If you were bit by a dog in Queens, a personal injury lawyer from Law Office of Cohen & Jaffe can help you build a case for compensation. You may qualify for economic damages (such as medical bills and lost wages) and non-economic damages (like a reduced quality of life). Your potential recovery will depend on how your injuries affect your life. We can help you determine future losses so you do not leave any money on the table.
We offer free consultations, and we only accept payment if we can secure a settlement on your behalf. If needed, our lawyers can file a personal injury lawsuit to seek a fair recovery.
Damages You May Be Able to Recover in a Dog Bite Case
According to Injury Prevention, dog bites require costly medical care, which may include surgery and pharmaceutical treatments. The journal estimated a yearly cost of $165 million across the country.
Along with medical costs, you may stand to recover other damages, such as:
- Lost wages from the time your injuries kept you out of work
- Reduced earning capacity, if your injuries prevent you from working or change the way you can work
- Ongoing medical costs, if your injuries cause a long-term medical complication
Along with economic damages, consider the following intangible losses you may be able to claim:
- Pain and suffering, which includes both your physical duress and emotional anguish
- Loss of quality of life, if your injuries prevent you from enjoying the activities you once did
Wrongful Death Damages
If a dog bite led to the loss of a loved one, your family can file a wrongful death claim or lawsuit to account for:
- Your loved one’s medical bills that your family accrued
- Loss of consortium, which accounts for the emotional support you lost when your loved one passed
- Loss of service, which refers to the help your loved one provided around the house
- Lost earnings, which accounts for the income your loved one would have contributed if they had lived
- Burial and funeral costs
A lawyer with our firm can help you pursue all of the damages that apply in your case.
How New York’s Laws Regarding Dog Bites Affect Your Case
According to AGM §123, a dog owner faces strict liability for all medical costs associated with an injury that results from an attack by their dangerous dog. This law applies to dog owners even in situations in which the owner took precautions to control their dog.
If you want to recover other damages aside from your medical bills, you may need to prove that the dog owner acted negligently in a way that led to your attack. For example, if a dog owner failed to secure their yard and enabled their dog to escape and bite a victim, they may be found liable for other damages the victim faces, such as pain and suffering.
How a Lawyer From Our Firm Can Help You Prove the Dog Owner’s Negligence
Proving negligence is not as straightforward as you may think. It involves four elements: the dog owner’s duty of care, their breach of that duty, the causation of injuries, and resulting damages. We may need to gather evidence that will prove a connection between the dog owner’s negligent act and the losses that it caused.
We can help establish these four elements in order to hold the dog owner liable not only for your medical bills but also for other damages.
Investigating the Attack
We can help determine how the dog owner breached their duty of care by investigating your attack. Our findings may reveal that the owner knew of the dog’s aggressive behavior and should have used a muzzle when walking the dog in public, for example.
Collecting Evidence
We will leave no stone unturned when collecting evidence for your case. If the dog had previously attacked another person, we can use this information to establish the animal as a dangerous dog and pursue fair compensation.
Negotiating with Insurers
When pursuing compensation from a liable dog owner, you may begin by making a claim with their insurer. Insurance companies may undervalue your claim or flat-out deny it, and this is when we can go to work to negotiate your recovery. We may communicate with your doctors to prove the extent of your injuries and how they will affect you going forward.
Filing a Lawsuit and Representing You at Trial
If negotiations with an insurance company do not yield a fair recovery, we will not hesitate to take legal action in the form of a lawsuit. We can help abide by the statute of limitations and represent your case before a judge or jury during a trial.
Insurance claims usually settle before going to court, but we will not let an insurer pressure you into accepting an unfair settlement. After seeing that we filed a lawsuit, they may come back to the table with an appropriate offer.
Do not Wait Too Long to Take Legal Action or Time May Run out
Per CVP §214, you only have three years from the date of the attack to file a personal injury lawsuit. This means that time is of the essence, and if you have to file a suit, you will not be able to if this deadline passes.
Do not miss out on your chance to hold a negligent dog owner accountable for your injuries and losses.
Call the Attorneys at the Law Office of Cohen & Jaffe, LLP Today
In order to get started on your case right away, make sure you reach out to us as soon as possible. Take advantage of our free consultation. If you do not know whether you have a case, we can help you determine your legal options. You are under no obligation to hire us, but after discussing your Queens dog bite, you may find you have a case for compensation.
Our injury lawyers want to help you fight for your due, and we do not want concerns about legal costs to get in the way. This is why we work on a contingency-fee-basis. Call us today.
For a free legal consultation with a dog bite lawyer serving Queens, call 516-358-6900
The information provided on this website does not, and is not intended to, constitute legal advice; instead, all information, content, and materials available on this site are for general informational purposes only. Information on this website may not constitute the most up-to-date legal or other information and may not be applicable in your jurisdiction.
