Los Angeles Brain Injury Attorney

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Joshua W. Glotzer, Esq

Managing Partner

Experienced Brain Injury Lawyers in Los Angeles

Brain injuries are among the worst injuries a person can suffer, due to the difficulties and impairments which can potentially last a lifetime. If your brain injury was the direct result of another person’s negligence or wrongful conduct, it is important that you speak to an experienced Los Angeles brain injury attorney at the earliest possible time.

You may be entitled to payment of your medical expenses, both present and future, loss of income, pain and suffering, and possibly punitive damages, depending on the circumstances surrounding the brain injury. Your personal injury attorney will have significant experience providing skillful representation, and will understand the serious disabilities or changes in personality which often accompany brain injuries. Presenting a strong case on your behalf is a complex task that requires an extremely experienced legal team, so don’t face this difficult time on your own.

For a free consultation, please don’t hesitate to contact us online or call (747) 241-8288 today.

Importance of a Personal Injury Attorney

Brain injury involves life-changing harm that can affect the injured person’s ability to work and properly function for the rest of their lives. You will need a lawyer to represent you against the negligent party or the person who caused your injury. A personal injury attorney in Los Angeles can help you pursue your claim and obtain the kind of compensation that you are legally entitled to under California law.

If you suffer a brain injury, an insurance company may try to settle your claim by offering you a minimal amount of compensation without getting a lawyer involved. Inexperienced claimants who are unaware of the insurance industry’s practice of offering small settlements, so that they may immediately settle their case without getting a lawyer involved, might receive a settlement too low to pay for all medical expenses.

In many cases, unknowing injured claimants who represent themselves have settled a brain injury claim for $50,000 only to discover after a legal consultation that they had a million dollar suit. Settling a case without having a lawyer represent you can deprive you of compensation that you legally deserve.

Our Experience Helping Victims of Brain injuries

Our firm has handled numerous brain injury and traumatic brain injury cases. We recently settled a brain injury case involving a person who was severely beaten by a security guard. We filed a premises liability lawsuit against the corporation for negligent retention and negligent security and ultimately obtained a significant settlement for our client.

We also represented a client in Ventura County in a brain injury claim arising from a motorcycle accident. Our client was paralyzed on one side of his body as a result of his brain injury, incurring hundreds of thousands of dollars in medical bills and millions of dollars in future medical costs. We were able to obtain a favorable result for our client in this case.

In another case, we were able to obtain significant compensation for a person who was assaulted in an apartment complex and who suffered a traumatic brain injury that caused lifelong headaches and short-term memory loss.

We have extensive experience in brain injury cases arising from truck accidents, motorcycle accidents, slip and fall accidents, and negligent security and assault cases. We have a strong grasp of the medical diagnosis and its consequences, the complicated medical nomenclature, and medical issues involved in brain injuries, allowing us to successfully represent victims in brain injury cases and obtain favorable results for our clients.

Brain Injury Overview

A serious brain injury can leave victims with an altered future, and his or her loved ones trying to deal with the extreme changes in personality and abilities. Every year, brain injuries cause a significant number of deaths and permanent disabilities. A brain injury can be the result of a jolt, blow or bump to the head, or a penetrating head injury—all of which can disrupt the normal brain functions. The following facts from the Center of Disease Control highlight the seriousness of brain injuries across the nation:

  • As many as 1.7 million people sustain brain injuries every year;
  • Of those 1.7 million, approximately 52,000 will die, and another 275,000 will be hospitalized for a significant length of time;
  • Traumatic brain injuries are a factor in almost a third of all injury-related deaths in the United States;
  • Children between the ages of 0 and 4, adolescents aged 15-19, and adults over the age of 65 are most likely to sustain a brain injury;
  • About half of all the ER department visits for brain injuries are made by children between the ages of 0 and 14;
  • In the year 2000, the indirect and direct costs associated with brain injuries totaled $60 billion, and
  • Adults who are older than 75 have the highest rates of hospitalization and death related to brain injuries.

What Types of Accidents Lead to Brain Injuries?

As it applies to personal injury law, most accidents that lead to brain injury are from auto accidents or slip and falls. However, any accident that involves a sudden impact to the head can result in a brain injury.

If you have experienced trauma to the head, an evaluation from a neurologist, either in the emergency room or shortly after the injury, is very important. A brain MRI will be conducted to determine the existence of any actual injury to the brain and its extent.

If you suffer a brain injury as a result of the fault or negligence of another person, you may be entitled to compensation.

The Effects of a Brain Injury

Those who have suffered a brain injury could have physical effects, emotional effects, cognitive effects and behavioral effects. Of all of these, the behavioral problems can often be the most challenging, as they affect educational and vocational pursuits, social relationships, safety, and even the ability to live in an independent manner. As many as 90 percent of all those who are disabled by a brain injury, could experience related emotional, psychiatric or behavioral problems.

Traumatic brain injury can often lead to problems such as:

  • Decreased control over body movements on one or both sides of body
  • Frequent headaches
  • Memory loss
  • Speech problems
  • Vision loss
  • Depression or anxiety
  • Inability to concentrate and complete simple tasks
  • Dizziness / Vertigo
  • More serious conditions such as coma or paralysis

Brain injury can also lead to a stroke, causing paralysis to one side of the body. Loss of brain tissue that is often detected in a brain MRI can lead to permanent short-term memory loss.

Behavioral Issues Associated with Brain Injuries

Even five years following the initial injury, some 40 percent of those with brain injuries could still be experiencing behavioral issues. In a person with a mild brain injury, the behavioral issues could be relatively minor, including irritability, fatigue, and mood swings. Personality changes are common, as are periods of disorientation, difficulty controlling one’s emotions and lack of inhibition.

Some of the most common behavioral issues associated with brain injuries include:

  • Mental inflexibility;
  • Changes in personality;
  • The inability to self-monitor;
  • The inability to manage impulses;
  • Disinhibition;
  • Self-injury;
  • Physical aggression;
  • Property destruction;
  • Disruptive behaviors;
  • Lack of response to requests;
  • Confusion;
  • Agitation;
  • Deficits in social skills;
  • Deficits in problem-solving;
  • Impaired judgment;
  • Substance abuse, and
  • Impulsive behaviors.

Damage to the frontal lobe is generally responsible for behavioral problems, as this area of the brain controls “executive functions” such as:

  • Planning;
  • Problem-solving;
  • Communication;
  • Reasoning;
  • Evaluating, and
  • Creating.

Unfortunately, many insurance companies continue to view the issue of recovery as limited only to medical and physical rehabilitation, and will balk at paying for cognitive and behavioral problems.

Costs Associated with a Brain Injury

Of course there is no cost which can be put on the psychological, emotional and physical issues, which are typical results of a brain injury. A price can be put, however, on the financial burdens arising from a brain injury.

A mild brain injury can cost as much as $85,000, a moderate brain injury can cost close to a million dollars, and a severe brain injury can cost as much as $3 million.

The Center for Disease Control places the cost of rehabilitation for acute brain injuries at between $9 and $10 billion annually, not including indirect costs to society and families or lost earnings and productivity.

Symptoms of a Mild Brain Injury

Even the mildest form of brain injury can have a myriad of symptoms associated with the injury including the following:

  • Noise and light sensitivity;
  • Irritability and depression;
  • Anxiety;
  • Fatigue;
  • Insomnia;
  • Vertigo;
  • Balance issues;
  • Decreased cognitive abilities;
  • Nausea;
  • Emotional mood swings;
  • Loss of memory, and
  • Decreased speed of thinking.

A moderate brain injury can include all of the above, as well as a loss of consciousness, confusion which can last for days or weeks, and physical, behavioral, and cognitive impairments which can last for months, or may be permanent. Those with a moderate brain injury may be able to make a fairly good recovery with intensive treatment.

When a brain injury results in a prolonged state of unconsciousness or a coma that lasts days, weeks or months, a severe brain injury is likely. The person may be minimally responsive, or may suffer from locked-in syndrome.

Speak with a Los Angeles Brain Injury Attorney Today

Our firm has over 20 years of brain injury experience, obtaining superior results for our clients. Our attorneys have recovered a significant amount in successful settlements and verdicts for our injured clients. You are not just a number to us – we value and care for our clients, maintaining relationships with them even after their cases are settled. Many of our clients refer other cases to our firm, knowing that we will do a good job on their behalf.

California has numerous choices for law firms, but many of them will assign a paralegal or an assistant rather than an attorney to deal with your case. In our firm, an experienced Los Angeles brain injury attorney will deal with your case, stand up for your rights, and work very hard to obtain the maximum compensation that you legally deserve.

Your recovery is important to us. For a free consultation, call Glotzer & Leib, LLP today at (747) 241-8288 or reach us online.

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      “Mr. Glotzer represented me after I was involved in a car accident. I was badly injured,but the insurance company refused to offer me a reasonable settlement. I decided to find an attorney and decided to hire Josh.

      His law firm did a great job on my case. They were very responsive to all my questions and obtained a great resolution for me. I received way more money than was originally offered. I would recommend their firm to friends and family.”

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      “Mr. Josh Glotzer is a great attorney. Over the last 15 years he has helped me on a number of cases with professionalism, and more importantly a positive outcome in my favor. I have referred him to a number of friends and colleagues, all of which have been equally as happy with his legal representation. I trust him and confident in legal ability. I highly recommend his law firm.”

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      “Don’t try to deal with insurance companies on your own. They strung me along for almost two years before I gave the case to Glotzer & Leib. Josh and his team quickly obtained a settlement that netted me many times what the insurance company was offering. Thank You!”

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      “My wife was in a car accident last year and Josh did an amazing job representing her. It’s very refreshing to see someone in his profession that actually cares and puts his clients first. He’s the best in the business and I feel so fortunate that I was referred to him. Keep up the great work and thanks for everything you did for my family!”

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      “I was in a rear end car accident last year and hired Mr. Glotzer’s office. It wasn’t a big case but their office helped me with my property damage claim and did a good job resolving the injury portion of the case as well.”

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    Our Location

    Los Angeles Office

    Glotzer & Leib, LLP
    714 West Olympic Blvd., Suite 632
    Los Angeles, California 90015 (213) 309-3050

    Our Los Angeles office is conveniently located at the junction of the 110 and 10 freeways and in the heart of the downtown entertainment district.