A broken bone is painful. A crushed limb can change everything. These injuries often come with months of surgeries, physical therapy, and an uncertain recovery. The financial and personal toll can get overwhelming. And when someone else’s careless actions caused your injury, it can feel like an injustice has happened.
At Gabrielson Law Offices, LTD, we represent people in Sartell, Brainerd, and throughout central and northern Minnesota who have suffered fractures and crush injuries because of someone else’s negligence. These types of injuries often fall under the broader category of catastrophic injuries, which are injuries serious enough to permanently or significantly affect a person’s ability to function, work, or live independently. Our job is to help you recoup the costs associated with one of these life-altering injuries by pursuing compensation from the person, business, or government entity that caused it.
Our law firm has represented injury victims in Sartell, Brainerd, and across central and northern Minnesota for decades. We are familiar with how these courts operate and what it takes to present a serious injury case effectively. Our attorneys regularly take cases to court, and have secured some of the largest personal injury verdicts and settlements in the region.
Cases involving fractures and crush injuries may be filed in Stearns County District Court in St. Cloud or in Crow Wing County District Court in Brainerd, depending on where the injury occurred and other legal factors.
Broken bones and crushed limbs are not minor inconveniences. Depending on the severity and location of the injury, recovery can take anywhere from weeks to years. Some people never fully recover.
The impact can reach into nearly every part of daily life:
These losses, both financial and personal, are what a personal injury claim is designed to address. Damages, meaning the money you may seek in a lawsuit, can include medical bills, lost wages, future care costs, and compensation for pain, suffering, and reduced quality of life.
Fractures and crush injuries do not always result from freak accidents. In many cases, they are caused directly by another person’s or organization’s failure to act responsibly.
Some of the more common scenarios we see in central Minnesota include:
In each of these situations, the key legal question is whether another party had a duty to act with reasonable care, whether they failed to meet that duty, and whether that failure caused your injury. An experienced attorney can help evaluate those questions based on the specific facts of your case.
The steps you take in the days and weeks after a serious injury can matter significantly to your legal claim. A few things worth keeping in mind:
For most personal injury claims in Minnesota, there is no cap on compensatory damages. Compensatory damages are meant to make you whole for your financial losses tied to your injury, like medical expenses, lost past and future income, future care costs, pain and suffering, and loss of enjoyment of life. Minnesota law allows juries to award whatever amount they determine is necessary based on the evidence presented. This is particularly meaningful in serious fracture and crush injury cases, where lifetime medical costs and lost earning capacity can be significant. There are some specific rules that may apply in certain types of claims, so it is worth discussing the details of your situation with an attorney.
No. Minnesota law allows injured people to pursue claims against multiple parties whose negligence contributed to the same harm. Each defendant, meaning each party you are suing, can be held responsible for their share of the fault. In some situations, if one defendant bears more than 50 percent of the fault and another defendant cannot pay their share, the more-at-fault party may be required to cover a larger portion of the total damages. This is sometimes called joint and several liability. The rules in this area can be complex, and how they apply depends on the specific facts of your case. One of our Sartell personal injury attorneys can help identify all potentially responsible parties and evaluate the best approach for pursuing full compensation.
Punitive damages are a separate category of damages that go beyond compensating you for your losses. While compensatory damages are meant to cover what you have lost, punitive damages are meant to punish a defendant whose conduct was especially reckless or deliberate.
In Minnesota, punitive damages may be available when there is clear and convincing evidence that the defendant showed deliberate disregard for the rights or safety of others. This is a higher standard than ordinary negligence. Punitive damages are not available in every case, and a court must approve the pursuit of them before they can be included in a claim. They tend to arise in situations involving conduct that goes well beyond a simple mistake, such as a driver who was grossly impaired or a company that knowingly ignored dangerous conditions. Minnesota does not cap the amount of punitive damages a court may award.
If you suffered a fracture or crush injury in Sartell, Brainerd, or anywhere in the surrounding region, Gabrielson Law Offices, LTD is ready to review your situation. We can discuss what happened, explain your legal options, and help you understand what your claim may be worth. There is no obligation to move forward after that initial conversation, but the sooner you reach out, the sooner we can start protecting your rights.
Located in Sartell and Brainerd, MN, Gabrielson Law Offices, LTD specializes in motor vehicle accidents and product liability. Experience. Compassion. Proven success. Free telephone or in-person consultations. Call today.
