Duluth Nursing Home Abuse Lawyer

Nursing Home Abuse Attorney in Duluth, GA

Many families in Duluth rely on nursing homes like Parc at Duluth and Country Gardens Duluth to provide safe and supportive care for their elderly loved ones. While most of these facilities and their staff are compassionate and focused on providing top-level care, some nursing home facilities fall short of their responsibilities, and some residents are subjected to various forms of abuse. A Duluth nursing home abuse lawyer can help if this has happened to a family member.

Experienced Legal Counsel for Nursing Home Abuse Cases in Duluth, GA

The attorneys at Barnes Law Group can provide compassionate and results-driven legal representation for your nursing home abuse case. A Duluth personal injury lawyer is an invaluable asset whenever you have been harmed by another party’s negligence or misconduct, and nursing home abuse cases are particularly challenging for several reasons.

When you have determined that an elderly loved one has been abused by those you have paid and trusted to care for them, it can be an incredibly frustrating and distressing revelation. You’re likely to have many pressing questions about how to remove your loved one from this dangerous situation, who is accountable for the abuse they have suffered, and what type of compensation you can expect from a successful civil suit.

Our team is led by former Georgia Gov. Roy Barnes, one of the most experienced and accomplished trial attorneys in the country. In every case we accept, we develop an individually tailored legal strategy aimed at helping our client not only prove liability for the damages they have suffered but also secure maximum compensation for their losses. We understand that your case is challenging, and we are confident we can provide unmatched legal counsel.

Know the Signs of Nursing Home Abuse and Neglect

According to the National Council on Aging, about one in 10 Americans over the age of 60 has experienced some form of elder abuse, but some studies suggest that as few as one in every 24 cases is actually reported to the authorities. Unfortunately, some elders experience prolonged abuse and neglect for extended periods of time that can greatly diminish their medical conditions and potentially result in life-threatening complications.

It’s possible for a nursing home abuse case to pertain to physical abuse, which can include anything from rough handling of frail residents to outright assault, sexual abuse, neglect, or financial exploitation. Some victims of this mistreatment may not be able to speak out about their experiences due to memory loss, dementia, or other medical conditions.

Caregivers are found to be perpetrators of elder abuse in about 13% of cases, and two factors that make elders especially vulnerable to abuse are social isolation and memory impairment. Many older individuals struggle with memory issues, and they may also be intentionally isolated from others, even their family members. It is crucial to pay very close attention to potential signs of abuse or neglect whenever you visit an elderly loved one at their nursing home:

• Note any sudden changes to your loved one’s health. If they seem to have experienced a recent decline, the nursing home should be able to provide documentation showing medical intervention, incident reports detailing any recent injuries, and proof that they have met your loved one’s individual needs.
• If your loved one appears withdrawn, frustrated, or frightened, they may be unwilling to speak up about any abuse they have experienced out of fear of their abuser. If you notice such changes, try to determine the cause right away.
• Take note of your loved one’s living space and the state of the rest of the nursing home’s facilities. A nursing home should be clean, organized, free of tripping hazards, and your loved one’s living space should have clean sheets and bedding, clean restrooms, and access to nutritious food and water at all times.
• If your loved one has signs of any injuries, you should investigate thoroughly. Nursing homes are required to document falls and any other injury, so if they cannot provide an explanation for cuts, bruises, or other signs of injury, take this as a major red flag.
• Bedsores can form when bedridden nursing home residents are not repositioned on a regular basis. These are potentially life-threatening, so if your loved one has developed bedsores, it is a clear sign of neglect.
• A trusted family member should monitor your elderly loved one’s personal finances closely. Some nursing home abuse cases pertain to financial abuse, such as check fraud or credit card fraud, committed by caregivers who gain access to residents’ personal information.

If you have confirmed that your elderly loved one has suffered any type of abuse or neglect in their nursing home, it is crucial that you remove them from this dangerous situation and speak with a Duluth nursing home abuse lawyer right away. Your attorney can help you build a nursing home abuse case and explain the legal proceedings ahead of you.

Filing a Personal Injury Case for Nursing Home Abuse in Duluth

Georgia enforces strict laws on elder abuse, and anyone who is found responsible for engaging in any type of elder abuse can face criminal charges from the state, along with civil claims for damages from victims and their families. While the state can handle prosecuting the abuser for their criminal actions, your Duluth nursing home abuse lawyer can help you pursue compensation for damages with a personal injury case.

In Georgia, success with any personal injury case requires identifying the defendant who caused the damages cited in the claim, proving how they caused those damages, and proving the full scope of the economic and non-economic damages the victim suffered because of the defendant’s actions. The plaintiff must also establish causation between the defendant’s actions and the losses cited in the claim.

Your Duluth personal injury lawyer at Barnes Law Group can provide comprehensive support for all phases of your case, from gathering the evidence you will need to prove liability to filing the case and accurately assessing the extent of your claimable damages. Our firm’s goal is to help you ensure accountability for the abuse and/or neglect your loved one suffered and recover compensation for your damages.

Claiming Compensation in a Nursing Home Abuse Case

The objective of a personal injury case is for the injured plaintiff to prove fault for their damages and recover the compensation they need to be whole again. This typically means claiming compensation for economic and non-economic damages. Economic damages are straightforward; these are the financial losses the victim suffered due to the defendant’s actions. Non-economic damages are more difficult to define, as these are intangible losses like pain and suffering.

Your Duluth nursing home abuse lawyer can help you calculate the total economic damages you are eligible to claim from the defendant in your personal injury case. These can include medical expenses for treatment of the victim’s injury or illness caused by the defendant’s actions, as well as compensation for family members’ lost income if they are forced to take time away from work to deal with this situation.

It is also possible in these cases for plaintiffs to seek compensation for other out-of-pocket expenses the defendant caused them to incur. For example, the plaintiff may be able to recover transportation costs for removing the victim from their dangerous environment. Your attorney can help you accurately calculate the full extent of the economic damages you can recover from a successful nursing home abuse case.

When it comes to non-economic damages, the plaintiff has the right to seek compensation for physical pain, psychological suffering, and emotional distress they experienced due to the defendant’s actions. Georgia law no longer caps pain and suffering compensation in personal injury cases, so this could potentially form the bulk of the plaintiff’s total compensation if they suffered severe harm because of the defendant.

Generally, the amount of pain and suffering compensation a plaintiff receives from a successful personal injury case will reflect the overall severity of the injury they suffered and the scope of any long-term or permanent harm the defendant caused. Additionally, because nursing home abuse and neglect cases often fall within the purview of Georgia’s elder abuse laws, the defendant could be forced to pay punitive damages to the plaintiff.

What to Expect From Your Duluth Nursing Home Abuse Lawyer?

Ultimately, nursing home abuse cases can be challenging both in terms of the procedural requirements for filing these cases and the emotional strain of acknowledging that a vulnerable elderly family member has been abused and/or neglected by those you trusted to care for them. When you choose Barnes Law Group to represent you in a nursing home abuse case, trust our team to do everything we can to ensure full accountability for this misconduct.

As soon as you hire a nursing home abuse lawyer from Barnes Law Group, our team will immediately begin building your case. We can gather the evidence needed to firmly establish liability for your family’s damages and explain the process you can expect for finalizing your case. You have limited time to file your nursing home abuse case in Duluth, GA, so it’s important that you reach out to our team at your first opportunity.

FAQs About Nursing Home Abuse in Duluth, GA

What Are the Penalties for Nursing Home Abuse in Duluth?

The penalties for nursing home abuse in Duluth can be severe. An individual charged with elder abuse of any kind faces felony prosecution, incarceration, and heavy fines, and they can also face liability for civil damages. Additionally, the nursing home or care facility could also be fined and face additional liability for restitution to the victim and their family. The severity of penalties typically reflects the nature and severity of the abuse.

How Do You Prove Nursing Home Abuse in Duluth?

Proving nursing home abuse in Duluth can be challenging, so you should hire a nursing home abuse lawyer who can gather evidence to support your case. Your Duluth nursing home abuse lawyer may be able to secure documentation from the nursing home, witness statements from other residents or staff, and coordinate expert witness testimony to support your case.

How Much Compensation Can You Claim in a Nursing Home Abuse Case?

The amount of compensation you can claim in a nursing home abuse case varies based on the specific details of your case. It’s possible for a personal injury case in Georgia to yield compensation for the plaintiff’s economic and non-economic damages, but nursing home abuse cases often entail criminal misconduct. The defendant who abused your loved one could be compelled to pay punitive damages as well. Your attorney can assess the full value of your case.

Why Should I Hire a Nursing Home Abuse Lawyer?

You should hire a nursing home abuse lawyer because these cases are inherently challenging in several ways, and it is vital to hire legal counsel with proven experience handling nursing home abuse cases to ensure the greatest chance of success. The right attorney can build a compelling case for you and accurately assess the total value of the damages you are eligible to claim, maximizing your family’s compensation.

What Does It Cost to Hire a Duluth Nursing Home Abuse Lawyer?

Rather than charging our clients hourly attorneys’ fees, we accept these cases with a contingency fee agreement. This means we only charge our client a fee if we win their case, and the fee is a percentage of the total recovery. If there is no recovery, there is no fee.

Contact Our Lawyers in Duluth, GA

The team at Barnes Law Group has years of proven experience helping injured clients in Duluth and surrounding areas of Georgia with all types of personal injury cases, including nursing home abuse cases. We know the unique challenges these cases often present and how to help you overcome them. If you are ready to learn how our firm can assist you, contact us today and schedule a free consultation with a Duluth nursing home abuse lawyer.