What is considered to be a reasonable settlement regarding a personal injury to a special needs child?
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What is considered to be a reasonable settlement regarding a personal injury to a special needs child?
My son has cerebral palsy and is in a wheelchair. While at school, his teacher left him unattended and failed to put the brakes on his wheelchair. He was propelled down a sidewalk, over a curb and landed face first onto the pavement. He sustained several lacerations to his face and was treated at the ER. The exact same incident happened 2 weeks later when his physical therapist had him outside. She failed to put the brake on his chair while she closed a
gate. He was rushed to the ER and sustained additional facial lacerations. Video surveillance has both incidents on camera. We demanded that the school district provide a dedicated aide but they refused. We were forced to hire a legal advocate for $3,000 to attend a school meeting and demand that they provide an aide. They agreed. The legal advocate recommended an attorney to sue the school district to reimburse us for our expenses, as well as a claim for our son who has permanent and very visible scars on his face above his eye and lip. The attorney who we were referred to is the former attorney for the school district and now works in the private sector. We felt he was compassionate and the best person to help us.
After 2 1/2years of phone calls to the attorney with the typical
Asked on July 11, 2016 under Personal Injury, Florida
Answers:
S.L,. Member, California Bar / FreeAdvice Contributing Attorney
Answered 7 years ago | Contributor
Your son's compensation should include compensation for his medical bills and pain and suffering which is an amount in addition to the medical bills. Compensation for the medical bills is straight reimbursement.
There isn't any mathematical formula for determining compensation for pain and suffering. It depends on the medical reports which document the nature and extent of the injuries; however, one thousand dollars is ridiculous because your son has scars. Scars are worth considerably more compensation for pain and suffering.
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