Traumatic Brain Injury Lawyer
in Cleveland, OH

What Is a Traumatic Brain Injury?

A traumatic brain injury (TBI) happens when an outside force damages the brain, whether it’s a sudden blow, a violent jolt, an object piercing the skull, or acceleration rapid enough to move the brain inside the skull.

According to the CDC, TBIs contribute to roughly 30% of all injury-related deaths in the U.S., and survivors often deal with effects that last months, years, or even a lifetime.

TBIs generally fall into two categories:

• Closed head injury: The skull stays intact, but the brain is damaged. Most car accident TBIs are closed head injuries.
• Open (penetrating) head injury: The skull is fractured or pierced by an object, exposing the brain to direct harm. These injuries are often immediately catastrophic.

Traumatic brain injuries can vary in terms of severity, which isn't always clear from the start. A "mild" concussion can cause months of cognitive and emotional symptoms, while a serious TBI could cause permanent disability. The label on an ER chart rarely reflects the true costs of such an injury.

Common Types of Brain Injuries 

Our Cleveland TBI lawyers represent clients facing many different types of head and brain trauma, including:

• Concussions and mild TBIs: Often dismissed at the ER but capable of prompting disruptive headaches, memory loss, sleep problems, and mood changes.
• Contusions: Bruising of brain tissue at the point of impact.
• Coup-contrecoup injuries: Damage at the site of impact and on the opposite side of the brain; common in car crashes.
• Diffuse axonal injury: Microscopic tearing of nerve fibers, which standard CT scans may miss.
• Penetrating brain injuries: Open head injuries arising from gunshots, sharp objects, or skull fractures.
• Hypoxic and anoxic brain injuries: Damage resulting from a lack of oxygen; often tied to near-drowning, choking, or airway compromise.
• Brain hemorrhages and hematomas: Bleeding inside the skull, which almost always requires emergency surgery.

Symptoms of a Brain Injury to Watch For

The most insidious thing about brain injuries is that the worst symptoms often don't show up right away. It’s important to get medical attention immediately if you or a loved one displays any of the following signs after a head injury:

• Physical: Persistent headaches, dizziness, nausea, sensitivity to light or sound, vision changes, ringing in the ears, sleep changes, loss of consciousness, or seizures.
• Cognitive: Memory loss, difficulty concentrating, slurred speech, confusion or "foggy" thinking, slower processing.
• Emotional and behavioral: Mood swings, anxiety, depression, personality changes, or loss of interest in activities you used to enjoy.

Children, older adults, and people with prior head injuries may present symptoms differently. When in doubt, get evaluated. Cleveland has Level 1 trauma centers at MetroHealth and University Hospitals, and an early scan can be both medically and legally significant.

What a Cleveland Brain Injury Claim May Be Worth

Severe brain injuries are among the most expensive injuries in personal injury law, and there's a reason for that: The medical care doesn't end when the hospital stay does.

National life-care planning data puts the lifetime cost of caring for a severe TBI between roughly $85,000 and $3 million or more. Even a simple concussion that produces lingering symptoms can mean months of lost income and ongoing treatment.

To help brain injury victims deal with such costs, Ohio law recognizes three categories of damages in these cases.

Economic Damages

Economic damages are the financial losses connected to the injury, the items you can document with bills, records, and receipts. In a TBI case, they typically include:

• Emergency care, hospitalization, and surgery
• Diagnostic imaging, including advanced testing like DTI and fMRI
• Rehabilitation, including physical, occupational, speech, and cognitive therapy
• Long-term and in-home medical care
• Assistive devices, home modifications, and adaptive equipment
• Prescription medications
• Wages lost during recovery
• Reduced earning capacity or total loss of the ability to work
• Future medical expenses and ongoing treatment
• Out-of-pocket costs tied to the injury

Non-Economic Damages

Non-economic damages cover what the injury has cost you personally. In serious cases, this is often where the largest losses are suffered. Non-economic damages may include:

• Pain and suffering
• Emotional distress, anxiety, and depression
• Cognitive impairment and personality changes
• Loss of enjoyment of life and previous activities
• Disability and disfigurement
• Strain on close personal relationships and loss of consortium

Punitive Damages

Under Ohio law, punitive damages may be available when the at-fault party acted with conscious disregard for the safety of others, such as driving drunk, fleeing the scene of a crash, or committing gross safety violations on a job site. These damages are meant to punish rather than compensate, and the state caps them based on the underlying compensatory award.

Wrongful Death Damages

Severe brain injuries are sometimes fatal. When the victim dies, their surviving family members can pursue a wrongful death claim for losses like funeral and burial expenses, lost financial support, loss of companionship, and the emotional impact on the family.

What to Do After a Head Injury in Cleveland

The first few days after a head injury are perhaps the most important, both for your health and for the medical record your legal case will rely on. If you're able, focus on taking the following steps.

Get Evaluated by a Doctor, Even If You Feel Okay

Brain bleeds, swelling, and concussion symptoms can take time to appear. Area health centers Cleveland Clinic, University Hospitals, and MetroHealth all operate trauma facilities equipped to evaluate head injuries.

Request Comprehensive Imaging

A standard CT in the ER is a starting point, but it may not be enough to detect the subtler signs of an injury. If your symptoms persist, ask your provider about follow-up imaging or a referral to a neurologist or neuropsychologist.

Follow Your Treatment Plan to the Letter

Heed your care team’s instructions regarding cognitive rest, restrictions on driving and screen time, follow-up appointments, and prescribed medications. Skipped appointments and missed therapy are the first things insurance companies point to when arguing that an injury isn't serious.

Keep a Symptom Journal

The symptoms of a brain injury can evolve and fluctuate. Making a few notes each day about headaches, mood changes, sleep issues, and things you can no longer do will create an illustrative record. Ask your loved ones to write down what they're seeing, too.

Preserve Evidence of What Happened

Gather as much evidence as you can while it’s still available. That includes things like photos of the accident scene, dashcam footage, witness names and numbers, police reports, and incident reports from the property owner or your employer.

Don’t Give Any Recorded Statements

Insurance adjusters often call within days and ask for a quick recorded statement "to wrap things up." Know that you're not required to give one. Instead, hire a qualified attorney and have them handle all necessary communication on your behalf.

Talk to a Cleveland Brain Injury Lawyer

It’s easier to build a compelling brain injury case when the medical timeline is clearly documented from the start. The sooner you get the legal team at Lowe Trial Lawyers involved, the easier it will be for us to make sure the right testing happens and get the right experts lined up.

Ohio Laws Governing Brain Injury Claims

Ohio's legal framework determines how a brain injury claim must be filed, how long you have to initiate your claim, and how much you may ultimately recover. Here are a few key rules worth knowing.

Statute of Limitations

In Ohio, most personal injury claims, including brain injury claims, must be filed within two years of the date of injury. Wrongful death claims have their own two-year window that begins on the date of death, while cases involving government entities and certain medical malpractice claims have shorter notice requirements.

If the deadline passes with no action on your part, the court can dismiss your case regardless of how strong it may be.

Modified Comparative Negligence

Ohio follows a modified comparative negligence rule. If you're found partly at fault for the incident that resulted in your injury, your compensation will be reduced by your share of fault. If you’re more than 50% responsible, you’ll be barred from recovering any damages at all.

In TBI cases, the question of fault can get complicated quickly. A survivor with memory loss may not remember the moments leading up to the accident, leaving the at-fault party's version of events unchallenged unless other evidence fills the gap.

Damages Caps

Ohio caps non-economic damages in most personal injury cases at the greater of $250,000 or three times economic damages, up to $350,000 per plaintiff (or $500,000 per occurrence). 

There is no cap for economic damages. A catastrophic injury resulting in permanent and substantial physical deformity, loss of a limb, loss of a bodily organ system, or permanent physical functional injury that prevents independent care could be worth hundreds of thousands or even millions of dollars.