Hann Law Firm helps families understand the legal distinction between serious injuries and catastrophic personal injury cases in jurisdictions like San Jose, California. These cases often involve complex medical evidence or multiple liable parties. There are also derivative options like loss of consortium claims.
In this guide, Hann Law Firm explains catastrophic personal injuries and the legal process for pursuing compensation in California.
What Is a Catastrophic Personal Injury?
Some accidents cause injuries that completely reshape a person's future. While many people recover from typical injuries within weeks or months, catastrophic personal injury cases often involve permanent changes to physical abilities, cognitive function, and daily life. In legal and insurance contexts, “catastrophic” refers to injuries that cause long-term or permanent impairment and severe trauma.
Typical accident injuries may cause temporary harm; a broken bone might heal within months. A catastrophic injury, however, can alter someone's capabilities permanently. California law recognizes this distinction, commonly in cases like the following:
Traumatic brain injuries, affecting memory or personality
Spinal cord injuries, resulting in paralysis
Loss of sight or hearing
Severe burns, requiring skin grafts and rehabilitation
Crush injuries, damaging organs or limbs
The court will consider ongoing medical treatment and lifelong care in its decision.
California Legal Standards for Catastrophic Injury Cases
California treats catastrophic cases differently from typical personal injury claims. Insurance policy limits tend to be higher, multiple parties may share fault, and courts calculate damages decades into the future. The courts also examine how injuries affect life expectancy and whether victims can return to work, although employment status alone does not determine eligibility for legal compensation.
Someone who sustains permanent loss of bodily function and requires ongoing medical treatment, therapy, or 24-hour care faces significantly higher lifetime expenses depending on their condition. Personal injury advisors like the Hann Law Firm help San Jose families understand these legal distinctions and build cases.
Proving Catastrophic Injury Claims in San Jose
Catastrophic personal injury claims rely on strong documentation, including detailed medical records, bills, prescription receipts, and photographs of accident scenes. Simple tools like maintaining a journal can help document the changes in daily life and provide additional support for these claims about pain levels, limitations, and emotional trauma.
Recovery in catastrophic injury litigation typically relies on the quality and completeness of the evidence presented. Testimony from medical professionals, life-care planners, and economists can aid the case. Victims must also provide documentation of bills, financial status, and treatments, since medical expenses for catastrophic injuries begin accruing immediately after the accident and may continue for years.
Non-economic damages also apply to catastrophic cases.
Time Limits for Filing Catastrophic Injury Claims
It’s crucial to note that California has a two-year statute of limitations on many personal injury claims. If a government entity is wholly or partially at fault, this time limit tightens to six months.
Delaying consulting attorneys in the hope that the injuries will improve or insurance companies will make fair offers is not advisable. Delays in catastrophic personal injury cases make gathering evidence and presenting clear accounts more difficult.
About Hann Law Firm
The attorneys at Hann Law Firm help victims navigate personal injury cases, including catastrophic personal injury cases in San Jose, California. Contact the firm at (408) 755-9793.
