If you or someone you love is living with permanent scarring or disfigurement after an accident, the weight of that experience goes far beyond what any medical chart can capture. It touches the way you feel when you look in the mirror, the way strangers react, the quiet grief of a life that looks different than it did before.
At Ross, Midian & Breitmayer, LLC, our catastrophic injury attorneys want you to know that Ohio law recognizes your loss. You are not asking too much by seeking compensation and accountability from those responsible for your injuries. Let us help you understand your options and navigate the legal system.
Compensation Available in Ohio for Scars and Disfigurements
Ohio law divides recoverable damages into two categories, economic and non-economic losses.
Economic damages cover the financial costs you can document. Hospital stays, surgeries, skin grafts, reconstructive procedures, prosthetics after an amputation, physical therapy, and future medical care. Lost income while you were unable to work, and in serious cases, reduced earning capacity going forward. Ohio law generally does not cap the amount you can recover. Every documented financial loss tied to the injury may be recoverable.
Non-economic damages address what cannot be measured in receipts and include pain and suffering, disfigurement, mental anguish, and other intangible harm caused by the negligence. These are the losses that live in your daily experience: the anxiety before a job interview, the way a scar affects your confidence, the strain on relationships. Ohio’s personal injury system recognizes non-economic damages including emotional distress, loss of quality of life, and disfigurement or scarring.
Ohio places limits on non-economic damages in many personal injury cases. The general cap is the greater of $250,000 or three times the plaintiff’s economic damages, subject to certain maximums. However, for injury victims who have suffered catastrophic injuries, the cap does not apply, meaning there is no ceiling on what a jury may award for pain and suffering.
What Are Catastrophic Injuries?
Ohio law defines catastrophic injuries to include permanent and substantial physical deformity such as severe scarring or disfigurement, loss of use of a limb through amputation or paralysis, loss of a bodily organ system, and permanent physical functional injury that prevents a person from independently caring for themselves. Extensive burn scarring, severe facial injuries from a crash on I-75 or US-30, or a traumatic amputation from a workplace accident can meet this standard. Not every scar will qualify, but when an injury is permanent and substantial, the law provides a way of recovery.
What Factors Affect the Value of a Scar or Disfigurement Claim?
Every person’s experience of disfigurement is unique, and several factors tend to shape how a claim is valued.
Facial scarring typically commands higher compensation because it cannot be concealed. Injuries to the face or hands may carry higher value than injuries to other body parts, not only because of appearance, but because hand injuries can directly affect a person’s ability to work.
The emotional and psychological impact of disfigurement are also factors. Depression and anxiety often follow disfiguring injuries. Documentation from mental health professionals strengthen claims by establishing the emotional toll of the physical changes. If you have been working with a therapist or counselor, that is valuable evidence. If you have not but are struggling, we encourage you to seek that support, both for your wellbeing and for your case.
Severe Burns, Facial Injuries, and Amputations
Burn injury survivors often face permanent scarring, disfigurement, skin graft surgeries, nerve damage, and lifelong psychological distress. The medical journey after a serious burn can span years and involve multiple surgeries. A thorough claim needs to account not just for what has already been spent, but for what care will be needed in the future.
Beyond visible changes, there are practical losses with an amputation: the ability to perform certain work, to engage in activities you loved, to move through the world the way you once did. Prosthetics, rehabilitation, home modifications, and ongoing care are all legitimate components of an economic damages claim. And the non-economic losses, the grief, the adjustment, the impact on your sense of self, matter just as much.
Facial injuries after car accidents, dog attacks, or falls are significant because they affect quality of life, self-esteem, and earning capacity.
Lawyers at Ross, Midian & Breitmayer Can Help You
A personal injury lawsuit can feel overwhelming when you are also managing medical appointments, financial stress, and the emotional weight of a changed life. Our role is to help you understand your options and to advocate for every dollar the law allows. The outcome of your case can help provide you and your loved ones with the financial security you will need.
If you are dealing with permanent scarring or disfigurement after an injury in Ohio, contact our experienced catastrophic injury lawyers right away. Early involvement allows us to help preserve evidence, document the full scope of your losses, and make sure no part of your claim is overlooked. The team at Ross, Midian & Breitmayer, LLC, is here to walk through this with you at whatever pace you need. Call now to schedule a free consultation.