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Home / Blog / Child dog bites / My Child Requires Complex Surgery After a Dog Attack – Can I Sue the Owner?

April 30, 2024 - Child dog bites, Dog Injuries, Dogs and Children

My Child Requires Complex Surgery After a Dog Attack – Can I Sue the Owner?

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  • Provide Your Surgeon’s Report to a Dog Bite Lawyer
  • Begin Tracking All Expenses Involved in Your Child’s Medical Care
    • Travel Costs
    • Time Off Work
    • Psychological Care Costs
    • Changes in Routine and Behavior
  • Maintain Medical Appointments and Contact with Your Child’s Lawyer 
  • Types of Settlement for Child Dog Bite Injuries
    • The Benefit of Structured Settlements 
    • The Benefit of Lump Sum Trusts
  • The New Jersey Dog Bite Lawyer Is Here for Your Family

2024 has already seen its fair share of tragic dog attacks on young children in New Jersey. If your family is currently experiencing the pain and confusion of a recent attack, you’re likely considering your legal options. Fortunately, New Jersey’s dog bite laws allow families to sue the dog owner for the physical and psychological impact of dog attacks. 

If your child has undergone surgery or is facing multiple surgeries during their long recovery process, this post will explain the steps to help recover a settlement. 

Provide Your Surgeon’s Report to a Dog Bite Lawyer

While the law requires medical professionals to report all dog bite cases for rabies tracking, they cannot provide legal guidance. The first phase of your child’s dog bite case is to speak with a dog bite lawyer about your surgeon’s advice. The lawyer will review the documents provided by your surgeon and their recommendations on the medical care your child requires and then estimate the potential value of your case, should you pursue the dog owner and their insurance company in the New Jersey justice system. 

When booking your initial case consultation with the dog bite lawyer, the lawyer can consult with your medical team regarding your child’s condition and prognosis. These initial consultations and communications between the attorney and your child’s doctor are often pivotal in establishing a clear dog bite case and securing a fair settlement in the earliest possible time frame.

Begin Tracking All Expenses Involved in Your Child’s Medical Care

Beyond the surgical fees you’ve paid to your child’s surgeon and their medical office, several other expenses may comprise a dog bite case settlement. Track the following to ensure you benefit from the value of any potential settlement:

Travel Costs

Include all expenses incurred while taking your child to their appointments. Expenses include gas costs and parking fees.

Time Off Work

Parents with children facing surgery after a dog attack often have to take several days off work to attend to their care. Collect copies of all time off requests and confirmations from your employer. The dog bite settlement should include lost pay due to these enforced work absences.

Psychological Care Costs

Psychological care is critical to helping your child manage the trauma associated with their dog attack. Your dog bite lawyer will consider your child’s range of mental health care expenses during negotiations with the dog owner’s insurance company. Ensure you collect all bills from the psychologist’s clinic and provide them to your lawyer for case documentation.

Changes in Routine and Behavior

Changes to your child’s behavior, activities, and daily routine can be the result of dog bite trauma. When tracking your expenses, remember to note any of your child’s recent changes. The symptoms of anxiety and resulting changes in social interactions and reduced quality of life can also be factors in receiving a higher settlement for your child from their dog bite case.

Maintain Medical Appointments and Contact with Your Child’s Lawyer 

After submitting your expenses, you can leave the settlement negotiating work to your dog bite lawyer, who will communicate with the insurance company. Ensure you direct all inquiries from the insurance company to your dog bite lawyer so they can respond clearly and effectively while protecting your child’s rights.

You should also ensure your child attends every appointment before and after their dog bite surgery. Not only will doing so help ensure the doctor has a clear insight into the progress of your child’s condition, but it will also help protect your child’s case against claims by the insurance company that the injury is not as serious as it appears.

Common dog bite surgeries

Types of Settlement for Child Dog Bite Injuries

Victims who win settlements in their dog bite cases have two settlement payment options: structured settlements and lump sum trusts. 

The Benefit of Structured Settlements 

Structured settlements help parents plan for their child’s future. The settlement can disburse funds at specific stages in their growth or when the child requires future surgery as part of their long-term recovery. Organizing settlements in this way gives children and their families access to recovered damages while providing a steady income stream as the child ages.

The Benefit of Lump Sum Trusts

Lump sum trusts are another option for protecting the proceeds of a dog bite settlement until the child reaches adulthood. This settlement style allows all funds to be placed immediately into a trust, to which only legal guardians have access. Legal guardians with access to the lump sum trust must apply to the courts to use the funds and show their use of the funds benefits the child victim.

You can read more about the various types of settlement agreements in our recent post regarding friendly hearings in New Jersey. 

The New Jersey Dog Bite Lawyer Is Here for Your Family

David Cowhey

New Jersey dog bite lawyer David Cowhey recognizes the impact dog bite cases have on the child’s family and their local community. He offers a sensitive, compassionate approach to securing settlements for your child’s dog bite injury case. As the state’s foremost dog bite attorney, David Cowhey is the New Jersey lawyer with the most six-figure dog bite settlements, highlighting his unbending approach to negotiating claims with insurance companies and powerful client advocacy in the courtroom. 

Put over 40 years of dog bite litigation experience to work behind your child’s dog bite case. Request your free, no-obligation dog bite case review with David Cowhey. 

 

I’ve been bitten by a dog

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Dave was awesome helping me through the nightmare world of insurance claims after my daughter was attacked by a neighbors dog. Dave is very friendly, always available and extremally knowledgeable and connected to this process. I highly recommend you call him about your case,

John L.

David Cowhey, Esq. did a great job for my daughter, who had been bit by a dog and left with a scar on her leg. He is an extremely competent and responsive attorney. The whole process was very easy and he negotiated a great settlement! We are very happy. Highly recommend his professional services!!

J S

My experience with David Cowhey was amazing, he is a very knowledgeable and helpful lawyer. I got bit by a dog and it left a very noticeable scar on my leg and David was great to have on my side. He’s very easy to work with, would definitely recommend if you’re going through the same thing!

Michaela S.

Dave is so professional. My daughter was 6 when she was attacked by a friend of the family dog. I contacted Dave’s office and spoke with his secretary. She was so friendly and asked questions that made me feel comfortable. I was amazed by how fast the service was and everything was easy to understand. Dave made sure my daughter was compensated for her injuries and along with pain & suffering. There couldn’t be a more perfect choice but that’s because God helped me choose this great lawyer! He did an excellent job!!! She is 7 now and We are now able to move on better because of the help of Dave. Pick this lawyer!! I PROMISE YOU WONT REGRET ANYTHING AT ALL‼️ Thank you Dave!

Nieja M,

My entire experience with Dave and his team was 5 stars. They specialize in one thing, and this experience taught me why you want an attorney who specializes. Dave's knowledge, experience, and confidence is what made things go smoothly and quickly. Professional and quick responses always. If someone was bitten by a dog I recommend this guy, he will get you what you deserve.

Morgan K.

My wife got bit by a dog last spring; she immediately received medical care and we made a police report- all within 2 hours. Shortly thereafter, we decided to choose Attorney David to represent her. He walked us through the process. It is much more comfortable knowing that his practice only involves dog bites. He knows his stuff! We have just received notice that a fair settlement has been reached. If you have been bitten by a dog, my wife and I would highly recommend David Cowhey for an attorney. Thank you to David and his professional staff!

David D.

My 8 year old son was bitten by a neighborhood dog, leaving permanent scars on his abdomen. I immediately contacted David Cowhey. He explained the process very clearly and made it very easy for us to come to a fair settlement for my son. He was a perfect advocate for us, and he is very compassionate for the victim. We are very pleased with the hard work David has done for our son.

Stephanie D.

Lawyer Dave Cowhey (& his office) helped my wife, son and me immensely over the past 15 months. He is tremendously professional, responsive and proactive, as well as being, a great attorney. Thanks to Dave, we are now able to put our 'incident' behind us. I highly recommend his services - he will work hard and long for you to get you the settlement you deserve.

Seth K G

My experience with Dave and his law firm was wonderful. While I was nervous to start the process of something that I knew nothing about, he was extremely helpful and explained everything clearly and concisely. He answered all of my questions - day or night, weekday or weekend, and made sure I was comfortable at each step. I would highly recommend Dave and his firm!

Ariella L.

I absolutely loved my entire time of working with with Dave. He always kept my best interest in mind and made sure that I was taking care of. He was amazing at communicating all steps in the process with me, and never hesitated to answer any of my questions. Would highly recommend!

Amanda G.

Dave was extremely responsive and guided me thru the process with compassion. His specialization in dog bites really helped facilitate the process. He knows all the insurance issues and, despite the backlog of cases due to Covid, was able to settle my claim for more than we anticipated as well as earlier. I would definitely recommend Dave as I felt comfortable that I was getting the best advice every step of the way!

Kristen J.

Dave did extremely well by me and my family. He was nothing short of professional and assisted us through the entire process. I called him the day of the dog bite, and I followed his instructions to the "T". Him, and his staff, were knowledgeable on every step of the process. From medical advise, to advise on setting up our structured settlement for our child. If you need help right away, don't wait.... call him asap!!!

William W.

Dave was amazing, he handled my case with care , answered every question , email and helped me to understand the steps we needed to take. I had never dealt with a lawsuit before so of course I was nervous and thought I was going to get ripped off but nope. He was very professional and attentive. Hope I never need him again but should I ever need a lawyer for a dog bite i'm calling him first!

Neyia W.

Dave Cowhey was amazing during our case which was very personal in the sense that involved family members. He was candid and professional and always gave us his honest opinion to all our questions and concerns. He's a family man and understands how upsetting the situations are at hand. I wish he was a lawyer for everything honestly, he was fantastic! Highly recommended Dave and his team.

Courtney R.

My one year old dog and I were viciously attacked by a pit bull. I didn’t want to file a law suit initially until I realized the severity of the injuries both mentally and physically. Most lawyers are all about the money not for the justice and compassion of the victim. I am blessed to have found David. He was our hero who understood our situation was efficient knowledgeable and above all sincerely compassionate

Karol M.

Dave was hands on and always available. Steered me through the entire process and helped cover my medical costs and compensation for my scar and injury. Went over and Beyond and made me feel at ease and confident in a positive outcome. Would recommend to all.

COACH B

Honest, fast, responsive and professional. Great experience working with Mr. Cowhey and I highly recommend to handle any dog bite case.

Lilian P.

We contacted Dave when our 5 year old son was attacked by our neighbor's dog, resulting in deep wounds (and now scars) on his face and arm. Dave was extremely knowledgeable/helpful from the start, explaining how everything would work, and he was always available via phone/text if we had questions come up throughout the process. He always gave us all of the options/routes we could take and let us decide what was the best move for our family. He advocated for the best outcome for our son and always kept us in the loop. We were able to settle in a friendly hearing with the homeowner-insurance company, which was simple and straightforward, thanks to all of Dave's hard work behind-the-scenes. We definitely could not have navigated this process ourselves and we are very thankful for the help of Dave and his team!

Elisa H.

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I’ve been bitten by a dog

Talk to The New Jersey Dog Bite Lawyer, New Jersey's most experienced and successful dog bite attorney.

This field is for validation purposes and should be left unchanged.

or call us at

1 (609) 513-0627
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