At The Law Offices of Matthew J. Quinlan, we understand that your child is unfortunately susceptible to injuries after a dog bite. One of the most serious, even with advances in medicine, is rabies. When your child is bitten by a dog, you have options. Contact us today for a free consultation to talk about your potential case.
When Do You Need a Lawyer?
Nobody wants to go through a situation where their child is injured, but especially not a dog bite. Rabies aside, these incidents are extremely traumatic for both you and your child. But if you’re wondering whether or not you need a lawyer, it depends on the circumstances.
Hopefully, the bite isn’t that serious. However, when rabies or other serious injuries are involved, you’re probably going to need more extensive help. Our team will be there for you. We offer free consultations to discuss your child’s legal options, help gather evidence like medical records and expert opinions, prepare their case, and handle the legal process, freeing you to focus on their recovery. At the same time, it’s important to remember that the process is challenging, even with California’s dog bite laws that protect you and your child.
Who’s Responsible When My Child is Bitten By a Dog?
Regardless of your child’s injuries, they have the exact same rights as any other dog bite victim in San Francisco. Section 3342 of the California Civil Code places liability for any dog bite injury on the dog’s owner, a legal concept known as “strict liability.”
So, basically, when there’s a dog bite in San Francisco, the dog’s owner is responsible for covering any injuries and damage. However, this can depend on where the dog bite happens, meaning that others could share some of the liability:
- The city or state government if the bite happens on public property
- Your child’s school
- Owners or management if the bite happens at a store or restaurant
- Homeowners or landlords
Given that your child’s damage from a dog bite could be extensive, figuring out all the liable parties is crucial for their case. This is especially true when rabies is involved.
Damages in a Child Dog Bite With Rabies
There’s two ways to look at the damages that come from a dog bite, the physical injuries and legal damages that can be recovered through the claims process. When there’s a dog bite with a risk of rabies, it’s particularly damaging. Rabies is a common viral disease that dogs can sometimes carry after they encounter an infected wild animal and are themselves bitten. Then, when the dog bites your child, they could transfer it to them.
Rabies, unfortunately, is almost always fatal once symptoms appear. These symptoms vary, but usually include:
- Foaming at the mouth
- Discomfort at the bite site
- Difficulty eating and breathing
- Fever
- Headache
- Fatigue
- Restlessness
- Aggression
- Fear of water
- Weakness
- Paralysis
Legal damages
The other component of your child’s injury from a dog bite is the legal damages that are available in an injury claim. The main difference between a child dog bite and any other injury is that you’ll file the claim on their behalf. Aside from that, the process plays out exactly the same. Normally, this process is initiated through an insurance claim outside of court or a personal injury lawsuit inside the court system. The overall goal is to recover “damages.”
Potential damages you can recover for your child include things like:
- Medical expenses – This is coverage for treatment costs, including hospitalization, surgeries, medications, vaccinations, and ongoing medical care.
- Emotional distress – This covers the psychological distress from the bite, such as anxiety or PTSD.
- Pain and suffering – These damages cover the physical pain, discomfort, and mental anguish your child goes through because of the dog bite.
- Loss of enjoyment of life – This category provides financial support for the impact on your child’s daily activities, relationships, and hobbies.
- Loss of earning potential – This is meant to cover any income lost by you for missing work to deal with your child’s treatment or other losses. It can also be extended to cover potential earning loss that your child may experience in the future.
- Wrongful death expenses – In the event that the rabies or other injuries end up being fatal, this covers funeral or burial expenses, along with any loss of companionship.
The extent of your child’s damages depends on the specifics of their case and the severity of their injuries and losses. Another key difference in this type of claim is that the statute of limitations doesn’t go into effect until your child turns 18. After that, they still have two years to file. However, it’s important to act quickly to address their injuries.
What You Need to Do To Counteract a Dog Bite With Rabies
Obviously, you need to act quickly to protect your child in any dog bite scenario. At the same time, things are different when there’s a rabies threat. Although the vast majority of dogs you and your child interact with will be trained and vaccinated, this isn’t always the case. So, when your child gets bitten by a dog and you believe that there’s a risk of rabies, here’s how to respond:
- Get to safety – Make sure to get your child away from the dog. Call for help from bystanders, or hopefully the dog’s owner. Once your child is out of harm’s way, check them for injuries. If you see a wound, wash it with soap, water, and antiseptic solution.
- Get medical attention right away – Call an ambulance for emergency on-site assistance, or take your child to an emergency room to take care of any immediate injuries. Let them know of a possible rabies threat, as well.
- Document the incident and call animal control – Try to remember details about what happened, including the breed of dog and where the bite happened. If you can’t remember these details or if you don’t have any information on the dog or owner, animal control may be able to help. They’ll also provide any vaccination information they have on record.
- Follow your child’s treatment plan – Follow the doctor’s recommendations. Depending on the circumstances of the bite and the risk of rabies, your child may need to receive rabies vaccination and/or rabies immune globulin (RIG) to prevent the onset of the disease.
- Monitor symptoms – Even after receiving vaccination, it’s essential to watch for signs of rabies. If you see any of these signs, get medical care for your child immediately.
Contact MJQ Law For a Free Consultation
Seeing your child bitten by a dog is traumatic enough, but possibly facing a rabies risk makes it even more troubling. MJQ Law will be there to help. We want to make sure you and your child have the legal guidance and support needed for a recovery. To learn more about the process, contact us today for a free consultation.
