Children’s injuries are sometimes unavoidable. Because of their continual development, children are susceptible to a wide range of dangers and risks. The scope and nature of children’s injuries can be particularly damaging to a child’s future. While state and federal laws often include safety guidelines for children’s products and activities, such laws are frequently ignored or simply not enforced. Too often, children are harmed, injured or even killed by the carelessness or negligence of others.
The most common injuries children suffer vary by age almost month by month, with the most dangerous time coming at 15 to 17 months, according to a U.S. study done by the University of California. The following are some United States child injury statistics:
- 47% of the deaths in children from birth through four years old are caused by house fires.
- Trauma is the leading cause of death in children over the age of one.
- Over 6,600 children die from injuries annually.
- More than 14 million children are hurt each year from injuries.
Children are injured in many different situations, including:
- Animal attacks and dog bites
- Birth injuries
- Medical Malpractice
- Burn injuries
- Orthopedic injuries
- Dangerous toy accidents
- Auto accidents
- Sports injuries
- Swimming pool accidents
- Playground injuries
- Toy injuries
- Defective products
- Prescription drug adverse reactions
- Past and future medical bills
- Pain and suffering
- Mental anguish
- Lost wages
- Loss of consortium (for a spouse)
- Funeral costs (in wrongful death cases)
The majority of serious unintentional child injuries could have been avoided if proper precautions were taken. At Grey Law, our injury lawyers represent clients whose children have been seriously injured. We carefully investigate an accident scene and defective products and offer a comprehensive evaluation of circumstances surrounding an injury in order to identify responsible parties. Call our office today at 323-857-9500 for a free legal case evaluation.
Negligence is often the cause of many child injuries. Injuries can occur on a playground at school. The lack of supervision at daycare or school often results in child injuries, including broken bones or head injuries. Negligent supervision cases are the worst, because they are usually preventable. Responsible people for negligence may include:
- Parents (the child’s own)
- Other childrens’ parents (if the child was under their care at the time)
- School or daycare during the time the child is entrusted to their care
Anyone who knowingly accepts responsibility for your child then has a “duty of care” to both the child and you to ensure his or her safety while the child is in their care. Any breach of that duty may entitle you and or your child to compensation for whatever medical costs, pain, or suffering are accrued as a result.
In order to prove a child injury was caused by negligence you will need to prove:
- A plaintiff bringing a tort case must prove that none of the following apply in order to win a negligence lawsuit:
- Consent – the injured must not have given consent for the action that resulted in injury.
- Contributory (or comparative) negligence – means that to the degree the plaintiff is responsible himself for negligence, the damages paid to the plaintiff will be reduced by a similar degree.
- Illegality – if someone is injured in the course of doing something illegal, then no damages will generally be awarded to a plaintiff.
Speak With A Los Angeles Child Injury Lawyer
If your child was injured as the result of negligence at school, daycare or anywhere else, contact the child injury attorneys at Grey Law. We offer a free legal case evaluation to discuss your case and options for moving forward.