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Shapiro, Lewis & Appleton

All We Do is Injury Law

Toll-Free: 1-800-752-0042
Phone: 1-757-460-7776

PHONE: 757-460-7776
TOLL FREE: 800-752-0042

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Spinal cord injuries are traumatic and potentially life-altering



Virginia (VA) Traumatic Brain Injury Lawyers
Offices in VA Beach, Hampton & Elizabeth, NC  


Permanent loss of your lower extremities or both lower and upper extremities are scary to even consider. However, as a personal injury attorney I know that spinal cord injuries can result from even typical motor vehicle crashes, especially those involving motorcycles or big rig trucks.

See also these related Virginia spinal cord injury articles:
What to Do After a Spinal Cord Injury

Spinal Cord Injuries and MRI Tests

The lawyers at our firm have handled a number of claims and lawsuits over the years involving this kind of tragic spinal cord injury. One paraplegia case we worked on was an injury to a railroad worker out of Richmond, Virginia (VA). When a train wreck results in major spinal cord injury, the best lawyers use a variety of experts to prove the economic losses to the plaintiff in the future. For example, our firm hires a top life care planner in Virginia (VA) to establish what the future medical expenses and future cost of care will be for someone who is stuck in a wheelchair and will be for the rest of their lives.

The life care plan for someone who has a spinal cord injury will often prove the millions of dollars required for all of the future needs which have been necessitated by the negligence of the person who caused the accident. Because we at Shapiro, Lewis, and Appleton are used to dealing with huge injury cases in the Federal Employer Liability Act (FELA) railroad work injury context and in medical malpractice and tractor trailer wreck cases we are knowledgeable about how to hire the experts to show the amount of future medical bills expected for a client with a spinal cord injury. We are also prepared to pay the thousands if not tens of thousands of dollars up-front as a client cost advance to put on this critical testimony on the client’s behalf.

What adds insult to injury in these horrible spinal cord cases is where there is not enough insurance or sources of recovery to take care of the financial needs of the client to compensate them for their past medical bills let alone their future medical bills. My law partner Jim Lewis recently had a situation in Virginia Beach, Virginia (VA) where he was asked to represent a young woman who had been in a car collision causing her to be a paraplegic for life, unable to use her legs. The fault of the negligent motorist was clear and the doctors were ready to confirm the serious nature of her injury that was caused by the accident. The problem was that neither the injured person nor the at fault driver had enough insurance coverage to begin to take care of the huge damages and expenses that she had suffered in the past. In fact although we searched around to try to identify all possible sources of insurance coverage, the amount of money available to her fell short of taking care of her economic losses, well enough the pain and suffering, humiliation, inconvenience, and other emotional losses from this car wreck. If she had been a railroad worker injured on the job and had a claim against one of the major rail carriers who are self insured and will pay millions in Federal Employers Liability Act (FELA) case when they have to, things would have been different for this woman. If she had been struck by an interstate trucking company who carries lots of insurance because they are required to under the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Regulations (FMCSRs), again there would have been a better economic result for her. We did everything we could to make the injured woman’s situation as fair as we could as far as compensation.

Unfortunately, spinal cord injuries are so bad and so completely alter a person’s life that lots of money is required just to take care of the economic harm. Having worked as a person injury lawyer for decades, I can tell you that no amount of money ever makes right the life altering spinal injuries that some people suffer as a result of the fault of another person or corporation. However, having an attorney who knows what they are doing and are ready, willing, and able to properly maximize the compensation is critical to dealing with this kind of a tragedy.



Best Virginia Injury Attorneys Virginia Super Lawyers   

About the Editors: Shapiro, Lewis & Appleton is a Virginia (VA) injury law firm whose attorneys focus exclusively on personal injury and accident law. We have a proven track record in the court room, and you can review our case results to see for yourself. Our attorneys have deep roots in Virginia and handle cases throughout the commonwealth including Virginia Beach, Norfolk, Chesapeake, Portsmouth, Newport News, Hampton and Suffolk, VA. We have offices in Virginia Beach and Hampton, but we're ready to come to you anywhere in VA if you've been seriously hurt by another person's carelessness. 

Virginia injury lawyers Rick Shapiro and James Lewis have been recognized as among the 
Best Lawyers in America since 2008. Shapiro and Lewis have
 also been selected by the National Million Dollar Advocates Forum since 2009. Rick and Jim have been named Virginia Super Lawyers for Personal Injury Law since 2010, making them among the 5 percent of lawyers so honored. In addition, we were the first injury law firm in Virginia to join Primerus, a select group of highly ethical and respected law firms. Our Virginia Beach accident injury firm has the highest rating of AV from Martindale-Hubbell, a national lawyer ranking organization, which means we have a reputation for preeminent legal skill. 

We also
offer free special reports and edit the Virginia Beach Injuryboard and Norfolk Injuryboard blog sites as a public information service.

While no
t every injury case meets our criteria, we offer free initial confidential consultations, so call us toll free at (800) 752-0042. If you cannot get through due to the high call volume, please leave a voicemaul and we will get back to you shortly. 

 Virginia injury lawyer    Best Lawyers in Virginia




Virginia Beach, VA Personal Injury Attorneys
Virginia (VA) Personal Injury Lawyers
Specializing in Virginia Wrongful Death & Injury Law