Burn Injury Attorneys

Burn Injury Categories

Burn injuries are characterized by one of four categories depending on their severity: first-degree, second-degree, third-degree, and fourth-degree.

First-Degree Burns

First-degree burns affect only the outer layer of skin, causing redness, mild swelling, and pain. These burns are typically less severe than other types and can often be treated with cool water and over-the-counter remedies. However, if a large area is affected or the pain persists, it’s essential to seek medical attention to ensure proper care.

Second-Degree Burns

Second-degree burns penetrate deeper into the skin, affecting both the outer layer and the layer beneath, causing blistering, severe pain, and swelling. These burns often require more intensive treatment, such as wound care and infection prevention, and can take weeks to heal. In some cases, they may require medical intervention and cause scarring.

Third-Degree Burns

Third-degree burns affect all layers of the skin and may damage tissue and nerves. These burns can cause the skin to appear white, charred, or leathery, and due to nerve damage, they may be painless in the most affected areas. Immediate medical attention is crucial, as these burns often require surgery, skin grafts, and long-term care to prevent infection and promote healing.

 Fourth-Degree Burns

Fourth-degree burns are extremely severe, extending through all layers of the skin and into underlying tissues such as muscle, tendons, and bone. These burns often result in significant damage, with areas appearing blackened or charred, and they may lead to a complete loss of sensation due to nerve destruction. Immediate, specialized medical intervention is critical, as fourth-degree burns often require extensive surgeries, including skin grafts and possible amputation, along with long-term rehabilitation.

Situations When a Burn Injury Occurs

Burn injuries come in many different forms, different levels of severity, and can occur as the result of various causes. Some of the most common causes of burn injuries include:

• Fires and flames
• Scalding from heated objects
• Contact with from hot liquids
• Electrical burns
• Chemical burns

While identifying the cause of a burn is important to aiding victims in their medical treatment plans and physical recoveries, any personal injury case involving burn injuries will require a closer look into what set of circumstances led to the burn injury. Specifically, victims will have the right to pursue a civil injury lawsuit if they can prove that another’s negligent or wrongful acts led to their wrecks. This may include any number of situations, such as:

• Preventable car accidents or motorcycle accidents
• Defective products
• Dangerous conditions on another’s property
• Mismanagement of harmful substances
• Hazardous electrical conditions
• Workplace accidents caused by a negligent third party (i.e. a contractor)
• Medical malpractice
• Gas Explosions From Manufacturing Sites
• Structural Fires Leading To Serious Injury
• Improperly Stored Chemicals Spilling
• Heating Pads Malfunctioning
• Defective Smoke Detectors Leading to Fires

Elements of an Burn Injury Claim & Your Right to Compensation

To prevail in a personal injury claim, victims need to prove a few essential things, including:

• Legal Duty – It must be shown that the defendant owed the victim some type of legal duty. This “legal duty” can exist in many different forms. For example, motorists have a legal obligation to safely operate their vehicles, businesses that cater to public customers have an obligation to ensure safe conditions on their premises, and doctors have a duty to provide an acceptable standard of care.
• Breach of Duty – Victims must prove a defendant failed in some way to uphold their legal obligations. This breach of duty often arises from negligence, such as when a motorist runs a red light, or a business fails to fix a potential hazard they knew or should have known about.
• Causation – Victims must also prove the defendant’s “breach of duty,” or simply their negligence, more likely than not caused their injuries. This can require evidence and compelling arguments, such as demonstrating how a driver’s moving violation more likely than not led to a preventable crash, or how a business or property owner should have known about a potential fire hazard, yet failed to address it.
• Damages – In order to recover financial compensation for burn injuries or any other preventable injury, victims must also show they suffered damages. In burn injury cases, these damages can be severe, and may include various economic and non-economic losses such as medical bills and future medical needs for skin grafts, reconstructive surgery, and other procedures, permanent disabilities and diminished earning potential, pain and suffering, lost income, emotional anguish, lost quality of life, and more.

As our case results show, our burn injury attorneys are skilled in effectively proving the essential elements required to establish fault and liability. What’s more, our team is led by former U.S. Senator John Edwards and David Kirby, two of the most highly acclaimed trial lawyers in the nation. Their proven abilities provide our clients with a fighting chance at trial and the settlement table, even against the most powerful corporate defendants and insurance companies.

People Also Ask Queries

1. What is the average payout for burns?
   

   In North Carolina, the average payout for burn injuries can vary widely depending on the severity of the burn, medical costs, lost wages, and long-term effects such as scarring or disability. Mild burns may settle for lower amounts, while severe cases can result in payouts ranging from $100,000 to over $1 million. Factors like pain and suffering, ongoing care needs, and whether negligence was involved can also significantly impact the compensation. Consulting with an experienced attorney can help determine a more specific value based on the unique details of a case.</p

2. How much do burn injuries cost?
   

   The cost of treating burn injuries in North Carolina depends on the severity of the burns and the required medical care. For mild burns, treatment may range from a few hundred to a few thousand dollars. More severe burns can result in significant medical expenses, often exceeding $100,000 due to surgeries, skin grafts, rehabilitation, and ongoing care. These costs can increase if long-term complications arise, such as infections or permanent disability.

3. What are the damages of burn injuries?
   

   Burn injuries can result in various types of damages, including medical expenses for emergency treatment, surgeries, and long-term rehabilitation. Victims may also experience lost wages due to time off work or permanent disability, along with pain and suffering caused by physical pain, emotional trauma, and scarring. In severe cases, the injuries can lead to disfigurement, loss of mobility, or chronic pain, all of which may require compensation for future medical care and diminished quality of life. Punitive damages may also be awarded if negligence is involved.