event of an injury. In these cases, a skilled real estate attorney could be retained, and a lawsuit could be filed against that property owner. However, in some cases, property management companies can escape full liability by withholding the identities of the actual property owners. In these cases, a management company can be sued for only limited liability. For this reason, understanding the details of filing a lawsuit against a property owner or management company is necessary for reaching a successful claim.
One of the key elements in filing a lawsuit against a property owner or management company is proving that these parties acted negligently. Below is a list of the four items that make up a case of negligence:
- Duty: The plaintiff must be able to show that the defendant (property owner) had some legal duty to the plaintiff and their tenants.
- Breach: The plaintiff must be able to show that the defendant breached this legal duty through a particular action or a lack of action.
- Causation: The plaintiff must be able to show that the defendant’s actions, or lack thereof, caused the damages that you are seeking compensation for.
- Damages: The plaintiff must be able to show that they were harmed in some way. This can usually be done through a presentation of medical bills or evidence of a loss of wages.
Workplace Burn Injuries
If an employee suffers a burn injury at the workplace, more than likely they can, instead of pursuing legal action, can only claim workers’ compensation benefits. Often these benefits cover any medical expenses endured and a portion of the lost wages. For some, this may be suitable enough to cover the damages, but in severe burn injury cases, more compensation may be required. Unfortunately, pursuing legal action against an employer can only be pursued if one of the two situations are present in your case:
- A Lack of Benefits: It is required that all employers provide their employees with suitable workers’ compensation benefits and if they do not, that employer can be sued for damages.
- Intent to Harm: If it is found that your employer intended to inflict harm upon you then that employer can be sued for damages.
Construction Site Burn Injury
Workers that suffer from a burn injury while working on a construction site can claim workers’ compensation benefits. Unlike other workers though, a construction site worker can pursue legal action against any third party that may have contributed to their injuries. These third parties can include the construction site owner, the general contractor, a sub-contractor, the manufacturer of construction equipment, or any other liable third party. Below is a list of questions one of our Orange County attorneys may ask a construction site worker before filing their claim:
- Who was responsible for safety at the construction site?
- Were any industry standards violated at the site?
- Was the injury reported to your employer?
- Have any other workers at the same construction site been injured similarly?
- Did the employer provide safety training for their workers?
- What was the nature of the injury? Was the injury sudden, or did it develop over time?
- Did the employer provide safety equipment to help prevent injury?
Burn Injury From Hospitals & Improper Care of Burn Injuries
If you or a loved one has suffered a burn injury at a hospital, or received improper care for a burn injury from a medical professional, that hospital or physician can be held liable for the damages by the use of a medical malpractice lawsuit. Regardless if you are a patient being treated for a burn injury, or going in for a regular checkup, healthcare professionals are expected to uphold a level of care to every one of their patients. To file a viable medical malpractice lawsuit against a physician or hospital, you must be able to prove that they acted negligently while providing care. Listed below is a list of the key elements of a successful claim of negligence in a medical malpractice lawsuit.
- The Existence of a Doctor-Patient Relationship
- The Negligence of the Health Care Professional
- The Injury that was Caused by the Doctor’s Negligence
- The Specific Damages Caused by the Injury
How Normandie Law Firm Can Help
Burn injuries caused by the fault of others should not be suffered without pursuing proper compensation for your damages. Contact Normandie Law Firm today, and a top lawyer experienced in burn injury cases can walk you through the process of earning the compensation that you deserve. Our law firm is based near Orange County, but our attorneys practice in Los Angeles, Irvine, Oxnard, Ventura, Bakersfield, Modesto, Fresno, San Francisco, San Jose, Oakland, Oxnard, San Diego, Riverside, San Bernardino and throughout all of California. As a further display of our commitment to you and your case, our firm operates under a strict zero fee guarantee policy. Under this policy, you don’t have to pay anything until we win your case.
Free Consultation
Our compassionate attorneys are happy to provide you with the legal advice that you need, even if you currently have an attorney. You can call or email us today for a free review of your case by an experienced attorney.
