Lansing Nursing Home Abuse Lawyer

Physical abuse involves the intentional use of force that results in bodily injury, pain, or impairment. Warning signs include unexplained bruises, burns, broken bones, cuts, or injuries in various stages of healing. Victims may become withdrawn, fearful, or show reluctance to be alone with certain staff members. Physical abuse often escalates over time, making prompt legal action crucial. Our team works with medical experts to document injuries and establish patterns of abuse that facilities may try to hide or dismiss as accidental.

Sexual assault in nursing homes is a deeply traumatic violation that affects victims physically, emotionally, and psychologically. This includes any non-consensual sexual contact, inappropriate touching, forced nudity, or showing residents pornographic material. Residents with dementia or cognitive impairments are especially vulnerable because they may be unable to consent or report abuse. Michigan law provides enhanced protections for victims of sexual assault, and our attorneys handle these sensitive cases with the utmost confidentiality and respect.

Emotional abuse causes mental anguish through verbal assaults, threats, intimidation, humiliation, or isolation. Staff members may yell at residents, mock their limitations, threaten punishment, or isolate them from family and other residents. Signs include sudden behavior changes, withdrawal from normal activities, depression, anxiety, or unusual fear around specific caregivers. While emotional abuse leaves no visible scars, its impact can be equally devastating to a resident’s wellbeing and quality of life.

Neglect occurs when facilities fail to provide adequate food, water, medication, hygiene assistance, or medical care that residents need. This includes leaving residents in soiled clothing or bedding, failing to help with eating or drinking, ignoring calls for assistance, or not administering prescribed medications. Neglect often manifests through bedsores, malnutrition, dehydration, untreated medical conditions, or poor hygiene. In Michigan nursing homes, inadequate staffing frequently contributes to widespread neglect as overworked employees cannot meet residents’ basic needs.

Financial abuse involves the illegal or improper use of a resident’s funds, property, or assets. This includes forging signatures, stealing money or possessions, coercing residents to sign documents, or misusing power of attorney. Signs include unexplained withdrawals, missing valuables, sudden changes to financial documents, or unpaid bills despite adequate funds. Our attorneys work with financial investigators to trace stolen assets and recover losses for victims and their families.

When nursing home staff or contracted medical providers make negligent treatment decisions, fail to diagnose conditions, administer wrong medications, or ignore obvious symptoms, it constitutes medical malpractice. These cases may involve medication errors causing serious harm, failure to prevent or treat infections, improper wound care leading to sepsis, or delayed response to medical emergencies. Medical malpractice in institutional settings requires proving the facility’s care fell below accepted standards.

When abuse or neglect leads to a resident’s death, surviving family members may file a wrongful death claim. These tragic cases often involve preventable falls resulting in fatal injuries, untreated infections, severe bedsores leading to sepsis, choking due to improper feeding assistance, or medication errors. Michigan’s wrongful death statute allows specific family members to seek compensation for their loss and hold facilities accountable for fatal negligence.

We meet with you to discuss your concerns, review medical records and facility documentation, and assess whether your loved one’s situation warrants legal action. This consultation is always free with no obligation.

Our team gathers evidence including medical records, facility inspection reports, incident logs, staffing records, photographs of injuries, and witness statements from staff and other residents. We work with medical experts who review care provided and identify departures from accepted standards.

If your loved one remains in danger, we take swift action to arrange transfer to a safer facility or implement protective measures. Your family member’s safety is always our first priority.

We file claims with the nursing home’s insurance company and pursue negotiations for fair compensation. Many cases settle during this phase, providing faster recovery while avoiding trial stress.

If insurers or facilities refuse reasonable settlement, we’re fully prepared to file a lawsuit and take your case to trial. We handle all court filings, discovery, depositions, and trial preparation while keeping you informed throughout.

We fight for full compensation covering past and future medical expenses, pain and suffering, emotional distress, punitive damages when appropriate, and wrongful death damages if applicable.

You’ll always know your case status. We return calls promptly, explain legal developments in plain language, and ensure you’re involved in all major decisions affecting your case.

These cover financial losses including medical expenses for treating injuries caused by abuse or neglect, costs of transferring to a new facility, rehabilitation and therapy expenses, and any financial losses from exploitation.

Victims can recover compensation for pain and suffering, emotional distress and mental anguish, loss of dignity and quality of life, and psychological trauma. However, if your case is classified as medical malpractice, Michigan law caps noneconomic damages. As of 2025, these caps are $586,300 for standard injuries and $1,047,000 for catastrophic injuries such as permanent cognitive impairment. Economic damages (medical bills and other financial losses) remain unlimited.

When facilities act with gross negligence or willful misconduct, Michigan courts may award punitive damages designed to punish wrongdoers and deter future abuse. These damages go beyond compensating victims to send a strong message about unacceptable conduct.

If abuse or neglect causes a resident’s death, surviving family members can pursue compensation for funeral and burial expenses, medical bills related to the final illness or injury, loss of companionship and consortium, and the victim’s pain and suffering before death.

Michigan law requires certain professionals, including physicians, nurses, social workers, and law enforcement, to report suspected abuse of vulnerable adults. Facilities must also report incidents to the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services within 24 hours. Failure to report is itself a criminal offense.

Michigan’s Adult Protection Services investigates reports of abuse, neglect, and exploitation. While APS focuses on ensuring the victim’s safety rather than legal accountability, their investigation reports can provide valuable evidence for civil lawsuits.

Michigan law guarantees specific rights to all nursing home residents, including the right to dignified treatment, freedom from abuse and restraints, privacy and confidentiality, participation in care planning, and the ability to voice grievances without retaliation. Violations of these rights can form the basis of legal claims.

Depending on the facts of your case, it may be governed by a strict 2-year medical malpractice deadline (MCL 600.5805) or a 3-year general negligence deadline. If the injury resulted from a “medical judgment” (such as mismanaging a catheter or ignoring clinical lab results), the 2-year medical malpractice statute of limitations applies. If the case involves “ordinary negligence” (such as a slip and fall in a hallway), the 3-year personal injury statute of limitations applies. Different time limits may apply depending on the specific circumstances. Acting quickly preserves evidence and legal options.

The federal Nursing Home Reform Act establishes minimum care standards that all facilities receiving Medicare or Medicaid funding must meet. Violations of federal regulations can support negligence claims and may result in facility penalties or funding loss.

Michigan classifies certain acts of elder abuse as criminal offenses punishable by fines and imprisonment. While criminal prosecution serves a different purpose than civil lawsuits, successful criminal cases can support your civil claim for damages.

We obtain and carefully analyze all medical records, nursing notes, incident reports, and care plans. Medical experts review this documentation to identify departures from accepted standards and evidence of abuse or neglect.

We request staffing schedules, employee background checks, training records, facility inspection reports, prior complaints, and regulatory violations. These documents often reveal patterns of understaffing, inadequate training, or repeated violations.

We speak with other residents who may have witnessed abuse, staff members willing to report wrongdoing, family members of other residents, and any visitors who observed concerning conditions or treatment.

Photographs of injuries, damaged personal property, and facility conditions provide powerful evidence. We also preserve medical imaging, lab results showing malnutrition or medication errors, and any physical evidence of restraint use.

We work with geriatric physicians, registered nurses with long-term care experience, psychiatrists for emotional abuse cases, and financial experts in exploitation cases. These experts provide opinions that establish how the facility’s conduct fell below acceptable standards.

Monument Legal handles nursing home abuse cases on a contingency fee basis, which means you pay no upfront costs or hourly fees. We only get paid if we successfully recover compensation for your family, and our fee comes as a percentage of that recovery. You’ll never receive a bill from us regardless of how much time we invest in investigating and pursuing your case. This arrangement ensures everyone has access to experienced legal representation regardless of their financial situation.

Depending on the facts of your case, it may be governed by a strict 2-year medical malpractice deadline or a 3-year general negligence deadline. However, this timeframe can be affected by various factors including whether criminal charges were filed, when you reasonably discovered the abuse, and whether the victim has since passed away. Because these deadlines are strict and missing them can permanently bar your claim, it’s crucial to consult with an attorney as soon as you suspect abuse. We can evaluate your specific situation and ensure all filings occur within required timeframes.

Case value depends on numerous factors unique to your situation. These include the severity and duration of abuse your loved one experienced, the extent of physical injuries and required medical treatment, psychological trauma and emotional distress, whether the abuse was isolated or part of a pattern, the facility’s history of violations, your loved one’s age and life expectancy, and strength of evidence documenting the abuse. Cases resulting in serious permanent injuries, significant medical expenses, or death typically result in higher compensation. During your free consultation, we’ll review your specific circumstances and provide an honest assessment of potential case value based on our experience. Results depend on the facts of each case. We cannot guarantee a specific financial outcome for any legal matter.

Most nursing home abuse cases in Michigan resolve within 12 to 24 months, though complex cases involving severe injuries or multiple defendants may take longer. The timeline depends on factors including how quickly we can gather medical records and facility documents, whether the facility cooperates with discovery requests, whether expert evaluations are needed, and whether settlement negotiations succeed or litigation becomes necessary. Cases that settle typically resolve faster than those requiring trial. We work efficiently to move your case forward while never rushing decisions that could affect your compensation. Throughout the process, we keep you informed of progress and realistic timeframes.

While you’re not legally required to hire an attorney, nursing home abuse cases involve complex regulations, aggressive defense tactics, and powerful insurance companies with experienced legal teams. Attempting to handle your case alone puts you at a significant disadvantage. Attorneys understand applicable federal and state regulations, know how to obtain and interpret facility records, work with medical experts who can strengthen your case, negotiate effectively with insurance adjusters trained to minimize payouts, and handle all legal procedures and deadlines. Most importantly, families represented by attorneys recover significantly more compensation than those who go it alone. Our free consultation allows you to understand your options with no obligation or risk.

Take immediate action to protect your family member. First, ensure their immediate safety by visiting frequently and unexpectedly, or if the situation is severe, removing them from the facility if possible. Document everything by taking photographs of any injuries, writing down dates and descriptions of concerning incidents, and saving any evidence like torn clothing or facility communications. Report the abuse to Adult Protective Services, local law enforcement if the abuse involves physical violence or sexual assault, and the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services. Then contact Monument Legal immediately for a free consultation. We can advise on protective measures and begin investigating while evidence is fresh.

Yes, and in many situations we strongly recommend it. Your loved one’s safety and wellbeing must be the top priority. If abuse has occurred, remaining in the same facility puts them at continued risk. Michigan law protects your right to move a resident to another facility, and facilities cannot retaliate against residents or families for filing complaints or lawsuits. We can help coordinate a safe transfer while preserving evidence for your legal case. Moving your loved one does not hurt your ability to pursue compensation, in fact, it demonstrates you took reasonable steps to prevent further harm.

Nursing homes frequently claim injuries resulted from falls or other accidents rather than abuse or neglect. However, even if injuries occurred during a fall, the facility may still be liable if inadequate supervision, failure to implement fall prevention measures, or understaffing contributed to the incident. Our investigation examines the circumstances surrounding injuries to determine whether they truly were unavoidable accidents or resulted from facility negligence. We work with medical experts who can often tell the difference between accidental injuries and those caused by abuse based on injury patterns, locations, and severity.

Michigan law strictly prohibits retaliation against residents or families who file complaints or lawsuits. Facilities that retaliate face additional legal consequences including regulatory penalties, loss of licensure, and enhanced damages in your lawsuit. That said, if your loved one remains in a facility where abuse occurred, we often recommend transfer to a safer environment. We can help arrange this transition while ensuring your legal case proceeds effectively. Your loved one’s safety should never be compromised by fear of retaliation.

Yes. Many nursing home abuse victims have dementia, cognitive impairments, or communication difficulties that prevented them from reporting abuse when it occurred. Michigan law recognizes that these vulnerabilities make residents particularly susceptible to mistreatment. We build cases using medical evidence, facility records, witness testimony, and expert analysis rather than relying solely on victim statements. Physical evidence like injuries, medical records documenting sudden decline, and testimony from staff or other residents who witnessed abuse can establish what happened even when the victim cannot clearly communicate their experience.