New Mexico Burn Injury Attorney

Burns are amongst the most painful types of injuries a person can sustain. At Liles White, our team of personal injury trial lawyers are here to help if you need a New Mexico burn injury lawyer by your side. If the careless or negligent actions of someone else have caused you or your loved one to sustain burn injuries, we are here to help ensure you receive the compensation you need. We understand that these injuries can happen in a wide variety of ways, and our team has the resources necessary to fully investigate these claims.

Why Choose Liles White for Help With a Burn Injury Case?

  • At Liles White, our New Mexico personal injury attorneys pride ourselves in our willingness to stand up for those who have been injured due to the reckless or careless behavior of others.
  • Our personal injury law firm has more than 20 years of experience handling complex injury claims in New Mexico and throughout the United States.
  • We handle New Mexico burn injury cases on a contingency fee basis, which means that our clients will pay no upfront or out-of-pocket costs related to their case. We only collect legal fees after we obtain the compensation that our clients need.

New Mexico Burn Injury Resources

Why Do You Need A Burn Injury Lawyer in New Mexico?

Burn injury cases can become complicated, particularly when working to hold at-fault parties responsible for their actions. Often, the full severity of a burn injury and the implications for the victim will not be known for some time after the incident occurs. A skilled New Mexico burn injury lawyer can use their resources to:

  • Obtain all evidence related to the incident, which can include video or photo surveillance, statements from eyewitnesses, safety records of the at-fault party, etc.
  • Work to ensure their client receives adequate medical care, including long-term burn treatment.
  • Employee the assistance of economic experts to help calculate their client’s total losses.
  • Negotiate with all parties, including communication with the insurance company, to reach a fair settlement on behalf of their client.

How Do Burn Injuries Occur in New Mexico?

As experienced New Mexico personal injury attorneys, our team has handled burn injuries that have occurred in a wide variety of ways. This includes those who have been injured due to the following:

Regardless of how a burn injury occurs, our law firm is ready to take on any at-fault parties and hold them accountable for their actions.

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Four Degrees of Burn Injuries

There are four degrees of burn injuries: first, second, third, and fourth-degree burns.  Each requires a different level of medical care and recovery time.  The most severe burns can be fatal.

First-degree burns are the least serious.  These cause a reddening of the skin and can be painful.  However, these burns do not penetrate the skin’s top layer or result in blistering.

Second-degree burns are red, blistered, and painful.  These involve both the skin’s dermis and epidermis.

Third-degree burns may leave skin numb.  They can be white, black, or charred.

Fourth-degree burns are the most severe and can reach bones, nerves, and tendons.  There is no feeling in the area of a fourth-degree burn.  Severe cases of fourth-degree burns can be life threatening.  If a loved one suffered a fatal burn injury due to the negligence of another party, contact our skilled wrongful death lawyers in New Mexico to find out how you can hold the other party liable. 

Third and fourth-degree burns need medical treatment right away.  Most first and second-degree burns are treatable at home.

Common Types of Burn Injuries

There are numerous types of burns.  Some are more common than others, including those that can happen in homes and on job sites such as:

  • Chemical burns;
  • Frostbite;
  • Electrical burns;
  • Blasts or explosions;
  • Vehicle accidents;
  • Radiation burns; and
  • Thermal burns.

These burns need to be evaluated by a medical provider to eliminate complications like infection, chronic pain, and scarring.

Complications With Burn Injuries

Most minor burns heal without complications.  However, left untreated, severe burns can cause the following and more:

  • Bacterial infections, including sepsis, spread to the bloodstream.  These infections may result in amputation, organ damage, and death;
  • Respiratory issues such as esophageal injuries and lung damage;
  • Skin grafts, surgery, and scarring;
  • Emotional and psychological trauma;
  • Life-altering chronic pain; and
  • Mobility issues due to scar tissue. 

Recovering from a burn injury can take years of rehabilitation, reconstructive surgery, and the assistance of a team of medical specialists.  This makes burn injuries overwhelming in all areas of a victim’s life, including financially.

Who is Liable for a Burn Injury?

Our team of burn injury attorneys in New Mexico thoroughly examine all available evidence in a burn injury case to determine the cause of a victim’s injuries.  

Depending on the circumstances of the case, the liable party may be one of the following or more:

  • An employer;
  • A motor vehicle or commercial truck driver;
  • The manufacturer of a defective product;
  • A property owner or landlord; 
  • A business owner; or
  • A government agency or contractor.

With limited exceptions, New Mexico permits victims to sue these parties to recover lost wages, personal property, and other accident-related expenses.

Proving Liability in a New Mexico Burn Injury Case

Proving liability in a burn injury case is the most challenging step toward recovering compensation for a victim’s accident-related losses.  An experienced New Mexico burn injury attorney will meticulously gather the evidence needed to meet this burden.  

The attorney must establish and meet the elements of negligence or show the liable party failed to do something they should have done or acted in a way that was reckless to others.  

Negligence has the following four elements, all of which need to be established to win a burn injury case:

  1. The liable party owed the victim a duty of care;
  2. The responsible party breached that duty of care;
  3. That breach caused the victim’s burn injuries; and
  4. The victim suffered compensable damages as a result.

Without any damages, there is no burn injury claim.  A burn injury attorney must prove the victim’s case by a preponderance of the evidence or that it was more likely than not that the defendant caused the victim’s injuries and damages. 

Types of Compensation Available for a New Mexico Burn Injury

There may be various types of compensation available to burn injury victims in New Mexico. Burns are classified by their severity, with first-degree burns being the least severe and fourth-degree burns being the most severe type of burn a person can experience. Typically, the more severe the injury, the more compensation a victim will receive.

Our burn injury attorneys in New Mexico are regularly able to help burn victims receive the following types of economic and non-economic compensation:

  • Complete coverage of medical bills
  • Compensation for lost wages if a victim cannot work
  • Coverage of any necessary surgical procedures
  • General household out-of-pocket expenses
  • Pain and suffering damages
  • Loss of quality of life damages

Call Our New Mexico Burn Injury Lawyers Today

If you or a loved one has sustained a burn injury caused by the careless or negligent actions of somebody else in New Mexico, contact the team at Liles White as soon as possible. Our attorneys understand how complex these cases can become, particularly when working to secure full compensation for medical bills, lost wages, and long-term care. We have the resources necessary to fully investigate these claims and help ensure that our clients are cared for properly. When you need a New Mexico burn injury attorney, you can contact us for a free consultation of your case or by calling our Santa Fe office at (361) 826-0100.