Understanding the Rights of a Child in an Injury Case

Has your child suffered an injury due to another person’s negligence? You have the right to seek compensation on their behalf.

However, child injury cases are a bit different from adult personal injury cases. Understand the rights of a child after an accident and how you can hold the at-fault party accountable through a negligence or liability claim.

Are you looking for a child injury lawyer near me? Accident Hotline can help — reach out today.

Common Causes of Child Injuries Due to Negligence

Child injury compensation claims can arise due to a wide range of incidents. Children require a higher level of care and supervision than adults, meaning accidents can happen more easily. If a person is responsible for caring for a child yet allows a serious incident to happen, they can be financially liable.

These are a few common causes of child injuries due to negligence:

• Negligent supervision: When a guardian or caregiver fails to supervise a child’s activity and allows an accident to happen, they can be liable. These cases are common with daycares and schools that do not have adequate staff. They can also happen when a child has a playdate at another child’s house, and the hosting parent fails to watch them closely enough.
• Car accidents: Children can become seriously injured in car accidents even when they are in the proper car seats or booster seats. Because children are smaller and their bodies are not fully developed, they may be more prone to injuries than adults.
• Lack of protection around hazards: Property owners are responsible for safeguarding hazards so children do not come upon them unattended. For example, homeowners must have fences around pools or cover them to prevent unattended children from falling in and drowning.
• Product defects: Toys and other child products should have proper labels and warnings to prevent misuse that causes injuries.

What Rights Does a Child Have in a Personal Injury Case?

If your child became injured in a personal injury accident, you have the right — and the parental responsibility — to hold the negligent party responsible on their behalf. These are a few of the rights of a child in personal injury cases.

The Right To Seek Compensation With the Help of a Parent

Children under the age of 18 cannot take legal action on their own. Instead, a parent or legal guardian must initiate legal action on their behalf.

Still, the case will seek damages on behalf of the child. If you and/or the child’s other parent suffered damages in the same accident, you should initiate your own lawsuit. A personal injury attorney can provide more specific advice about how to approach a lawsuit where multiple people, including a child, suffered damages.

The Right To Pursue a Separate Action From Their Parents

Children typically don’t have bank accounts or much money to their names, which is why their parents end up covering their medical bills after an accident. When a child seeks compensation with a parent, much of that money will go to the parent to repay the medical expenses they have already covered. But it is also a child’s right to pursue compensation just for them.

Typically, a child would seek non-economic damages, such as:

• Pain and suffering
• Emotional distress
• Loss of enjoyment of life
• Loss of ability to complete recreational activities

Depending on the details of the case, the parent could also seek non-economic damages. For example, the bystander theory allows parents to recover compensation for the emotional distress they experienced watching their child become seriously injured.

The Right To Wait Until They Are an Adult To Seek Compensation

Each state imposes its own statute of limitations for personal injury cases, which dictates the amount of time a plaintiff has to file a lawsuit after the accident date. However, in many states, the statute of limitations does not begin until a child turns 18.

While you can help your child seek compensation now, your child may have the right to wait until they are 18 to pursue their own personal injury case. Speak with an attorney about the implications of waiting until the child turns 18. If the case relies on fresh evidence, you may have a better chance of winning if you file now rather than wait several years.

The Right To Account for Future Expenses and Damages

Children have their whole lives ahead of them. An accident during childhood can lead to pain, disabilities, and other serious consequences that follow a child for the rest of their life.

One of the prevailing rights of a child in an injury case is to seek compensation for future damages. A child’s damages should account for the pain and suffering, emotional distress, medical bills, and other costs that will follow them long term.

While no one can accurately predict how a child’s recovery will look decades from now, a medical professional can provide a reasonable estimate.

The Importance of an Attorney in Child Injury Cases

Working with a knowledgeable personal injury attorney can help you protect the rights of a child in a personal injury case. Look for an attorney with experience representing children and their parents. Your attorney can help you:

• Understand how much compensation you serve to gain in a lawsuit
• Gather evidence to support your child’s claim
• Guide you through the legal process
• Advise you and the child’s other parent about filing a separate lawsuit for your damages
• Negotiate injury settlements with the defendant
• Give you time and space to help your child recover while the attorney handles much of the legal process for you

With the right attorney on your side, you can feel confident navigating your case

Find an Experienced Attorney Near You With Accident Hotline

At Accident Hotline, we connect accident victims with skilled attorneys in their area. We can help you find an attorney with experience protecting the rights of a child and navigating child injury cases.

Contact us today for a free consultation about child negligence claims. We are available 24/7 to assist you.