Los Angeles Daycare Injury Attorney

For parents, finding a trustworthy daycare center is a top priority. Without a doubt, it is difficult for parents to leave their babies, infants, toddlers with day care providers, so it is important that these centers have what it takes to keep kids safe while under their care. Unfortunately, incidents may occur even in the “safest” of daycare establishments. If your child was injured at a daycare center in Los Angeles or surrounding areas, it is important that you seek legal help as soon as possible. You could have the right to file a childcare injury lawsuit in California.

Normandie Law Firm can help you! If you are considering filing a claim for injuries to a child while in daycare, you should reach out to our experienced daycare injury lawyers as soon as possible. Our team has decades of experience and are fully committed to helping parents reach justice for the harm suffered by their children. If you are ready to speak with an experienced child injury lawyer, contact us today!

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Understanding the Legal Responsibilities of Daycare Providers

Licensed daycares have to adhere to strict standards enforced by the California Department of Social Services (CDSS), Community Care Licensing Division (CCLD). These standards include the following:

• Staff qualification and training
• Staff must meet all age, education, and experience requirements.
• Staff (including employees, volunteers, and owners) must pass criminal background checks and clearances from the Child Abuse Index.
• Staff must undergo health screening and be clear of infectious diseases.
• At least one member of the staff with valid CPR/first aid certification must be present at the daycare at all times.
• Staff must complete health and safety training, mandated reporter training, and continue professional development.
• Staff to child ratios
  • Day care centers must adhere to ratios to ensure that children are appropriately supervised at all times.
  • Specific ratios are based on the age of the children (infants have stricter ratios than preschoolers and school-aged children)
• Facility standards
  • The facility must have the appropriate childproofing measures in place, such as outlet covers, gated stairs, secure furniture, etc.
  • The facility must meet the minimum square footage per child requirement to avoid overcrowding.
  • Any outdoor space must be safe and fenced with age-appropriate equipment.
  • Rest and nap areas must be clean and safe with appropriate spacing.
  • The facility must follow the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA).
• Emergency preparedness
  • There must be written emergency and disaster plans.
  • The facility must conduct regular fire and earthquake drills (these must be documented).
  • First aid supplies must be readily available.
  • Emergency contacts must be up to date and child/parent information is required.
• Recordkeeping and administration of the facility
  • Appropriate child records, including enrollment forms, health history, immunization records, and emergency authorizations, etc.
  • Appropriate staff records, including personnel files, qualifications, background checks, and training logs.
  • Serious injuries, illnesses, and incidents must be immediately reported to the CDSS and to parents.

In addition to these standards set by the state, daycare providers also have certain responsibilities under premise liability law. More specifically, property owners and daycare owners have a duty to keep everyone on their premises safe (obviously, this includes children). When daycare providers fail to keep their premises safe, incidents can occur. We will review this further in the following sections.

Common Causes of Daycare Injuries

Some of the possible causes of daycare injuries can include the following:

• Improper staff-to-child ratio
• Lack of supervision (children being left unattended during playtime, outdoor activities, meals, etc.)
• Unsafe equipment on the premises (including playgrounds, furniture, etc.)
• Wet floors, cluttered floors, leaks, etc. leading to slip and falls and trip and falls
• Improperly mounted or anchored furniture leading to falling objects
• And more

Common Injuries at Daycare Centers

Some of the different injuries that may occur due to incidents at daycare facilities may include the following:

• Cuts, scrapes, and bruises
• Broken bones and dislocations
• Head injuries, including concussions and traumatic brain injuries
• Neck injuries and back injuries
• Spinal cord injuries
• Falling object injury
• Crushing injuries
• Suffocation
• Burn injuries
• Choking
• Psychological harm
• And more

These are just some of the injuries that may occur. No matter the specific injuries that your child sustained in a daycare center, it is important that you reach out to a daycare injury lawyer to explore the legal options available to you and your family. For more information about the options available to you, contact our daycare accident attorneys as soon as possible.

Understanding the Concept of Negligence in Daycare Incidents

The first step in pursuing a claim for an injury that occurs at a daycare center is determining negligence. These facilities have the duty to keep children safe while under their care. The four elements of negligence include the following:

• The daycare owed your child a duty of care
• The duty of care was breached
• The breach of duty directly caused an incident
• The incident resulting in injuries and other damages

What does this all mean? In short, day care providers have to keep kids safe while they are under their care. They have to ensure that their premises are free of any hazardous conditions, like wet floors, unanchored furniture, broken playground equipment, etc. When daycare facilities fail to identify and address any hazards or dangerous conditions and an incident occurs, they can be responsible for all resulting harm.

Can others be at-fault for daycare accidents? The short answer is yes. In addition to property owners and day care owners, other parties/entities could be liable. Some of these could include property owners (if separate from the daycare owner) and product manufacturers (if their defective products contribute to the incident).

Are all incidents caused by negligence? It is important to highlight that not every incident occurs as a result of negligence. It is relatively normal for children to hurt themselves while playing, as children can have poor balance or be careless when running around playing. In cases where injuries occur but there is no negligence, parents may not be able to pursue claims.

What if the harm was caused by abuse? Daycare staff can potentially be abusive to children. They may hit them, throw them, shake them, etc., resulting in injuries. If this is the case, then you could still pursue a claim. Reach out to a daycare abuse attorney in Los Angeles for more information about the legal options available to you and your family.

What if the daycare center was a part of a school and operated by a school district? Some schools offer daycare services for kids that are too young for traditional preschool and kindergarten. In these cases, lawsuits could be brought forth against the school and/or school district.

What if I signed a waiver? Can I still file a claim after an injury? Yes, if the injury occurred due to gross negligence or intentional harm, you can pursue a claim even if you signed a liability waiver.

To ensure that you have a thorough understanding of negligence and whether you can pursue a claim, please do not hesitate to reach out to our firm and request to speak with a negligent daycare injury lawyer as soon as possible. Our attorneys experienced in daycare injury are ready to help you every step of the way.

How to Sue a Daycare for Negligence in California

If your child was injured at a daycare, you may have many questions about how to take legal action for injuries caused by daycare supervision negligence. So, what should you do? Consider some of the following recommended steps to take:

• Take photos of all visible injuries
• Take photos of any unsafe conditions that contributed to the incident
• Seek medical attention as soon as possible
• Follow all treatment outlined by your doctor
• Gather all relevant medical records
• Report the incident to the daycare facility and to the CDSS
  • Always report the incident immediately
  • Make sure that this is a written report and request a copy for your records
• If the harm occurred due to intentional actions, report the incident to the police. Again, request a copy of the report for your records.
• If there were witnesses, gather their contact information
• Gather all communication between you and daycare staff. Keep communications written. If there is any verbal communication, follow-up with emails/text to ensure that there is a record of the conversation.
• Reach out to an experience daycare negligence lawyer that can help you sue for the injuries that your child suffered

If you find yourself unsure of what you should do next, it is important that you reach out to an attorney for unsafe daycare conditions as soon as possible. Our team is ready to guide you every step of the way.

Compensation for Daycare Injuries: What Can I Recover if my Lawsuit is Successful?

With the help of a preschool injury attorney, you could win your lawsuit and recover compensation. Although every claim is different, some of the different categories of compensation available for recovery could include the following:

• All medical expenses (including costs already incurred and projected medical costs)
• Lost income (for wages lost while the child was in the hospital and the parent was not working)
• Pain and suffering (for emotional and mental distress resulting from the incident)
• Punitive damages (awarded in cases of gross negligence)
• Legal costs
• And more

Here at our firm, our playground injury lawyers are committed to fighting for your rights and helping you recover the maximum payout available for your claim, whether we have to negotiate a settlement or take your claim to trial to reach a verdict. Our lawyers are not afraid to take on any negligent daycare owner to ensure that you and your family recover the compensation that you are owed.

How much is a daycare injury lawsuit worth? This is a very important question. The value of these claims is based on the details surrounding the case. These details include the type of incident that occurred, the specific injuries that the child suffered, whether the injuries caused permanent harm, the total medical costs incurred as a result of the incident, and more. These cases can be worth anywhere from $150,000 to $1.5 million, although some cases can fall out of this range. For a more comprehensive review of the possible value of your lawsuit, contact our firm as soon as possible.

How Long Do I Have to File a Lawsuit after a Daycare Injury?
All claims are subject to strict deadlines or a statute of limitations. In general, personal injury claims in California are subject to a two-year deadline. However, for cases involving minors, the deadline may actually be extended (that is, if parents decide not to sue, victims injured as minors can pursue claims once they become adults). In general, minors who have been injured by the negligence of others may file claims up to two years after the age of eighteen to file their claims. We understand that determining the deadline that applies to your claim can be difficult. To ensure that you have a thorough understanding of the statute of limitations that applies to your daycare injury claim, contact us today.

Legal Help for Daycare Injuries from Normandie Law Firm

If you are looking for the help of a lawyer to sue daycare for injury to your child, contact the Normandie Law Firm as soon as possible. Our lawyers have decades of experience and are committed to fighting for the rights of victims and their families. Our firm offers free case reviews, which include free consultations and free second opinions. During these legal services, our team will be available to answer questions, address concerns, and provide you with all the information that you need to either start or continue your claim. To schedule a free case evaluation, contact us today.

Zero-Fee Guarantee: you will never be required to pay any upfront legal costs for any of our legal services. In addition, we work on a contingency basis, so you will not be responsible for paying anything at all if your claim is not successful. If you do not win, you will not have to worry about paying anything at all.

If you are ready to speak with our Los Angeles attorneys for daycare injury claims, contact our firm today!

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