By VSCP LAW
It is every parent’s nightmare to consider their child suffering a serious injury. Children can be injured in a variety of contexts: a serious automobile accident, a medical error, a workplace injury, an assault, or a product defect. And when a child is injured, the parent will undoubtedly want to hold the wrongdoer accountable. The parent may also wish to be compensated for the child’s injuries, in particular, when there are considerable costs to pay for the medical and rehabilitative care for their child.
Personal injury lawyers in Philadelphia can assist you every step of the way, relieving you of certain burdens so you can focus your attention on the care and well-being of your child. Philadelphia negligence lawyers will also help you understand the important laws that apply to your rights as a parent. For instance, you have the right to bring a personal injury claim on behalf of your child, so long as your child is under the age of 18.
That may sound strange: a parent is always a parent to their child – why would the right to sue on their behalf change at the age of 18? As you may have guessed, the age matters because at the age of 18, the child becomes a legal adult and as a legal adult, the child will have the right to sue on their behalf.
So, age matters, and timing matters.
In Pennsylvania, you can file a personal injury claim up to two years after the child turns 18 (i.e., up until their 20th birthday). But you should never wait that long to consult a lawyer. If your child suffered an injury, you need to contact a Philadelphia personal injury attorney as soon as possible to preserve your claims.
And while your child’s case doesn’t expire until your child turns 20, YOUR case expires two years after you knew or should have known that your child’s injury was someone’s fault. It is thus critical that you connect with an experienced Philadelphia personal injury attorney as soon as you suspect your child was injured.
It’s important to note, as mentioned above, that once your child turns 18 years old, they can sue on their behalf. But the same statute of limitations applies to their case. In other words, they have two years from the time they knew or should have known that their injury was the fault of someone else.
In Pennsylvania, there are two main categories of compensation: economic and non-economic. Economic damages are quantifiable, the exact figure can be established with documentation. Examples of economic damages include past and future medical expenses (often incredibly expensive), loss of future earnings, and lost wages (for parents who had to stop working to care for their injured child).
Non-economic damages are not quantifiable – they are more of a subjective assessment of the sad consequences of a birth injury. Examples of non-economic damages include loss of companionship, loss of life’s pleasures, pain and suffering, humiliation and embarrassment, and disfigurement.
No amount of money will take away the pain a child and their family feel after their child gets injured. But, with an experienced personal injury attorney in Philadelphia, you can at least rest assured that you will get the most compensation possible for your case.
Learn more about the rights you have as a parent to file a personal injury claim on behalf of your child. Contact the experienced personal injury lawyers at VSCP Law today.
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