Arthritis is such a severe injury because it is permanent. Our clients who suffer from arthritis do not get better over time. They get worse.
This page looks at the settlement compensation you can generally expect in personal injury claims where arthritis is a significant component of the victim’s injuries.
Caput succedaneum and cephalohematoma are similar – but distinct – birth injuries that cause a baby’s head to swell.
While there are important differences between caput succedaneum and cephalohematoma, the common thread between the two is they both scare parents but they are typically not serious and will heal themselves over a relatively short period.
This page is about head injuries and their settlement compensation in personal injury lawsuits.
Our lawyers see a lot of head injuries in our practice. Head injuries to automobile occupants have been shown to be a major cause of death and permanent brain injury. We see head injuries that range from headaches that resolve quickly to brain damage that destroys a life.
When it comes to determining appropriate settlement payout, head injuries might be the hardest personal injury claim to evaluate. Head injuries are a common occurrence in personal injury cases and they are often difficult to assess. The head is a complex part of the body with delicate and vital structures. The effects of an injury to these structures may be subtle, slow to appear, and difficult to diagnose. Head injuries can also affect a person’s posture, appearance, and sensory organs, which can have a significant emotional impact on the person suffering the injury.
The average premises liability verdict is $643,099, according to Jury Verdict Research’s review of premises lawsuits around the country. 
The median verdict in these cases is $98,160. Claims against recreational facilities were higher. The average verdict is $1,007,704 and the median verdict is $125,000. JVR defines these cases as a lawsuit that is brought against an individual, business, landlord, or organization responsible for the maintenance and safety of a property or structure.
When possible, I try to include the average and median data. Average verdict data includes large, often uncollectable verdicts that distort the reality. While both the silly case that never should have been filed and the $58,000,000 verdict don’t really apply to the valuation of your case, the former distorts the result more than the latter.
I think I have a good handle on the settlement value of ankle fracture cases. My law firm has handled many foot and ankle injury cases over the years. My first foot and ankle case was 17 years ago when I sued the New England Patriots and their team doctors that ultimately settled. I probably met with a half dozen of the best foot and ankle surgeons in the country in connection with that case.
Since then, Miller & Zois has handled scores of foot and ankle injury cases and procured millions of dollars for our clients in these cases. My last ankle injury verdict was in Prince George’s County was the 6th biggest verdict that year, according to Washingtonian Magazine. (Here is a video providing the story of that case.)
I’m not trying to brag. My point is we know the science of these cases. We know how to maximize the settlement and trial value of these claims.
What kind of success are other lawyers having in fracture ankle cases? Apparently, they are having very little success. The median settlement values for ankle fracture injuries are:
What Is the Average Compensation for an Average Ankle Injury Settlement?
| District of Columbia | $66,000 |
| Virginia | $21,700 |
| Maryland | $88,000 |
| Our law firm has successfully handled scores of foot and ankle serious injury accident cases. If you want someone to fight for you, lawyers that know these cases, call 800-553-8082 or get a free Internet consultation. |
It is amazing how low these are. These are from a few years ago. But I think the number has not changed in 2021. Sure, some ankle fractures can be treated with conservative care if the fracture displacement is two millimeters or fewer or if there is no talar shift. But I can’t imagine getting less than six figures in the vast majority of these cases. I don’t know how much insurance policy limits came into play in these cases.
Either way, these compensation payout numbers are just way too low. The loss of enjoyment of life and emotional distress from these injuries are often extreme even before we talk about how painful they are. One problem is not distinguishing between a good result and a good outcome for the patient.
A good result for an orthopedic surgeon is a good-looking x-ray. The fracture is healed, mobility is good and the ankle joint is where it’s supposed to be. But you can have a good x-ray and still have a permanent injury, particularly when there is hardware is keeping the broken ankle together.
I know I wrote the question. But I hate the question. There are so many variables – that I lay out below – that drive settlement compensation payouts. There is no way to put a settlement amount on a case with such a vague description.
Two more points of interest in this data. First, don’t get a broken ankle fracture in Virginia. It is amazing to me how low these Virginia verdicts are. I have to think this data is screwed up in some way.
Second, it is interesting that Maryland ankle fracture verdicts are 33% higher than Washington, D.C. verdicts, given that the Maryland median was much less than Washington, D.C. for both fractured shoulder and rotator cuff verdicts. The Federal Tort Claims Act News wrote an article about how Jury Verdict Research Case Evaluation Software was predicting the value of claims in a particular slip and fall case with an ankle fracture. In this case, the jury predicted a probable verdict of $117,600 with only a 33% chance of success on liability (maybe a tough slip and fall case on liability).
I just struggle to see how a case with a good fracture could be valued so low. As a point of comparison, it provided the following JVR nationwide analysis of ankle injuries:
| Award Median | $91,925 |
| Probability Range | $40,000 – $248,223 |
| Award Range | $1 – $5,250,804 |
One more point: median settlement values are the midpoint of the data, not the average. So included in the math are many awful cases that probably never should have been filed in the first place. So why not just quote the average? Well, the high range of these ankle verdicts is $5,250,804. That also distorts the statistics. The take-home message: settlement and verdict statistics are invariably misleading.
In the past, I have written on the value of fractured legs. Now, in a relentless, unyielding effort to cover the settlement and trial value of every single bone in the human anatomy, let’s thin slice broken legs a little thinner: femur fractures in Maryland, the District of Columbia, and Virginia.
This month’s Metro Verdicts Monthly graph on the front of their publication compares verdict and settlement amounts for femur fractures in Washington, D.C., Maryland, and Virginia. Since 1987 the median verdict or settlement amount of a femur fracture case in the District of Columbia has been $250,000.00, and in Virginia, it has been $200,000.00. However, the median verdict or settlement in a femur fracture case in Maryland has been $75,000.00. The national average is $167,000.
Our law firm has handled a lot of vertebrae fractures in car, motorcycle, and truck accident cases over the last 20 years. A vertebrae fracture can be a serious, significant, and permanent injury to the musculoskeletal system. You wouldn’t wish this fracture on anyone.
One study found that the national median award at trial in personal injury cases for a vertebra fracture is $112,537. The median award for multiple vertebrae fractures is almost double the single vertebra amount, $207,000.
This is far lower than our law firm’s average settlement in vertebrae fracture cases. Why? There could be some jurisdictional differences. Because this is not Maryland data, but national data. The pool for these statistics may also include hairline fractures. When I’m talking vertebrae fracture claims, I’m not talking about hairline fractures.
The Maryland legislature is poised to finally pass a new law that will amend or eliminate the statute of limitations on civil lawsuits for child sexual abuse. If passed, the law would give thousands of childhood sexual assault and abuse victims the ability to bring civil sex abuse lawsuits against the abusers and the institutions that covered up the abuse (e.g., the Church, Boy Scouts, etc.).
The sex abuse lawyers at Miller & Zois represent victims of abuse in their fight for justice. We are currently seeking cases from individuals who were sexually abused or assaulted as children.
You can call any of our sexual assault lawyers at 800-553-8082 for a confidential discussion of your case and your options. You can also complete this simple online form.
The Maryland legislature is currently considering a new law that would force auto insurance companies to offer enhanced uninsured motorist coverage (also known as “stacking” or “stacked” UIM coverage) as the default option for Maryland drivers. The new bill would make this enhanced coverage an opt-out policy feature (similar to PIP) rather than an opt-in feature, which would effectively mean that the majority of insurance policies would have the enhanced coverage.
In this post, we will explain exactly what the new law will do and how it will directly benefit you as a Maryland driver. Please use the follow links for instructions on how you can make your voice heard by telling the Maryland Senate Finance Committee that you fully support this new bill as benefit for Maryland drivers:
Our lawyers are handling Tylenol autism lawsuits not only in Maryland but nationwide.
Recent medical studies have determined using high doses of Tylenol (or generic acetaminophen) during pregnancy may cause an increased risk of having a baby with autism or autism spectrum disorder. The new research regarding the link between Tylenol use during pregnancy and autism has prompted many parents of autistic children to bring product liability lawsuits against manufacturers and retailers of acetaminophen products.
Tylenol autism lawsuits have now been consolidated into a new class action MDL. If this happens and the scientific evidence is deemed admissible, there could eventually be a global settlement to award financial compensation to parents with acetaminophen-related autism.
