Northwest Indiana Child Injury Lawyer

Common Children's Injuries Cases We Handle in Crown Point

Cuts and bruises are normal during childhood. In some cases, however, the injury is serious or even life-threatening. When a child is seriously injured, one of the following causes may be responsible:

• Birth injuries
• Child sexual abuse
• Drowning accidents
• Emergency room or hospital mistakes
• School accidents
• Auto accidents, including defective car seats
• Pedestrian accidents
• School bus accidents
• Daycare accidents
• Animal attacks and dog bites
• Playground injuries
• Unsafe toys, cribs, and similar products
• Window blind cords and other products that pose a strangulation hazard
• Slip and fall accidents
• Food poisoning
• Dangerous products that pose a choking hazard
• Sports injuries
• Swimming pool accidents
• Prescription drug adverse reactions

If your child was injured in an avoidable accident, chances are that someone else is to blame. And their insurance company could try to deny your child suffering claim. Act today to enlist the aid of an Indiana child accident lawyer.

Common Types of Child Injuries

Despite their resilience, children are navigating a particularly vulnerable period in their lives, perhaps not to be matched again until old age. Because they are still growing, children are particularly susceptible to permanent injuries. Some common ways children are harmed include:

• Sprains
• Muscle tears and strains
• Concussions
• Traumatic brain injuries (TBI)
• Burn injuries
• Bone fractures, including crushing injuries
• Damage to internal organs
• Back and neck injuries
• Soft tissue injuries
• Nerve damage
• Hearing loss
• Lost limbs
• Paralysis
• Spinal cord injuries
• Internal bleeding
• PTSD
• Long-term emotional disorders, such as phobias and depression
• Wrongful death

Our team has years of experience successfully obtaining compensation for the unnecessary suffering of children and parents, and we are ready to stand and fight for you.

Who Can File a Lawsuit for Child Injuries in Northwest Indiana?

In Indiana, as in most states, a lawsuit for injuries to a child is typically filed by the child's parent or legal guardian.

Minors (people under the age of 18) generally do not have the legal capacity to sue or be sued. Therefore, a parent or guardian acts on the child's behalf in legal matters, including filing a lawsuit to recover compensation for any injuries the child may have sustained.

Compensation Available for Child's Injury in NWI

Your child or family could be entitled to many different types of compensation, including:

• Current and future medical bills
• Medical equipment (wheelchairs, prostheses, etc.)
• Cost of living in a long-term care facility
• Cost of in-home medical care
• Estimated lost earnings
• Lost opportunities
• Pain and suffering
• Mental anguish
• Disfigurement
• Loss of quality of life
• Punitive damages (if the defendant’s behavior was particularly outrageous)

Let us do the negotiating for you. If you try to go it alone, you can rest assured that the defendant or insurance company will try to avoid paying what your child deserves. We know all the negotiating tricks, and we won't fall for a single one of them.

What Is the Statute of Limitations for Child Injury Claims in Indiana?

The general personal injury statute of limitations for personal injury in Indiana is two years after the date of the injury.*

Since a child does not become eligible to file a lawsuit for unintentional injuries in their own name until they reach 18, however, the deadline is two years after the child’s 18th birthday — in other words, the child’s 20th birthday.

*Note that cases involving the State, the Federal government, and state, local, or Federal agencies have specific, time-sensitive notifications that must be made in a much more compressed timeframe. Note as well that this includes many public schools, and government run day-care centers. If you believe you are involved in a case involving one of these entities, be sure to contact an attorney as soon as possible or you could waive your right to pursue litigation against them.

Why Do You Need a Child Injury Attorney in Lake County, IN?

Special considerations apply to a personal injury lawsuit when the victim of a serious injury is a minor under 18.

Legal Capacity

A minor cannot file a lawsuit in their own name in Indiana. Normally, this means one of two scenarios: Either a parent files the lawsuit, or the court appoints a guardian ad litem to file the lawsuit. The parent or guardian will be expected to manage any verdict or settlement in the best interests of the child.

Financial Concerns

Settlement funds are the child’s property, but the child is not free to manage them until they turn 18. A court must appoint a guardian for any settlement exceeding $10,000. The guardian then places the funds in a restricted bank account for minors. Often, the guardian will structure a settlement that pays off after the child turns 18.

Long-Term Impacts

It is difficult to forecast future losses in case of long-term injuries. Suppose that an accident renders a child paraplegic. How do you calculate the child’s lifelong expenses due to the injury — especially lost earnings from a career that the child may never pursue? A child accident attorney knows how to help you calculate these losses.

Why Choose Stracci Law Group for Your Child Injuries Case?

The child accident lawyers at Stracci Law Group benefit from decades of combined experience working with clients in the same situation you are in. Our track record is clear enough to make opposing parties think twice once they learn that you have retained us to represent you. We will:

• Investigate your case and identify the responsible party.
• Gather admissible evidence in preparation for a trial.
• Negotiate with the responsible party or their insurance company and attempt to reach a generous settlement.
• File a lawsuit to gain leverage over the defendant in settlement negotiations.
• Go to trial for you if necessary.

Most of our clients receive settlements with no need for a trial.

*Note that cases involving the State, the Federal government, and state, local, or Federal agencies have specific, time-sensitive notifications that must be made in a much more compressed timeframe.  If you believe you are involved in a case involving one of these entities, be sure to contact an attorney as soon as possible or you could waive your right to pursue litigation against them.