When most people think about car accident injuries, broken bones and whiplash come to mind first. But did you know that car accidents often can cause significant knee injuries as well?

One of our clients was injured in an automobile accident while visiting Baton Rouge on business. He was driving a rental car and was rear-ended while stopped at a traffic light. The injuries caused tens of thousands of dollars in medical expenses. Along with the usual soreness and post-accident aches, our client also suffered a tear to his medial and lateral meniscus, the cartilage structure that comprises a large part of the knee joint.

The knee is the largest joint in the entire body. When it’s been injured, the effects are painful and debilitating personal injury. Common symptoms of a torn meniscus include severe pain, swelling, “popping” of the joint, and extreme instability which sometimes causes the knee to “give out.” For our client, the pain was excruciating and interfered with his daily activities for months.

We made sure he found the appropriate medical treatment. Some meniscal tears can be watched and treated with physical therapy and muscle strengthening to stabilize the knee joint; however, this client required arthroscopic knee surgery and the injury accelerated the necessity of a full knee replacement.

 

Louisiana courts recognize that knee injuries are extremely painful, and they often award significant compensation to victims. When then injuries are severe, and arthroscopic knee surgery is required, damage awards greater than $300,000 are not unusual. Varnell v. Louisiana Tech University, 30,260 (La. App. 2nd Cir. 2/25/98) 709 So. 2d 890 ($325,000 in general damages for knee injury with surgery); Morales v. Tetra Technologies, Inc., 608 So.2d 282, 286 (La. App. 3 Cir. 1992) ($334,000 in general damages to victim with torn knee ligaments that required 2 arthroscopic surgeries.)

The car accident lawyers at Babcock Injury Lawyers, LLC handled this client’s personal injury case from start to finish. After negotiations with the at-fault driver’s insurance company failed, we filed suit and pushed the case to trial. Ultimately, we obtained a positive settlement through mediation a week before trial. Our client’s medical bills were reimbursed through settlement and he recovered fair compensation for his pain, suffering, and aggravation.

The experienced personal injury lawyers at Babcock Injury Lawyers, LLC strive for positive outcomes in all of our personal injury cases. Contact us today to see if we can assist you with your matter.