Yes – even if you were struck while crossing the street without the help of signals, you may still have a valid claim. Your Vancouver lawyer will go over the laws that govern these types of accidents and inform you of your legal rights.

The most important advice we can give you is: Do not consider settling your claim until your injuries have resolved and until you have consulted with a lawyer.

Many injured people are unsure what settlement amount should be offered, and are very tempted to take what’s offered, just to get some money right away.

Stephens & Holman strongly urge you to consider whether the amount offered will be enough to pay your family back for everything they’ve gone through. Will it erase the financial burden forced upon your family and take care of present and future treatment and expenses?

Do not accept a settlement if you are unsure exactly what your entitlements might be. Let our B.C. accident lawyers help you maximize your claim. Remember that signing something could mean you’re waiving all rights.

Not always. It depends on where the spine was injured, the amount of force used, and the extent of injury to the nerves along the spinal column. When a victim experiences only lower body paralysis, this is called “paraplegia.” When there’s paralysis of both upper and lower body, this is called “quadriplegia.”

Treatment for spinal cord and back injuries usually requires a combination of strategies. Depending on the type of injury, accident victims may undergo:

• Surgery
• Rehabilitation
• Special neurological therapy
• Physical therapy
• Occupational therapy
• Speech therapy
• Psychological therapy

Medications will usually be part of any treatment. The accident lawyers at Stephens and Holman will make it their goal to get you a substantial settlement so your family can pay for all current and future treatments without worry.

Any area of brain tissue that is sharply hit against the inside of the skull is prone to injury and permanent damage. The most commonly injured areas are:

• The brain stem at the base of the brain – associated with regulatory functions, attention and short-term memory
• The frontal lobe – which controls emotion and personality
• The temporal lobes – associated with memory and language

Brain injury victims may exhibit any of an enormous variety of symptoms, such as:

• Speech and language problems
• Attention and concentration difficulties
• Loss of memory
• Disorientation
• Headaches
• Dizziness
• Loss of balance
• Insomnia
• Blurred vision
• Seizures
• Depression or anxiety
• Emotional imbalance

To minimize the pain, and if it’s a localized burn:

• Run cool water over it – but not cold water or ice
• Use cool compresses if they feel good
• Keep it open to the air. That means don’t use any ointments or wrap it in bandages. You want the area to cool as quickly as possible.
• Call a doctor immediately

• Redness
• Swelling
• Pain
• Blisters
• Whitened skin
• Numbness to touch
• Headache
• Fever

• Neck soreness or a burning sensation
• Stiffness
• Headaches
• Dizziness
• Difficulty swallowing or chewing
• Hoarseness of voice
• Shoulder or back pain
• Massage, physiotherapy or chiropractic treatment

Whiplash alone is not a permanent and debilitating injury. It will usually heal on its own and just needs protection of the area and perhaps some pain medication.

If necessary whiplash may be treated with:

• Heat
• A soft neck collar
• Muscle relaxants
• Special exercises
• Physiotherapy
• Chiropractic treatments
• Massage therapy
• Acupuncture

You may need to avoid twisting or turning your neck and your doctor will give you details on how to immobilize it for proper healing. More serious neck and spine injuries will require more involved treatment measures.

Rehabilitation is a process whereby patients with severe injuries gradually regain as much of their normal movement as possible, given the effects of the injury. It’s a matter of slow and steady progress.

Although some accident victims will have life long disabilities, they can be helped to reach their maximum recovery with the help of:

• Specific physical movements
• Relearning of language or other mental tasks
• Occupational therapy
• Recreational time where they can practice difficult movements

A team of specialists providing the medical opinions of several professionals, will be able to plan the best course of treatment. Family members may also want to research the injury by reading current literature on new and experimental treatment methods.

1. First of all, make sure your medical needs are taken care of. If you need immediate medical attention, ask someone on the scene to call an ambulance or call for help if no one is around.
2. The next thing to think about is gathering information and preserving evidence:
   • The name of the property owner or manager
   • Names of witnesses or residents
   • Photos of the accident scene
     If you are unable to do this “detective work” yourself, ask someone to do it for you.
3. Your next step should be to contact a qualified Vancouver slip and fall lawyer.

Hazardous conditions place visitors, guests or residents in harm’s way. Property owners who allow hazardous conditions to exist on their property are potentially liable for any injury or accident arising from the hazardous condition. Once a hazardous condition is found, the owner or caretaker must eliminate it to avoid a potential accident and possible lawsuit.

Product defectiveness can be caused during its design phase, or during its manufacture.

• If the product has a manufacturing defect, it will vary from other models purchased
• If it has an inherent design defect, all products will contain that defect and will look physically identical

At our B.C. law firm, we use highly skilled product engineers to examine and report on the function and safety of products in question. Make sure you save the product that caused you or a loved one harm and bring it to the lawyer during your complimentary consultation.

We recommend that you let an experienced North Vancouver defective product lawyer deal with the manufacturer. As a consumer, you:

• May not be able to reach the right person on the chain of command;
• Will be offered a measly gesture such as product replacement only; or
• Will be ignored.

A lawyer will use the proper channels to bring the resulting injury to the attention of the appropriate corporate personnel and let them know they may be facing a lawsuit.

Spouses, children and dependents may be entitled to collect money for financial loss, as well as the costs of medical treatment, death and burial expenses. In the wake of such a tragedy, an experienced Vancouver wrongful death lawyer can help you seek restitution for the wrong. Although a substantial settlement can never make up for the loss of a loved one, it can help your family make ends meet.

This is where a skilled Surrey wrongful death lawyer is key. Family members with hunches may never act on their suspicions, or may have no idea where to start.

The lawyers at Stephens & Holman use:

• Medical experts
• Engineering experts
• Accident reconstructionists

and other various experts to show exactly how negligence occurred, and how a life could have been saved had there been no negligence.