What is considered a catastrophic injury?

An injury severe enough to cause permanent disability or long-term complications, such as spinal cord injury and paralysis, traumatic brain injury, severe burns, amputation, loss of vision or hearing, and multiple fractures requiring ongoing care.

How long do I have to file a catastrophic injury lawsuit in Gresham, Oregon?

Two years from the date of injury under ORS 12.110, a 180-day tort claim notice if a TriMet or government vehicle or property was involved, and three years if the injury later proves fatal.

What if the at-fault driver’s insurance is not enough to cover my injuries?

Your attorney looks for additional coverage: umbrella policies, employer or commercial policies, other liable parties such as trucking companies, property owners, or manufacturers, and your own uninsured and underinsured motorist coverage.

Does Oregon cap damages in catastrophic injury cases?

No. The Oregon Supreme Court struck down the $500,000 cap on noneconomic damages in personal injury cases, and economic damages such as lifetime medical care and lost earning capacity have never been capped.

How is a catastrophic injury case valued?

Through a life care plan projecting all future medical and care needs, expert calculation of lost earning capacity, and the noneconomic impact of the injury. Serious cases frequently reach seven or eight figures.

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Gresham Abogado de Lesiones Catastróficas

Q: Will a settlement affect my Medicaid or Social Security benefits?

It can, which is why catastrophic injury settlements are often structured through a special needs trust, a Medicare set-aside, or a structured settlement to preserve eligibility for public benefits while ensuring the money lasts.

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A catastrophic injury is one that permanently changes how a person lives: a traumatic brain injury, a spinal cord injury and paralysis, a severe burn, an amputation, or the loss of sight or hearing. In Gresham these injuries come most often from high-speed crashes on I-84 and Powell, pedestrian and motorcycle collisions on Division and Burnside, truck accidents in the Troutdale freight corridor, and falls and equipment injuries at East County’s construction sites and industrial employers. The claim that follows is unlike an ordinary injury case, because the losses run for a lifetime and the at-fault party’s insurance is almost never enough to cover them. The catastrophic injury lawyers at DuBois Law Group – PDX Injury Law build these cases to capture the full loss.

Why Choose A Gresham Catastrophic Injury Lawyer From DuBois Law Group – PDX Injury Law?

Catastrophic cases require a firm that can fund life care planners, economists, and medical experts, find every available source of insurance, and take the case to trial when the insurer will not pay what it is worth. Our firm has handled these claims across the Portland metro area since 2008, our Southeast Portland office is minutes from Gresham, and we deliberately keep our caseload small so an attorney is personally available to the injured person and their family. We advance all costs and charge nothing unless we recover compensation, and we meet clients at home, at Legacy Mount Hood, or wherever recovery is happening.

Catastrophic Injuries We Handle in Gresham

The cases we see most often from Gresham and East County involve lesiones cerebrales traumáticas from car, motorcycle, and pedestrian crashes; lesiones medulares and paralysis from high-speed collisions and falls; severe burn injuries from vehicle fires, apartment fires, and workplace incidents; amputations from crush injuries and industrial machinery; and multiple-trauma injuries that combine several of these. Many arise from the crashes covered on our Gresham car accident, truck accident, accidente de moto, and pedestrian accident pages.

What Makes a Catastrophic Injury Case Different

In an ordinary injury claim the at-fault driver’s policy is usually enough. In a catastrophic case it almost never is. Oregon’s minimum liability coverage is $25,000 per person, and even a generous personal policy is a fraction of what a lifetime of care costs. The first job of a catastrophic injury lawyer is to find every source of recovery: the at-fault party’s umbrella policy, an employer’s commercial policy if the driver was working, the trucking company and its contractors, the property owner whose unsafe conditions contributed, the manufacturer of a defective vehicle or product, and the injured person’s own uninsured and underinsured motorist coverage, which can be stacked across household policies. The defense also fights harder when millions are at stake, retaining its own experts and delaying in the hope that financial pressure forces a low settlement. Our Portland catastrophic injury attorney page covers these issues in depth.

Valuing a Lifetime of Loss

A catastrophic injury claim is built on a life care plan: a physician- and nurse-prepared projection of every future medical need, from surgeries and therapy to attendant care, equipment, medication, and home and vehicle modification, priced over the injured person’s life expectancy. Vocational and economic experts add lost earning capacity, including the earnings of a spouse or parent who leaves work to provide care. Together those numbers routinely reach seven and eight figures. Oregon law allows full recovery of noneconomic damages as well; the Oregon Supreme Court struck down the state’s cap on noneconomic damages in personal injury cases, so a jury can award the true measure of pain, disfigurement, and loss of independence. Structuring the recovery through a special needs trust, a Medicare set-aside, or a structured settlement protects eligibility for public benefits and ensures the money lasts. Our FAQ on how much is my case worth and our article on evaluating head injury settlements describe the valuation process, and where the defendant’s conduct was reckless, daños punitivos may be added.

How Long Do You Have to File a Catastrophic Injury Lawsuit in Oregon?

Oregon’s statute of limitations for personal injury claims, ORS 12.110, gives you two years from the date of the injury to file a lawsuit, and that deadline remains in effect as of 2026. If a TriMet vehicle or a City of Gresham, Multnomah County, or state vehicle or property was involved, a tort claim notice is due within 180 days. When a catastrophic injury later proves fatal, the family’s claim becomes a wrongful death action with a three-year limit, handled through our Gresham wrongful death practice. Because life care planning and expert work take many months, the two-year window is shorter than it sounds. Lawsuits arising in Gresham are filed in Multnomah County Circuit Court in Portland. For less severe injuries in the area, see our Abogado de lesiones personales de Gresham página.

Contact A Gresham Catastrophic Injury Attorney From DuBois Law Group – PDX Injury Law

If you or a family member suffered a life-altering injury in Gresham, Troutdale, Fairview, or anywhere in East Multnomah County, DuBois Law Group – PDX Injury Law offers a free, unhurried consultation and charges no fee unless we recover compensation. Póngase en contacto con nosotros online or call (503) 222-4411.