Justice and compensation
you rightfully deserve
Injury & Accident Attorney Serving Columbus, Georgia, and Nearby Fort Benning (formerly Fort Moore)
If you’re reading this page, we know it’s not your best day. At the Law Offices of Gary Bruce, we focus on our passion: helping injured people in Columbus, Georgia, who have suffered injuries because of someone else’s negligence. Injuries often result in severe pain, disfigurement, and disability. They can also cause profound emotional suffering as victims face a future of financial uncertainty, physical limitations, or the loss of a loved one.
If you’ve been hurt as a result of someone’s recklessness or carelessness, you need a law firm with experience, skill, and a depth of resources to help you begin to rebuild your life. Attorney Gary Bruce fights tirelessly on behalf of injury victims and knows how to effectively pursue the justice and compensation you deserve.
Please call us today or complete our online form on this page for your free case consultation. If you can’t come to our Columbus, GA, office, our personal injury lawyers can come to you, whether to your home, your hospital room, or just over the phone. We handle injury cases on a contingency-fee basis, which means you owe us nothing unless there is a victory in your case.
Experienced
Representation
On this page, we discuss a number of issues related to personal injury, including:
We also invite you to visit our Personal Injury FAQ page to learn more.
Injured People in Columbus Have Trusted Gary Bruce for Over 35 Years
The Law Offices of Gary Bruce has been serving Columbus, Georgia, and the surrounding area for over 35 years. We are more than just a familiar law firm. We are a part of the community. We are your friends and neighbors. Our success is based on the trust we have earned and the results we achieved for our community, including:
$5.5 Million: We helped the family of a good Samaritan killed when he stopped to help another after a car wreck.
$3.5 Million: While on a bike path, a cyclist was struck and injured by a driver who took their eyes off the road.
Over $2 Million: Our client suffered a head injury in a fall.
$1.2 Million: Policy limits arising from a motorcycle collision.
$1.1 Million: Policy limits for a foot injury.
$1.07 Million: Our client was struck by an 18-wheeler truck.
$1.05 Million: Our client was struck by a large truck driven by the owner of a retail business.
$1 Million: Our client fell at a health care facility.
$1 Million: Our client fell and broke her leg on a defective ramp at a restaurant.
$1 Million: Policy limits for our client hit while walking in a crosswalk.
More than $300,000: Injuries resulting from a dog attack.
We understand what you’re dealing with, and our goal is to make your life better, not worse. We help you feel safe and confident in the decisions you make with practical advice and clear explanations of the law and your options. Let us take on the stress of building your case so that you have the peace of mind needed to recover from your injuries.
Success is about providing the compassionate legal representation you and your family deserve.
Motor Vehicle
Accident Injuries
Motor Vehicle Wrecks: Helping Those Hurt Due to Negligence Behind the Wheel
In a split second, a careless driver on I-185, Veterans Parkway, or any Columbus street or highway can change your life forever. When someone else causes your collision, you shouldn’t have to bear the burdens of your recovery alone. You deserve compensation.
Insurance companies, though, are in the business of protecting their best interests, not yours. They will do everything possible to delay payments, deny your claim, or significantly diminish its value. Let us handle the insurance company for you.
Our attorneys have decades of experience in trial cases and insurance settlements involving a broad range of motor vehicle collisions, such as:
- Car Wrecks: Every day, you rely on your car to get you to work, transport your family, and enjoy the activities that matter most to you. Unfortunately, even when you follow the rules of the road and drive cautiously, you can never be completely safe from the risks of negligent drivers.
- Truck Wrecks: Determining liability in trucking wrecks is very complex and requires the knowledge and skill of an experienced attorney. Unlike many car collisions, big rig wrecks can result from the negligence of several different parties, including drivers, mechanics, trucking companies, and manufacturers of defective products.
- Motorcycle Collisions: While motorcyclists should always wear a helmet and protective clothing, motorcycles themselves offer no protection in serious wrecks. Even minor collisions that might have otherwise been simple fender benders can have catastrophic consequences when a motorcycle is involved.
- Pedestrian Accidents: Even if a vehicle is traveling at a relatively low speed, it can still cause traumatic injury if it collides with a pedestrian. Pedestrian injuries can be the result of a forceful impact with the pavement, the car, or other dangerous objects.
- Bicycle Accidents: Negligent drivers account for the majority of bicycle accidents. Drivers frequently fail to notice bikes on the road or allow them adequate room to safely travel. The injuries suffered from these collisions can often alter a bicyclist’s life forever.
- Bus Wrecks: Careless driving, inadequate maintenance, and a variety of other factors can transform a commercial vehicle into a safety hazard for pedestrians, passengers, and other drivers on the road.
- ATV Wrecks: All-terrain vehicles (ATVs) are popular for both hauling and recreational purposes. They can also be extremely dangerous, and according to the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC), they account for nearly 100,000 emergency room visits every year.
- Boating Collisions: Lake Harding, West Point Lake, Lake Martin, Lake Oliver, and the Chattahoochee River are popular destinations for boating enthusiasts in Columbus, Georgia. Negligent boat operators, jet-ski riders, and manufacturers of defective parts and life jackets can all pose a risk to those around them.
If you suffered injuries in a vehicular wreck due to another driver’s negligent actions, we’ll help you achieve peace of mind by handling your claim and negotiating for a settlement that replaces your losses.
Catastrophic
Injuries
Catastrophic Injuries: Costing Victims Their Mobility and Livelihood
The term catastrophic injury refers to injuries that permanently affect the lives of the victim and their loved ones. These horrific injuries often involve long-term or permanent disability and disfigurement.
Long-term disabilities, whether they are mental or physical, will require ongoing medical treatment and rehabilitation, such as at Piedmont Columbus Regional Hospital Midtown or a similar facility. They will impair a victim’s ability to earn a living and often affect their emotional well-being and personal relationships. Additionally, victims may need to make expensive home modifications to accommodate a wheelchair or other assistive device.
Our personal injury lawyers in Columbus, Georgia, know the devastating impact these injuries can impose on victims and their families. We use every resource available to pursue justice on your behalf. With more than 40 years of experience, we have helped clients who have suffered an array of catastrophic injuries, including:
Head & Neck Injury:
Traumatic brain injuries (TBI) and neck injuries can have life-altering consequences and are very common in many types of accidents, particularly in car wrecks and slip and falls. Both types of injuries can be difficult to detect at first, which is why it is so important to seek medical attention immediately after any injury.
Back & Spinal Cord Injury:
A severe back and spinal cord injury can lead to partial or full paralysis and impact every aspect of your life. Some become paraplegic and lose the ability to use all or part of their lower half, or develop quadriplegia and lose all ability to move their arms, hands, and legs.
Burn Injury:
After a burn injury, you may face life-changing disfigurement, costly medical bills, and incredible emotional duress. In addition to extreme pain and an extensive recovery process, many burn victims suffer from extreme self-image problems and emotional suffering due to scarring and disfigurement.
Broken Bones:
Broken bones are some of the most common injuries in a wide range of accidents. Whether you’ve suffered a broken arm, leg, hip, rib, or other bone fracture, these injuries are incredibly painful, take a long time to heal, and are always prone to re-injury.
Dog Bites:
Severe dog bite injuries can inflict emotional and physical scars that last a lifetime. Unfortunately, canine attacks occur far too frequently and often seriously harm children and seniors. These traumatic injuries often require expensive surgical repair and leave victims permanently disfigured.
Emotional Trauma:
The Impact on Your Quality of Life
While the severe pain and recovery process of physical injuries are usually the focus of many injury cases, the emotional trauma that results from serious accidents is often overlooked and undervalued.
Determining compensation for property damage, medical bills, and lost wages can be supported by solid numbers, but determining the value of emotional pain and suffering is less straightforward but equally important.
Following an accident-related injury, emotional pain and suffering can take many forms, such as:
- Fear
- Anxiety
- Depression
- Embarrassment or insecurity
- Scarring or disfigurement
- Limitations on physical activity
Fear
Anxiety
Depression
Embarrassment or insecurity
Scarring or disfigurement
Limitations on physical activity
Accident victims deal with a variety of potential problems that exceed the physical and financial. The Columbus personal injury attorneys at the Law Offices of Gary Bruce know how devastating any type of accident can be. We will fight diligently to ensure you are compensated for any emotional duress you may face. Call us today for a free consultation.
Fatal Injuries:
Helping Families Who Have Lost a Loved One
It’s a tragic reality that while many accidents result in severe personal injuries, far too many end in needlessly avoidable deaths. To lose a loved one because of someone else’s negligence is an excruciating burden to bear.
Our wrongful death attorneys are experienced in these sensitive and heart-wrenching cases and can help you seek compensation for damages, such as burial costs and lost future benefits, with compassion and integrity.
Work-Related Injuries:
Aiding Workers and Their Families
Workers’ compensation benefits are designed to provide financial relief to workers who have been hurt or became ill on the job due to their work conditions or setting. Since it is a no-fault system, you do not need to prove that your employer was responsible for your injury to receive benefits.
The workers’ compensation process can be incredibly complicated without the help and guidance of an attorney. Valid claims of injured workers are commonly denied or delayed. No matter how complex your case may be, we can help you navigate the process and get the benefits you deserve.
Elder Abuse and Neglect:
Protecting the Weak From Predators
When you make the difficult decision to place a family member in the care of a nursing home facility, you trust that your loved one will be attentively treated with proficiency and respect. Unfortunately, negligence and abuse are not uncommon in many elder-care facilities, and your loved one may be harmed by the very people you trusted to care for them.
Nursing home abuse, also referred to as elder abuse, can take many forms, including:
Physical abuse
Emotional abuse
Sexual abuse
Financial abuse
Medication abuse
Neglect
All of these situations are appalling and cannot be allowed. Our nursing home abuse lawyers are committed to holding negligent parties accountable for any mistreatment and ensuring residents are provided with the safe, comfortable environment they deserve.
Personal Injury Compensation Reflects the Losses You Suffered
Accident victims can suffer from a wide range of losses, legally referred to as damages. These damages represent the physical pain, financial hardships, and emotional trauma you experience because of the accident.
Typically, there are two categories of damages. Economic damages are your financial losses. These damages often have a direct dollar value attached to them, and include such items as:
- Medical expenses: Emergency room, doctor visits, surgery, rehabilitation, and medications
- Lost wages: Income lost while recovering from injuries, including any benefits and bonuses
Your economic damages could even include any out-of-pocket expenses, such as transportation to doctors and household services.
Non-economic damages are your intangible losses, reflecting the impact on your quality of life. Though they are harder to quantify, they are no less important to your recovery than your financial losses. They typically include:
- Pain and suffering: Pain experienced from the incident and any lingering chronic pain
- Loss of enjoyment of life: If the victim can no longer participate in hobbies or activities they once enjoyed
- Disability and disfigurement: Physical scars and impairments to mobility
We can even discuss loss of consortium with your partner if your injuries have affected your relationships.
You Typically Have Two Years to Take Legal Action
Per O.C.G.A. § 9-3-33, most injury victims have two years to file a lawsuit with the local courts. However, this deadline varies based on the type of case and certain exceptions. You could have as little as six months. To understand the statute of limitations in your case, we advise contacting our office at your earliest convenience.
As for the court, your case may be handled in Muscogee County State or Superior Court, and you could have a 6-person jury if your case is valued at $50,000 or less. In instances where a case is $15,000 or less, it could even be brought to the Municipal or Magistrate Court.
If you miss this deadline, though, the courts could bar your case, and the insurance companies may not negotiate. Additionally, evidence may be lost, and witnesses’ memories will fade. Contacting us as soon as possible will allow us time to protect your rights, secure evidence, and deal with the insurance companies.
What to Do Immediately After an Injury in Columbus
After any accident, there are a couple of things you should do to protect yourself and your personal injury claim:
Report the Wreck
If you were in a car collision, call 9-1-1 so the Columbus Police Department, Muscogee County Sheriff’s Department, or Georgia State Patrol can generate a police report. If you were in a slip and fall, let the business manager or property owner know, and request a copy of the incident report.
Collect Evidence
While you’re at the accident scene, and if your injuries permit, take photos of the area and your injuries. Ask for contact and insurance information from the other party. If there are witnesses, also ask for their contact information.
Seek Medical Attention Immediately
Go to the emergency room at Piedmont Columbus Regional Hospital or see your primary care doctor as soon as possible. Be advised that the insurance companies will question your accident claim if there is any delay between the event and your doctor’s diagnosis.
Then, contact our personal injury law office.
Schedule Your Free Personal Injury Consultation Today
As local attorneys who have served Columbus, Georgia, for more than 35 years, we know how to effectively achieve the justice and compensation you deserve.
Whether you were injured on the road, while on the job, or you’d like to learn about our legal services for military families, contact the Law Offices of Gary Bruce today online or by phone for a free initial consultation. Our lawyers proudly serve injury victims on both sides of the river and understand our role in protecting military families and their dependents.
Proudly Serving
Those Who Serve
The military personnel and families of Ft Benning (formerly Ft Moore) are highly valued and respected members of our community. It is our honor to help service members at home and abroad with their legal needs. We frequently work with the Judge Advocate General office of Ft Benning (formerly Ft Moore) to protect our client’s rights and coordinate health care benefits.
If you live on Ft Benning (formerly Ft Moore) or Ft. Mitchell, or in Columbus or Phenix City, we want to hear from you. We understand that your schedule may require special planning, and we are happy to work with you to find a convenient time and place to meet. Contact the Law Offices of Gary Bruce today to learn more about our legal services for military families.
If you or a loved one was seriously hurt in an accident caused by the negligence of someone else, please call the Law Offices of Gary Bruce today at (706) 596-1446 to discuss your case for free. We welcome clients in and around Columbus and Ft Benning (formerly Ft Moore), Georgia, as well as Phenix City, Alabama, and surrounding areas.
Columbus, GA, Personal Injury FAQs
Do I have to go to trial?
Most personal injury cases settle out of court during settlement negotiations with the insurance companies. However, we prepare every case to go to court, which strengthens our negotiating posture.
How much does a personal injury lawyer cost?
Our law firm works on a contingency basis, so you pay nothing unless we win for you. We can discuss more details when you call.
How much is my personal injury case worth?
Every case is based on the claimant’s unique losses. Your damages should reflect all the losses you suffered. Our legal team will compile a complete list of your economic and non-economic losses, retrieve evidence to support your claim, and seek maximum compensation.
How do I know if I have a personal injury case?
Personal injury cases require four key elements:
- Duty of Care: There must be a legal or professional obligation between you and the defendant.
- Breach of Duty: At some point, the defendant deviated from what would be standard practice.
- Causation: Due to their actions or inactions, you were hurt.
- Damages: You have suffered measurable losses.
If we can establish these four elements, we have the grounds for a personal injury case.
Do you have a lot of experience with personal injury cases?
The attorneys with the Law Offices of Gary Bruce have been serving the Columbus, Phenix City, and Fort Benning (formerly Fort Moore) community for over 35 years, securing millions for injured clients who have been injured in various types of accidents. Call today for a free case consultation and to discuss how we can help you, too.
How long will it take to resolve my claim?
Several factors influence how long it could take to settle your claim, such as:
- Severity of your injuries
- Time to reach maximum medical improvement (MMI)
- Complexity of the case
- Disputes over liability
- Insurers’ willingness to negotiate
Furthermore, it could take even more time if your case goes to trial.
