An injury that causes disfigurement can be far more than skin-deep.

When we deal with clients with lacerations, scars and burns. Often, we deal with clients who are told that their injuries are purely cosmetic and not “serious.” However, as a person who has been disfigured, you probably know that it isn’t that simple.

Scars can have a profound impact on your quality of life because of damaged muscle and other soft-tissue structures, and also because of the social stigma from scarring. Scarring can have an impact on people’s self-esteem, and the way other people view them, and can even impact career options and success.  Surgery can sometimes partially fix scarring, but this surgery is not cheap, and often times makeup or expensive creams will be required for the rest of your life.

We care and know about all of the issues described above, and we want to help you with the emotional, physical, and financial effects of your scarring.

It’s Not About Vanity

Our lawyers understand the impact of disfigurement on your life. Any kind of injury will have a different effect on different individuals, but scars and burns can be particularly tricky to quantify.

The harm done to you depends on factors such as:

• Location: Facial scars in particular can be difficult to deal with, but any scar that is easily visible can cause embarrassment and self-consciousness.
• Cultural and gender sensitivity: Your appearance may be important to you. If your cultural or personal background puts great store on attractiveness, your scarring may affect you greatly.
• Jobs and careers: It’s not only models and actors who need to preserve their physical appearance. Any job that requires you to interact with co-workers, clients or supervisors can be made more difficult by scarring. You may find yourself at a disadvantage when it comes to hiring or getting promotions.
• Physical discomfort: Many scars can cause pain, itching, numbness or tenderness.
• Movement and abilities: Depending on their location, your scars may inhibit movement, as scar tissue is generally less flexible.
• Future development: Some scars can pucker over time, and require surgery or skin grafts to fix. Children, teenagers and young adults may be likely to find that their scars change unpredictably over time, and have long-term effects on their development and self-esteem. Many scars, even in adults, require repeated, costly and painful medical treatment year after year.
• Emotional impact: Scars are visible reminders of a traumatic event, and may make depression, post-traumatic stress disorder and other psychological injuries more severe.