Best Nursing Home Abuse Lawyer

Nursing home abuses cases are a type of malpractice suit; however, they often include special factors or circumstances that can be sinister for the average person to know about. These cases may involve elderly or disabled people who have been taken advantage of and abused when they are most vulnerable. If you suspect nursing home abuse and need help, please call an attorney for a free case review.

Death From Abuse in a Nursing Home

Sometimes a nursing home resident will lose their life because of abuse, gross negligence, or a criminal act committed by staff or other residents. When a jury hears the details, their emotional response may reflect in the size of the amount of compensation awarded to the plaintiff.

All members of a jury are human and will have a natural tendency to think about what it would be like if their loved one was the person who died, or worse, if they were the victim themselves. This thought may provoke emotions of anger that spill over during deliberations. Known as the guilt factor, this may cause a jury to treat the case differently than other personal injury cases.

A good lawyer should understand this, and for obvious reasons, the defense may do everything they can from keeping these cases out of the courtroom. This is why very few nursing home abuse cases ever make it to trial.

Factors to Consider When Determining the Value of the Case

It is impossible to tell you what your case is worth without knowing the details. In general, a nursing home lawyer may consider the following:

• Economic Damages – These include actual costs that have occurred because of the abuse. Examples include medical care, lost income, legal fees, and so forth.
• Non-Economic Damages – Such as mental and emotional anguish, suffering, and loss of a loved one.
• Punitive Damages – Available in certain cases, these are damages that are meant to punish the defendant, and act as a case precedent.

The Jurisdiction Matters

A majority of nursing home laws are federal. This means that the facility must adhere to them regardless of where they are. It will be up to the state to administer the laws and hold an alleged offender responsible.

All states have their own legal procedures for civil cases. This also includes the amount of compensation that may be available, the types of damages that a jury can decide on, and the terms of a settlement. For example, some states have set a cap on damages that can be awarded. This is to prevent a grossly overcompensated nursing home abuse case.

Examples of Past Settlements

Around 95% of all nursing home abuses cases will settle out of court. This means the amount of compensation awarded is private. There are reports that suggest the average settlement is around $100,000 – $250,000. Some past settlements that were made public because they went to trial include:

• $195,000 in Michigan for a Stage 4 Bedsore
• $960,000 for a Non-Fatal Head Injury from a Fall in New York
• $250,000 in Massachusetts For Consuming a Foreign Object
• $1.57 Million in California for a Severe, Late Stage Bedsore that Resulted in Death
• $7.5 Million In Kentucky for an Elder Who Was Accidentally Strangled to Death By A Bedsheet