Traumatic Brain InjuryProving Liability in TBI Cases: Gathering Critical Evidence and Testimony

Traumatic brain injuries (TBIs) can have devastating impacts on victims and their families. When a TBI occurs due to the negligence or wrongdoing of another party, the victim may have a right to pursue compensation through a personal injury lawsuit. However, proving liability in TBI cases can be complex. Plaintiffs must demonstrate that the defendant breached a duty of care which directly caused the plaintiff’s injuries. Gathering strong evidence and testimony is critical to proving liability and securing a favorable verdict or settlement.

Understanding Negligence and Breach of Duty

The first key element in any injury claim is establishing that the defendant owed the plaintiff a legal duty of care but failed to uphold that duty which resulted in the plaintiff’s harm. With TBIs, common grounds for liability claims include:

Motor Vehicle Accidents

Drivers have a duty to operate their vehicles in a safe, responsible manner and avoid causing collisions. Evidence like police reports, witness statements, photographic evidence, and more can help demonstrate if a driver was speeding, intoxicated, distracted, or otherwise driving negligently.

Unsafe Premises

Property owners must keep their premises reasonably safe for visitors. Slip and falls, failure to warn of dangers, inadequate security, poor lighting, and other unsafe conditions could show a property owner breached their duty.

Defective Products

Manufacturers and distributors have a duty to make and sell products free of design flaws and manufacturing defects. Documenting defects through testing, internal company documents, and expert analysis helps establish strict liability claims.

Medical Malpractice

Doctors, nurses, and other healthcare providers must uphold accepted standards of care. Errors in diagnosis, surgical mistakes, medication errors, and other forms of malpractice could constitute a breach if they cause harm.

Gathering Evidence to Prove Causation

Merely demonstrating negligence is not enough. Plaintiffs must also show the defendant’s breach of duty directly caused or contributed to the traumatic brain injury and related damages. Key evidence for proving causation includes:

Medical Records

Contemporary medical records detailing the plaintiff’s diagnosis, treatment, and health status before and after the incident can help demonstrate the severity of injuries caused by the event. Imaging showing brain trauma is particularly useful.

Accident Reconstruction

Experts may conduct accident reconstructions to illustrate exactly how collisions, falls, defective products, and other incidents led to head injuries. This visually maps out the chain of events and causation.

Biomechanical Engineering

Biomechanical engineers can provide scientific opinions on how the forces involved in an accident could produce a TBI. They may cite principles of physics and biomechanics to explain how the head was injured.

Medical Expert Testimony

The plaintiff’s treating physicians as well as independent medical experts retained for litigation purposes can causally relate the TBI and impairments back to the accident in question. They can exclude preexisting or unrelated conditions as alternate causes.

Witness Statements

Eyewitnesses to an accident can provide critical testimony on events they observed that led to the plaintiff’s head trauma. Their perspective may help corroborate other evidence of causation.

Addressing Complexities and Defenses

TBI cases involve complex medical and scientific issues. The defense will likely argue that the plaintiff’s cognitive deficits and symptoms are exaggerated, preexisting, or attributable to other causes. Plaintiffs should proactively address defenses by:

Using Neuropsychological Testing

Neuropsychological tests administered by experts can objectively measure memory loss, cognitive decline, and other impacts tied to a brain injury. These results can counter claims of malingering.

Obtaining Pre-Injury Records

School transcripts, work evaluations, and medical records from before the accident help refute suggestions that cognitive deficiencies existed before the TBI occurred.

Challenging Alternate Causes

The plaintiff’s experts should directly respond to and rebut any defense theories that non-accident factors like medications, mental illness, or preexisting conditions are responsible for the claimed injuries.

Documenting Change in Function

Lay witnesses like family, friends, co-workers, and teachers who knew the plaintiff before the incident can describe witnessed changes and daily life impairments caused by the TBI through testimony or affidavits.

Using Day-in-the-Life Videos

Day-in-the-life videos following a TBI victim through their daily routines can provide a powerful visual demonstration of how the injury impacted the plaintiff’s functional abilities and quality of life.

Consulting with Financial Experts

Economists and other financial experts can project lost earnings, medical costs, and other monetary damages attributable to the TBI over the plaintiff’s expected lifetime. Their expert reports help prove the full extent of damages.

Researching Jury Verdicts

An attorney can research past jury verdicts and settlements in similar brain injury cases. This knowledge equips the legal team to craft persuasive damages arguments grounded in real-world case precedents.

Securing Witness Testimony Early

Witnesses’ memories fade over time. Plaintiffs’ attorneys should try to obtain written or recorded statements from eyewitnesses, first responders, treating doctors, and lay witnesses as soon as possible after an incident while recollections are fresh.

Understanding the Venue

The attorney should research the track record of juries in the venue where the suit will be filed and tailor arguments accordingly. More conservative venues may require tempering demands or focusing more on medical evidence rather than emotional appeals.

Consulting with Vocational Experts

Vocational experts can assess how a TBI has impaired the plaintiff’s future employability and earnings capacity. They can provide opinions on retraining costs, lost wages, and other vocational damages attributable to the injury.

Choosing Experts Strategically

The backgrounds and specialties of retained medical, biomechanical, vocational, and damages experts should be selected based on the particular circumstances and theory of liability in the plaintiff’s case. Their expertise must match up with proving the claim.

Introducing Demonstrative Evidence

Using models, diagrams, simulations, videos, and other demonstrative exhibits helps simplify complex medical and technical evidence for the judge or jury. Demonstratives make testimony more persuasive and memorable.

Proving liability in TBI cases requires solid evidence of negligence and causation. An experienced personal injury attorney can help identify and obtain the critical evidence needed to prove your case and maximize your compensation. If you or a loved one suffered a traumatic brain injury due to someone else’s negligence, contact our office today for a free consultation. Our dedicated injury lawyers will thoroughly investigate your claim and advise you on the best path forward to recover damages.

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