Your Rights and Legal Recourse

There are many forms of compensation available
Some of the areas in which you and your family may be eligible for compensation are:

• Medical expenses - past, present and future, including scar revision and cosmetic surgery
• Lost wages - past, present and future
• Vocational training or retraining
• Pain and suffering compensation - past, present and future
• Loss of consortium - many courts recognize the right of the injured party's spouse to recover for a loss of support, services, love, companionship, society, affection, sexual relations and solace in the form of a loss of consortium action. Loss of consortium is a claim by the burn survivor's spouse and is separate from the injured person's claim.

Negligence of Others

The fault of other persons, in legal terms, is known as the negligence of others.

When another person is at fault for your burn injury, the law says that the person is negligent. If another person is "negligently" at fault it means that they did not intend to harm you but that they did something [or did not do something] that directly or indirectly caused your injury. Negligence Law states that a person can be held responsible for the burn survivor's injuries even if the wrongdoer did not intend to be careless. One of the many services that an attorney can do for you is to advise you as to whether some other person is also partially at fault for your burn injury and if you are eligible for compensation.

Comparative Fault

Shared fault is called comparative fault in a court of law.

Many burn survivors and their loved ones falsely believe that because the injured person themselves is perhaps partially at fault for the burn, there can be no compensation. This is NOT the law in California. Many times even though the injured burn survivor is partially, or even, mainly at fault, there may be a chance of compensation depending on the exact situation. The key is to consult with a legal specialist to determine your rights.

Faulty Product

When a faulty product is to blame, a suit can be brought under products liability law.

The burn injury that you have suffered may have been caused by a defective product. The law defines a defective product as one that is not designed or manufactured in a proper way. Under Federal and California law, if your injury involved a defective product, you may be able to receive compensation from the product's manufacturer or the retailer who sold the product. The burn survivor or a family member should seek consultation on the complicated law of Products Liability.

Workers' Compensation

Injured on the job? There are additional benefits covering the burn survivor known as workers' compensation.

Since 1934 the Law in the State of California allows limited compensation for a person who is injured on the job regardless of whose fault it is. This allows a burn survivor and their family to receive benefits immediately even if the injury is mainly the fault of the burn survivor. When injured on the job, the law requires employers to compensate the injured worker without regard to the worker's own carelessness or fault. We can refer you to legal services who specialize in this area of the law.