Ylla Gosney, Attorneys at Law supports injury victims across Oklahoma, including children, who are often more susceptible to accidents and injuries. Despite their vulnerability, children have the same legal rights as adults. Our personal injury lawyers are here to assist you. Contact us today for a free consultation.
Do You Need a Lawyer in Oklahoma After a Child is Injured?
No one wants to think about their child getting hurt, but if it happens, the legal process can vary. For child injury claims, a parent or guardian must file on behalf of the child. While minor injuries might not need legal action, the decision is ultimately yours. If you’re considering legal action, we offer a free consultation to explain the process with no obligation to hire us.
If you do decide to go forward, we’ll use our experience and resources to help you and your child through the legal process by:
- Investigating the accident
- Figuring out who’s at-fault
- Gathering medical records and other evidence
- Negotiating with insurance reps or lawyers
- Making things easier
Again, this is a situation that you never want to find yourself in. But given the many different hazards there are for an accident in Oklahoma, many children end up getting hurt through no fault of their own–or yours as a parent. This makes the legal process an important part of your child’s recovery.
Who’s Liable For a Child’s Injury in Oklahoma?
When a child is hurt in an accident, figuring out who’s responsible is similar to any other accident–it’s about proving negligence. Because your child has the same rights as any other injury victim, this means showing that:
- Someone violated their duty of care and caused an accident that left your child injured.
While this establishes negligence legally, the real-world application of figuring out liability is going to heavily depend on the circumstances. Most of all, it’s going to depend on where and how the accident happened. With most child injuries, the following groups are usually liable in one form or another:
- Schools and school boards – If your child is hurt at school because of unsafe conditions, like broken equipment or lack of supervision, the school or board might be responsible.
- Churches or religious groups – If your child gets injured during church activities due to poor safety measures, the church could be liable.
- Homeowners or landlords – If your child is injured on someone else’s property because it wasn’t safe, the property owner might be held responsible.
- Store owners – Similarly, if your child is hurt in a store because of hazards like slippery floors, the store owner could be liable.
- Drivers – If your child is injured in a car accident due to a driver’s negligence, the driver could be responsible.
- City or state government – If your child is hurt on public property, like a park or sidewalk, due to unsafe conditions, the city or state might be liable.
- Product makers – If your child is injured by a defective or dangerous product, the company that made it could be held responsible.
Establishing who’s liable is important because it determines who will cover the costs of your child’s injuries. While this depends on the situation, it’s key to know what to look for and to gather as much information as you can after the accident.
How Do You Protect Your Child’s Injury Claim?
When your child is hurt, it’s a frightening experience, especially since you can’t always control the situation–or the fact that you might not even be there if it happens while they’re at school or a friend’s house. However, there are steps you can take to protect their health and their potential legal claim:
- Get to safety – First and foremost, get your child to safety. If they’re seriously hurt, only move them if absolutely necessary. Check how serious the accident is and if your child is injured. Stay calm to avoid scaring them.
- Call 911 for help – If your child is injured or if you’re unsure of the severity, call 911 for an ambulance right away. Explain what happened and follow their instructions. If you know first aid and it’s safe to help, do so while waiting for the ambulance. Also, make sure to tell someone in charge (like a teacher or store manager) about the accident to prevent further injuries.
- Reassure your child – Reassure your child that help is on the way and try to keep them calm until medical professionals arrive.
- Start gathering evidence and information – If it’s safe, find out what caused the accident and if there were any witnesses. Collect evidence, note injuries, and document any other damage. This will be important for your child’s claim later.
Remember, it’s possible that you yourself will also be injured in certain accidents. Make sure to take care of your own health and safety, but once that’s handled, you can start focusing on protecting your child’s legal rights–and preparing to file a claim.
What Damages Can You Get in a Child’s Injury Claim in Oklahoma?
Filing a claim after your child’s injury in Oklahoma follows a similar process to when you’re injured. The key difference is that you’ll be filing the claim on your child’s behalf. From there, the process mirrors any other personal injury claim. You generally have two options:
- Filing an insurance claim out of court
- Filing a personal injury lawsuit
One important thing to know about child injury claims in Oklahoma is that the two-year deadline to file doesn’t start until your child turns 18. This gives you extra time to file the claim. The main goal, however, is still the same: to recover “damages” for your child. Potential damages you can recover include
- Medical expenses – These cover your child’s past and future medical bills, rehabilitation, therapy, medications, and any necessary medical equipment.
- Pain and suffering – These damages are for the physical pain and emotional distress your child has endured due to the injury.
- Loss of enjoyment of life – These cover any impact on your child’s ability to participate in activities they once enjoyed, such as sports or hobbies.
- Future expenses – These are meant to cover anticipated costs related to ongoing medical care, adaptive equipment, or long-term effects of the injury.
- Lost earning potential – This set of damages covers any impact the injury may have on your child’s ability to work in the future.
- Loss of companionship – These damages are for the loss of affection and companionship your child experiences due to the injury.
In some cases, you may also pursue punitive damages if the responsible party acted with gross negligence or intentionally harmed your child. Every situation is different, but the quicker you can act and tie your child’s injuries to the accident itself, the stronger their claim will potentially be. Plus, our team will be there to guide you through the entire process.
Count on Ylla Gosney for Support After a Child Injury in Oklahoma
Dealing with an injury is always challenging, but it’s even more difficult when your child is the victim. At Ylla Gosney, Attorneys at Law, we understand how tough this can be, and we’re here to help. Our Oklahoma child injury lawyers will guide you through the claims process, ensuring your child feels supported and protected. Contact us today for a free consultation to start the legal process.
