How Much A Knee Injury Case Worth?

Many of our clients suffer serious knee injuries due to major car accidents or falls at work. Once they are accurately diagnosed, they must then undergo surgery or extensive rehabilitative treatments. As these people cope with all the pain and difficulties caused by these injuries, our firm understands that they will start wondering how much their knee injury cases are worth. In other words, how much money they might be offered during settlement negotiations – or after their case goes to trial. For this reason, sample knee injury settlement amounts are discussed below.

However, before discussing the settlement value of many knee injury cases, we want to briefly share some general information about these types of cases. This material will briefly cover the basic structure of the knee, frequent symptoms of a serious knee injury, and the most common types of knee injury diagnoses. This information can help you gain a more accurate assessment of the comparative value of your own injuries.

Of course, knee injury settlement offers do vary – even for similar injuries – often depending on the insurance representatives and defense lawyers trying to protect their clients. You can rest assured that once we accept your case, we will fight hard to win the maximum amount of compensation available for you.

A brief review of the knee’s basic parts

The human knee is often described as the body’s largest joint. The cartilage, bones, ligaments, and tendons that comprise the knee can be easily damaged, especially when someone suffers a bad fall or is harmed in a vehicle accident. The meniscus is a part of the knee’s cartilage that is often damaged during serious injuries. It is comprised of two “wedge-shaped” pieces of cartilage that function as shock absorbers where the tibia and femur bones meet. Clients interested in learning more about the basic structure or anatomy of the knee may want to visit this orthopedic website.

Common knee injuries symptoms

• The patella and other surrounding bones. These are often fractured when subjected to great force or physical trauma in accidents.
• The ends of the tibia and femur bones. Fractures often develop in these bones that meet to help form the knee joint.
• Knee dislocations. Although some dislocations can be caused by a person’s abnormal knee structure, these types of injuries are far more often caused by some type of great traumatic force inflicted during a motor vehicle accident, a fall from a great height, or some type of sports-related event.
• ACL or anterior cruciate ligament and posterior cruciate ligament (PCL) injuries. While most ACL injuries are sports-related, PCL injuries frequently occur due to motor vehicle accidents. In fact, they often develop after the front of the knee receives a hard blow while the knee is bent. Perhaps the one positive aspect of some PCL ligament tears is that they can heal on their own.
• Tears in the patellar and quadriceps tendons. Although many of these injuries affect people of all ages while playing sports, they also frequently occur in older individuals who fall forward and land directly on the front of their knees. Of course, people injured in motor vehicles also suffer these types of torn tendons when their kneecaps are slammed against some part of a car or truck during an accident. And workers who fall from great heights and land with significant force — injuring on one or both knees — can also suffer these types of tendon tears.

Common knee injury symptoms

• A knee may suddenly “lock-up” or catch. This can make further attempts to walk on it or bear weight on the knee nearly impossible
• Pain and swelling often occur together. While these symptoms are usually obvious, some patients may not notice them for a few days after their accidents
• Instability while walking. Patients often report a sense that they cannot rely on one or both knees while walking because they feel like they might suddenly fall.

Treatments often offered to Bronx, Brooklyn, and Manhattan knee injury survivors

If your examining physician does not believe you need knee surgery, you will often just be told to elevate the injured knee, apply ice, compression and avoid putting any weight on it. Your age, overall health status, activity level, and the severity of your injury will all play a key role in the treatments suggested to you.

1. Common nonsurgical treatments. These often include complete immobilization of your knee, which may include placing a brace around it to protect it during the healing process. If one of the knees bones has been injured, a cast may be deemed more appropriate than a brace.
2. A physical therapy program designed to meet your specific needs. You will be taught a variety of exercises to help you restore as much function as possible to your damaged knee and all the muscles that support it.
3. Nonsteroidal medicines that target inflammation. Many patients are advised to take drugs like ibuprofen or aspirin to diminish their swelling issues and pain. Should your pain remain intense, strong painkillers may be prescribed, at least for a short durations.

Basic types of surgeries offered to address knee injuries

Depending on the precise nature of your injuries, a surgeon may choose a type of open surgery that requires a larger incision. This can make it easier to see the damaged area and access it more readily. However, many physicians now prefer to conduct arthroscopic surgery involving the use of small incisions and miniature instruments.

Obviously, New York City knee injury accident survivors should never undergo any surgery or suggested treatment simply to try and increase a possible settlement offer or jury verdict. Yet what is medically necessary to restore proper knee functioning can affect the outcome of your case.

The size of knee injury settlements can vary

As your Manhattan knee injury accident law firm, we will always build the strongest case possible to maximize your negotiated settlement amount or trial verdict. If you are in a typical rear-end type of vehicle accident and your knee injuries are not severe, you may just receive a settlement offer under $10,000. So much depends on how badly you were hurt and whether you required one or more surgeries to recover.

Should it be become impossible to settle your case involving severe knee injuries after several years (while you are still obtaining extensive treatments), an average jury verdict might run near $350,000.00. It is always important to wait and ask your Bronx knee accident injury lawyer for his/her best verdict estimate – after you have finished treating. Only then can your attorney know what your past and future medical expenses are likely to be.

Before reviewing several sample knee injury awards below, keep in mind that what a plaintiff receives is normally based on (1) the severity of the knee injury – and (2) whether the injured person already had some type of degenerative or pre-existing knee condition. That latter factor can quickly drive a settlement offer or jury verdict down much lower.

• A $120,000 verdict. This involved a man who had a serious slip-and-fall accident on the defendant’s icy sidewalk. Had the court not ruled that the injured man was over 35% at fault for the accident, he might have been received far more.
• A $25,000 verdict. After a rear-end accident, a woman suffered multiple tears in her knee cartilage (due to her knee slamming into the steering wheel). Her doctors stated she might require future surgery.
• A $1 million dollar verdict. This involved scapula fractures a woman sustained after being hit in the driver’s side of her car in a major motor vehicle accident. She also suffered damage to her left wrist and harm to her left femur and tibia. As her treatment ended, it became clear that she had suffered permanent impairments to multiple body parts, including her knee. She was also continued to have trouble walking and standing for more than brief time periods.

As for injured men and women who suffer serious knee damage on the job, they normally file for worker’s compensation. However, a civil lawsuit, alleging additional damages, can sometimes be filed, if the employer negligently failed to abide by all OSHA (Occupational and Safety Health Administration) standards – in a manner that directly contributed to the worker’s knee and other injuries.

If you have suffered a severe knee injury after an accident caused by someone else’s negligence, you need to contact our New York City knee accident injury law firm. We will carefully investigate all the facts of your case, review all your medical records, and then fight hard to win the maximum compensation available to you. We want every client to fully recover for all lost wages, pain and suffering, medical expenses, and other losses.