PERSONAL INJURY & MEDICAL MALPRACTICE
Expert analysis of damages and standards of care in cases involving autism, including life care planning, ABA cost projections, and long-term behavioral health needs.
Calculating damages when the injured person has autism
When someone with autism sustains an injury or experiences a failure in their standard of care, calculating damages requires an expert who understands the full scope of behavioral health needs over a lifetime. I assist legal teams in developing and reviewing life care plans, assessing the cost of lost services and supports, and evaluating whether behavioral or medical treatments met accepted professional standards. My clinical background provides the depth needed to withstand scrutiny on complex damages and standards-of-care questions.
Injury and malpractice matters I handle
- ABA Cost Projections: Lifetime ABA therapy needs, residential care, vocational services
- Causation Analysis: Linking injuries/medical negligence to developmental delays
- Damages Assessment: Impact on educational outcomes, employment capacity, independence
- Birth Injury Cases: Developmental delay progression, therapy needs, lifetime care costs
Frequently asked questions
Why does an injury case involving autism need a behavior analyst?
Because the damages are behavioral. An injury or a failure in care shows up in a person with autism as lost skills, new problem behavior, regression in communication, or a need for more intensive supervision. Those changes are measurable and a behavior analyst can document them in a way that connects to the standard of care and to future costs.
What is an ABA cost projection?
An estimate of the applied behavior analysis services a person will need over time, based on their current skills, their rate of progress and what the records show about how they respond to treatment. I write these for life care planners and economists, with hours, settings and supervision levels spelled out so they can be priced.
Can you speak to causation?
Within my field, yes. I can testify to whether a change in behavior or development is consistent with the injury or the delay in care described in the records and whether it is inconsistent with the person’s baseline trajectory. I do not offer medical opinions outside applied behavior analysis and developmental assessment.
How do you assess damages to educational and employment outcomes?
By comparing the person’s documented trajectory before the injury with their current functioning, using standardized adaptive behavior measures and the school or clinical record. The report describes the specific skills affected and what additional support will be needed to reach the outcomes that were previously expected.
Do you work on birth injury cases?
Yes. In those cases the question is usually the progression of developmental delay and what lifetime therapy and care will be required. I assess current functioning, project service needs and explain the difference between what this child needs and what a typically developing child would need.
Do you take plaintiff and defense work?
Both. My opinions come from the records and the assessment and I say so when the evidence does not support the position of the side that retained me.
Need Expert Insight for an Autism-Related Case?
When legal decisions involve autism or developmental disabilities, expert behavioral analysis can make the difference. Get clear, evidence-based insights that help courts understand the needs of the child.