Chemical Burns Lawyer

A type of personal injury case that you may not have thought much about is one involving chemical burns. However, such injuries can have some of the most devastating consequences and require extensive treatment.

Chemical burn accident survivors need an attorney who understands how to handle this unique situation. Fortunately, our team at Mike Morse Law Firm in Michigan has the experience and qualifications to handle such cases.

Learn more about the seriousness of chemical burns and why it’s beneficial to work with our attorneys on your case.

How Can a Chemical Burns Lawyer Help With Your Injury Claim?

A chemical burns lawyer can alleviate your workload after an accident. Your focus should be on recovery, not filing legal paperwork, negotiating with an insurer or litigating against a defendant.

At Mike Morse Law Firm, we’ll take care of those items for you by investigating the incident and collecting evidence to support your claim. We’re fully aware of the tactics that insurance companies could use to minimize your settlement. We fight back and push for the maximum compensation.

We also help you determine all parties who may have liability so you avoid missing out on any damages you’re due. All along the process, we keep you informed about what’s going on and provide support as you or a loved one gets better.

What Are the Impacts of Chemical Burns?

Even though chemical burns might not occur as often as other types of burns, they still harm many people. The National Center for Biotechnology Information discovered that 10% of all burn injuries occur because of chemicals. Chemicals also cause 30% of all burn deaths.

Besides affecting your skin, chemical burns can also do intense damage to underlying tissue. After a chemical burn, you could experience:

• Pain and discomfort
• Long-term scarring
• Serious infection
• Nerve damage
• Restricted mobility

Furthermore, the consequences could cause you to experience deep emotional distress and anxiety due to your appearance or disability. Therefore, if you experience a chemical burn because of someone’s negligence, you have the right to pursue compensation for these injuries.

What Determines the Size of a Chemical Burn Injury Settlement?

Burn injuries may result in larger settlements because of the severity of the injuries and the lasting consequences. The damages you can claim depend on your expenses and the emotional harm you suffer. Damages fall into three categories:

1. Economic damages are any current and future expenses you incur from your chemical burn accident, including medical treatment, equipment, related costs and lost income.
2. Noneconomic damages attempt to cover the psychological and emotional trauma you experience from the accident and its aftermath.
3. Exemplary damages can provide additional compensation if the accident was due to malicious behavior that harmed your dignity.

Be aware that getting exemplary damages is rare but not impossible. A good way to understand what your settlement might look like is to talk to our chemical burns lawyers at Mike Morse Law Firm.

Who Is Likely To Suffer Chemical Burns?

The World Health Organization reports that burns are most likely to occur in the home or the workplace. Cleaning supplies are a likely cause in either location.

A person who doesn’t properly store or label chemicals might be liable for your injuries if you suffer a chemical burn. Alternatively, a manufacturer or distributor that does not appropriately label or provide directions for a product could have liability.

Additionally, many industrial manufacturing workplaces use or produce hazardous chemicals. Business owners and managers have the responsibility to practice safety with these compounds. This includes proper storage and safety training. As an employee, you should have personal protective equipment and training when interacting with any of those substances.

When a company is negligent regarding its practices with chemicals and that causes you to suffer burns, you could have a workers’ compensation case. If the company’s actions were egregious or malicious, you could even have a personal injury case. On the other hand, if a third party, such as a manufacturer or subcontractor, was responsible, you would bring a personal injury case against one of them instead of workers’ compensation.

What Are the Differences Between Burn Classifications?

Burns have different levels of severity. The higher the degree, the more damage the burn has done and the greater the damages you are likely to request in a personal injury case.

First-Degree

First-degree burns merely cause superficial damage to the outermost layer of skin. You can usually treat these wounds with topical, over-the-counter solutions. Though these burns could cause a little scarring, they don’t usually require medical treatment.

Second-Degree

A burn that goes down to the lower layer of skin is a second-degree burn. Redness and blistering occur, and you may see swelling and deal with more persistent pain.

In this case, nerve damage is also possible. The area might need skin grafts, which can cost hundreds or thousands of dollars. An injury at this level could merit a personal injury case.

Third-Degree

Full thickness, or third-degree burns, actually destroy your skin. The wound can extend into the subcutaneous tissue, which is the innermost layer. Unfortunately, such an injury may never heal, and treatment can require removing the affected tissue and performing multiple surgeries and skin grafts.

Because of noticeable scarring and even disfigurement, victims of third-degree burns are more likely to deal with psychological aftereffects. Post-traumatic stress and anxiety can be a result.

Fourth-, Fifth- and Sixth-Degree 

You probably don’t hear much about burns beyond the third degree. As you can guess, these are extreme injuries with life-altering consequences.

Fourth-degree burns go beyond the skin into the fat and often affect the nerves, tendons and muscle tissue. The damage is so deep that you won’t even feel the pain. This is an automatic medical emergency.

Fifth-degree burns destroy all skin and underlying tissue, exposing the muscle. These can be fatal or else require amputation.

Sadly, sixth-degree burns reach the bone and are almost always fatal. If a loved one experienced a fatal chemical burn in Michigan, your family can file a wrongful death suit with the guidance of our chemical burns lawyers.

How Long Do You Have To File a Chemical Burns Case?

The statute of limitations on a chemical burns case can vary, but the general rule for these personal injury claims is three years from the date of the accident. However, if the burn was due to medical malpractice, you only have two years.

Other exceptions to the rule involve minors or an accident that causes mental incapacitation. Children might not have a responsible adult to bring a suit for them, so the state allows them until the age of 19 to file a claim.

If an accident legally incapacitated a loved one, the time limit doesn’t generally begin until that person regains competency. However, a legal representative with power of attorney could act on that one’s behalf.

Keep in mind that waiting to build a case can be harmful because of degraded evidence and less reliable witness testimony. Instead, feel free to call Mike Morse Law Firm for a no-obligation initial consultation to decide what to do next.

Contact Mike Morse Law Firm To Work With a Compassionate Chemical Burns Lawyer

Healing physically and emotionally from chemical burns is a challenging prospect. Trying to recover fair compensation at the same time only adds to the difficulty.

Don’t feel you have to fight your case alone. Talk to us at Mike Morse Law Firm to discover how a chemical burns lawyer from our team can help you get justice.