Burn Injury Lawyer

If you were seriously burned because of someone else’s carelessness in Nevada, Washington, or California, a burn injury lawyer at Van Law Firm can determine what caused the fire, explosion, or exposure and pursue the cost of treatment that often continues for years. Burn claims turn on physical evidence that is frequently cleared away within days.

We represent burn victims in Las Vegas, Henderson, and Summerlin, across Washington from our Lakewood office including Seattle and Tacoma, and in California from Monterey Park. Getting an origin and cause investigator to the scene before it is cleaned up is often the single most important step in the case.

• Cases we handle: residential and commercial fires, gas and industrial explosions, chemical exposure, electrical burns, scalding, vehicle fires, and certain defective products.
• What we pursue: acute burn care, surgery and skin grafting, reconstructive and scar revision procedures, rehabilitation, psychological treatment, lost income, and future care.
• Fees: Our personal injury law firm never charges upfront fees. We handle your case on a contingency, which means you don’t pay unless we win.
• Where we work: offices in Las Vegas, Nevada, Lakewood, Washington, and Monterey Park, California.

Types and Degrees of Burn Injuries

Burns are classified by how deeply they penetrate the skin. According to MedlinePlus, first-degree burns affect only the outer layer and cause pain, redness, and swelling. Second-degree, or partial thickness, burns reach the underlying dermis and blister. Third-degree, or full thickness, burns destroy the full depth of the skin, and the area may be numb because the nerve supply is destroyed. Burns extending into fat, muscle, or bone are sometimes described as fourth-degree.

Depth is only half of the picture. The other half is how much of the body is involved, expressed as total body surface area.

In a burn evaluation, clinicians estimate the percentage of the body covered by second-degree or deeper burns, often using the rule of nines. First-degree burns are excluded from that estimate. Together, depth and total body surface area drive the treatment plan, and they are the two figures that most influence what a claim is ultimately worth.

Two points matter legally. A burn can worsen over the first day or two, so the initial classification is not always the final one. And location matters independently of size: burns to the hands, feet, face, groin, or across a major joint are treated as serious regardless of area, because of the functional loss and scarring that follow.

Burn types by cause

• Thermal. Flame, contact with hot surfaces, and scalding from steam or hot liquids.
• Chemical. Acids, alkalis, and industrial solvents, which continue damaging tissue until fully neutralized and are often underestimated at the scene.
• Electrical. Frequently far worse than the surface suggests, because current travels through tissue and can damage muscle, nerve, and organs along its path.
• Inhalation. Damage to the airway from heat and smoke, which can be life-threatening even where skin burns are limited.
• Friction and radiation. Including road rash in vehicle and motorcycle collisions.

How Serious Burn Injuries Happen

• Residential fires. Faulty wiring, missing or non-functioning smoke alarms, blocked exits, unsafe heating equipment, and landlord failures to maintain the property.
• Gas leaks and explosions. Improper installation, corroded lines, failed shutoffs, and inadequate inspection by a utility or contractor.
• Workplace and construction incidents. Arc flash, welding, hot works, chemical handling, and confined space fires.
• Defective products. Lithium batteries, space heaters, appliances, chargers, e-cigarettes, and vehicle components that ignite or fail to contain heat.
• Restaurants, hotels, and commercial premises. Fryer and steam injuries, scalding water, fire pits, and inadequate suppression systems.
• Vehicle fires. Post-collision fuel system failures and battery fires.

When Another Party May Be Liable

More than one party is usually responsible, and each may carry separate insurance.

• Property owners and landlords. Where a known hazard went unaddressed, safety equipment was missing or non-functional, or code requirements were ignored.
• Product manufacturers, distributors, and retailers. Where the product was defectively designed, defectively made, or sold without adequate warnings.
• Contractors and installers. Electricians, gas fitters, and HVAC contractors whose work created the hazard.
• Utility companies. For line failures, meter and service faults, and inadequate response to reported leaks or outages.
• Employers and site controllers. Where the injury happened at work, a claim against a third party outside your employer can often proceed alongside a workers’ compensation claim. That third-party claim covers categories workers’ compensation does not, including pain and disfigurement.

Treatment, Surgery, and Long-Term Recovery

Serious burns produce one of the longest treatment arcs in personal injury, which is why settling early tends to undervalue the claim badly.

• Acute care. Fluid resuscitation, wound debridement, infection control, and airway management where smoke was inhaled.
• Surgery. Excision and skin grafting, often staged across multiple procedures.
• Reconstruction and scar revision. Frequently continuing for years, and for children continuing as they grow.
• Rehabilitation. Physical and occupational therapy to address contractures, where scar tissue tightens across joints and restricts movement.
• Psychological treatment. Post-traumatic symptoms, anxiety, and the effects of visible disfigurement are compensable and should be documented professionally.

Evidence and Expert Testimony

Burn cases depend on physical evidence more than most claims, and that evidence is routinely destroyed by the response itself. Fire scenes are overhauled, debris is removed, and the product that caused the fire is often thrown away by a well-meaning family member.

What to preserve

• The scene itself, undisturbed, until an origin and cause investigator has examined it
• The product involved, along with its packaging, manual, charger, batteries, and receipt
• Fire department, fire marshal, and any OSHA or state safety agency reports
• Photographs and video from before the cleanup, including from neighbors and bystanders
• Lease agreements, maintenance requests, and any prior complaints about wiring, alarms, or heating
• Utility records and any reports of gas smells or outages
• Insurance correspondence, including from your own insurer
• All medical records from the first responders onward

The experts involved

• Origin and cause investigator: determines where the fire started and what ignited it, which decides who is responsible.
• Electrical or mechanical engineer: examines the failed product or system and identifies the defect.
• Code and safety consultant: establishes what the building, wiring, or suppression system should have complied with.
• Burn surgeon: explains the treatment already given and what further surgery will be required.
• Life care planner: costs out future surgery, therapy, garments, equipment, and care over a lifetime.
• Vocational expert and economist: establish what work remains possible and convert future losses into present-day figures.

What to Avoid Early On

• Letting the scene be cleared. Once debris is removed, origin and cause work becomes far harder and sometimes impossible. A preservation letter can stop this within hours.
• Discarding the product. The burned appliance, charger, or heater is the case. Bag it, keep it, and do not send it to the manufacturer for testing.
• Giving a recorded statement. Insurers, including your own, often seek one while you are still in acute treatment.
• Settling before the scarring matures. Final appearance and function are not known for months, and future revision surgery cannot be claimed once the case is closed.
• Assuming a workers’ compensation claim is the only option. A third-party claim frequently exists alongside it.

Current and Future Damages

• Economic losses: acute and ongoing treatment, staged surgeries, pressure garments and equipment, home modifications, medication, therapy, lost income, and reduced earning capacity.
• Non-economic losses: pain during treatment, which in burn cases is prolonged and severe, permanent scarring and disfigurement, loss of function, psychological harm, and reduced enjoyment of daily life.

What any individual claim is worth depends entirely on its facts, on the depth and extent of the burns, and on the treatment still to come, so no one can responsibly quote a figure before the medical picture is developed.

How We Build a Serious Burn Injury Claim

1. Free consultation. We review what happened and what treatment is underway. No obligation to proceed.
2. Scene preservation, immediately. Letters go out the same day to property owners, insurers, and employers demanding the scene and the product be preserved, before anything is cleared.
3. Origin and cause investigation. An investigator examines the scene and the evidence, working alongside any fire marshal or agency investigation rather than waiting for it.
4. Identifying every responsible party. Owner, manufacturer, contractor, installer, utility, and any commercial policy behind them.
5. Medical development. We wait for the treatment plan to stabilize and obtain surgical opinions on future revision, so the claim reflects the full arc rather than the first months.
6. Demand and negotiation. Once the medical picture is clear, a demand is sent and negotiation may follow to resolve the claim.
7. Filing. Nevada claims are commonly filed in the Eighth Judicial District Court in Clark County, and many Washington claims in Pierce County Superior Court. California claims from the Monterey Park area are commonly filed in Los Angeles County Superior Court.
8. Resolution. Most claims settle without a trial. If no fair settlement is offered, the case is prepared for court, and you decide whether to accept any offer.

Insurance Issues in Burn Claims

Burn claims frequently exceed a single policy limit, so identifying every available source early affects what can realistically be recovered.

• Property and premises liability policies for landlords, businesses, and homeowners.
• Product liability and commercial general liability policies behind a manufacturer, distributor, or retailer.
• Contractor and professional policies for installers and trades whose work created the hazard.
• Your own policies. Renters, homeowners, and health coverage may respond early, and any payments made are usually subject to reimbursement out of a later recovery.
• Workers’ compensation, which covers treatment and partial wages but not pain or disfigurement. A third-party claim covers what it leaves out.

Deadlines to File a Burn Injury Claim

Nevada

• Most claims: two years from the date of injury under NRS 11.190(4)(e).
• Injured children: NRS 11.250 pauses the clock until the injured person turns 18.

Washington

• Most claims: three years from the date of injury under RCW 4.16.080(2).
• Product claims: three years from discovery of the harm and its cause under RCW 7.72.060, which also presumes an older product’s useful safe life has expired once twelve years have passed since it was first delivered.
• Injured children: RCW 4.16.190 tolls the period while the injured person is under 18.
• Claims against the state: RCW 4.92.110 requires a claim to be filed and a 60-day waiting period before suit.

California

• Most claims: two years from the date of injury under Code of Civil Procedure section 335.1.
• Injured children: section 352 tolls the period until the injured person turns 18.
• Claims against a public entity: a government claim must generally be presented within six months under Government Code section 911.2. This applies to fires involving public housing, a municipal utility, or public premises.

Frequently Asked Questions

Which types and degrees of burns may support a claim?

Any burn caused by someone else’s carelessness can support a claim, and the degree affects value rather than eligibility. Second-degree and deeper burns are treated as serious, and location matters independently of size: burns to the hands, feet, face, groin, or across a major joint are significant regardless of area because of the scarring and functional loss involved.

Who can be held liable for a burn injury?

Often several parties at once. Depending on the cause, that may include a property owner or landlord who ignored a hazard, the manufacturer or retailer of a defective product, an electrical or gas contractor whose work created the risk, a utility company, or a business that failed to maintain its premises or suppression systems.

What evidence should be preserved after a fire or explosion?

The scene itself, before anything is cleared, and the product involved with its packaging, charger, and manual. Also fire department and fire marshal reports, photographs taken before the cleanup, lease agreements and prior complaints about wiring or alarms, and utility records. A preservation letter sent early can stop a scene being overhauled.

Can I sue for a chemical or electrical burn?

Yes. Chemical burns continue damaging tissue until the substance is fully neutralized, and electrical burns are frequently far worse than the surface suggests because current travels through muscle and nerve. Both commonly involve a product defect, an employer or contractor failure, or inadequate warnings, and both often support a third-party claim alongside workers’ compensation.

Can a property owner be liable for a burn injury?

Yes, where the owner’s carelessness allowed the fire or exposure to happen. Common examples include faulty or unmaintained wiring, missing or non-functioning smoke alarms, blocked exits, unsafe heating equipment, scalding water, and ignored complaints. Landlords and commercial premises operators are the parties most often involved.

Can future surgery, rehabilitation, and scar treatment be included?

Yes, and in serious burn claims those future costs usually exceed everything spent to date. Reconstruction and scar revision are commonly staged over years, and for children continue as they grow. A surgical opinion and a life care plan document what is still to come, which is why settling before the scarring matures tends to undervalue the claim.

How long do I have to file a burn injury claim?

Two years in Nevada under NRS 11.190(4)(e), three years in Washington under RCW 4.16.080(2), and two years in California under Code of Civil Procedure section 335.1. Washington product claims run three years from discovery under a separate provision, and claims against a public entity run far shorter.

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