Find a spinal cord injury lawyer in Chandler: care, costs and time limits
After a spinal cord injury in Chandler, Dignity Health Chandler Regional, 1955 West Frye Road, is a state Level I trauma center. Barrow Neurological Institute in Phoenix treats spinal cord injuries. The legal clock is separate from the medical one. You generally have 2 years to sue, and a claim against a public body is due in 180 days.
Last checked November 9, 2026 · Official sources (34)
Where do I take someone with a spinal cord injury near Chandler?
Call 911 and keep the person still. Emergency crews place a rigid collar around the neck and put the person on a backboard. The nearest state-designated Level I trauma center is Dignity Health Chandler Regional, 1955 West Frye Road.
Banner Desert Medical Center, 1400 South Dobson Road in Mesa, is also Level I. For a child, Phoenix Children's Hospital on E. Thomas Road is the state's Level I pediatric trauma center.
Chandler Regional lists neurosurgeons, neurologists, intensivists and orthopedic spine surgeons on its team. Banner Ocotillo Medical Center, at 1405 South Alma School Road, is also in Chandler.
What care comes after the hospital for a spinal cord injury in Chandler?
Rehabilitation often starts in the hospital and goes on for months. A doctor trained in physical medicine and rehabilitation usually leads the team. The team can also include rehabilitation psychologists, vocational counselors, nutritionists and a case worker.
Barrow Neurological Institute, at 2910 North Third Avenue in Phoenix, treats teens and adults with spinal cord injuries, and its number is 1-833-822-2890. The Brain Injury Association of Arizona also gives referrals and support from an office on the Ability360 campus in Phoenix.
Some problems come later. Roughly one in three people with a spinal cord injury needs help breathing, for a time or for good. About 29% go back into the hospital each year. A claim has to plan for these years, not only the first hospital stay.
What does a spinal cord injury cost a family in Chandler?
No Chandler figure exists, so here are national ones from the National Spinal Cord Injury Statistical Center. Indirect costs, such as lost wages and productivity, averaged $97,787 per year in 2025 dollars. Only 18% of people with a traumatic spinal cord injury are employed one year after.
| Cost to plan for | Why it matters |
|---|---|
| Medical care | Rehab, equipment, breathing support and repeat hospital stays |
| Lost income | Lost earning power if work stops or changes |
| Home changes | Ramps, door widths and bathrooms, priced by a contractor |
| Daily help | Paid care when family cannot do it all |
A life care plan written by a doctor and a planner can add these up. It is the tool that lets a jury see the whole bill.
Who pays for a spinal cord injury in Chandler?
It depends on how it happened. After a crash on a city street, Chandler Police's Vehicular Crimes Unit investigates all serious injury collisions, and the other driver's insurance is the first place to look. Arizona lets no law cap what a jury can award for an injury.
At work, workers' compensation is generally the remedy against the employer, and it pays no matter who caused the accident. A person outside the job who caused the injury can still be sued, but you must sue within one year or the claim moves to the insurer.
If a crime caused the injury, Maricopa County's Crime Victim Compensation helps with medical, mental health and wage loss expenses. Chandler Police Victim Advocates, 480-782-4535, can walk you through it, but they cannot give legal advice.
Be ready for repayment. A provider can put a lien on your recovery, and anything Medicare paid comes back out of a settlement.
How long do I have to file a spinal cord injury claim in Chandler?
Generally 2 years to sue. A claim against a public entity needs a notice within 180 days. For the City of Chandler, that goes to the City Clerk. The notice must state a specific settlement amount, and a late claim is barred. The lawsuit that follows must be filed within one year.
For a child, the lawsuit clock does not run while the child is a minor. The notice then runs 180 days after the child turns 18. For an adult who cannot manage their own affairs, time may also pause. Ask early, since a shortcut here is hard to undo.
Questions
Can a person go back to work after a spinal cord injury?
Some do, but only 18% of people with a traumatic spinal cord injury are employed one year after. A vocational counselor can sit on the rehab team.
Who should be on my rehabilitation team?
A physical medicine doctor usually leads, with other specialists around that doctor.
Will a shared fault finding end my claim?
Not in Arizona. Fault you share cuts your award by that share, but the claim stands.
Do I need to keep my medical bills?
Yes. A provider's lien can come out of your recovery, and Medicare's share is repaid from a settlement.
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See if I’m owed moneySources (34)
- Arizona Department of Health Services, Designated Trauma Centers, checked 2026-11-08. “1955 W. Frye Rd., Chandler, AZ 85224 07/01/25 07/01/28”
- Barrow Neurological Institute, checked 2026-11-09. “We offer comprehensive, compassionate, cutting-edge treatment and rehabilitation for adolescents and adults with concussions, traumatic brain injuries, and spinal cord injuries.”
- A.R.S. § 12-542, checked 2026-11-08. “within two years after the cause of action accrues”
- City of Chandler, Law Department, checked 2026-11-08. “you must serve a notice of claim on the Chandler City Clerk”
- NINDS, checked 2026-11-09. “emergency personnel will place a rigid collar around the neck and carefully place the person on a backboard”
- Arizona Department of Health Services, checked 2026-11-09. “Banner Desert Medical Center 1400 South Dobson Rd., Meza, AZ 85202”
- NINDS, checked 2026-11-09. “A doctor specializing in physical medicine and rehabilitation usually leads the rehabilitation team.”
- CMS, checked 2026-11-09. “because it must be repaid to Medicare when a beneficiary receives a settlement, judgment, award, or other payment”
- A.R.S. § 33-931, checked 2026-11-09. “is entitled to a lien for the care and treatment or transportation of an injured person”
- Arizona Department of Health Services, checked 2026-11-09. “Level I Pediatric Trauma Centers*** | | | | --- | --- | --- | --- | | Phoenix Children’s Hospital | 1919 E. Thomas Rd., Phoenix, | AZ 85016”
- Dignity Health, checked 2026-11-09. “Chandler Regional’s team of neurosurgeons, neurologists, intensivists, orthopedic spine surgeons, oncologists, anesthesiologists and nurse practitioners”
- Banner Health, checked 2026-11-09. “1405 S. Alma School Road Chandler, AZ 85286”
- NINDS, checked 2026-11-09. “rehabilitation psychologists, vocational counselors, nutritionists, a case worker”
- Barrow Neurological Institute, checked 2026-11-09. “2910 North Third Avenue Phoenix, Arizona 85013 1-833-822-2890”
- Brain Injury Association of Arizona, checked 2026-11-09. “We provide referral and support statewide, but our physical office space is in the Ability360 Campus of Phoenix”
- NINDS, checked 2026-11-09. “About one-third of people with an SCI will need temporary or permanent help with breathing”
- National SCI Statistical Center, checked 2026-11-09. “Since 2015, about 29% of persons with tSCI are re-hospitalized at”
- National SCI Statistical Center, checked 2026-11-09. “indirect costs averaged $97,787 per year in 2025 dollars”
- National SCI Statistical Center, checked 2026-11-09. “Since 2015, 18% of persons with tSCI are employed at year 1”
- Chandler Police, Traffic Section, checked 2026-11-08. “The Vehicular Crimes Unit investigates all fatal, serious injury, and high-profile traffic collisions.”
- Ariz. Const. art. 18, § 6, checked 2026-11-09. “the amount recovered shall not be subject to any statutory limitation”
- Industrial Commission of Arizona, General Information, checked 2026-11-08. “you receive medical and compensation benefits no matter who caused the job-related accident.”
- A.R.S. 23-1022, checked 2026-11-09. “is the exclusive remedy against the employer or any co-employee acting in the scope of his employment”
- A.R.S. 23-1023, checked 2026-11-09. “by instituting an action within one year after the cause of action accrues”
- Maricopa County Attorney, Victim Related Information, checked 2026-11-08. “to assist crime victims and their families with crime-related expenses such as medical, mental health, funeral, crime scene clean up, and wage loss”
- Chandler Police, Victim Services Unit, checked 2026-11-08. “For more information, call 480-782-4535 or email [email protected]”
- A.R.S. § 12-821.01, checked 2026-11-08. “within one hundred eighty days after the cause of action accrues”
- Arizona Revised Statutes 12-821.01, checked 2026-11-09. “The claim shall also contain a specific amount for which the claim can be settled and the facts supporting that amount.”
- Arizona Revised Statutes 12-821.01, checked 2026-11-09. “is barred and no action may be maintained thereon”
- A.R.S. § 12-821, checked 2026-11-08. “shall be brought within one year after the cause of action accrues and not afterward”
- A.R.S. § 12-502, checked 2026-11-08. “the period of such disability shall not be deemed a portion of the period limited for commencement of the action”
- A.R.S. 12-821.01, checked 2026-11-09. “a minor or an insane or incompetent person may file a claim within one hundred eighty days after the disability ceases”
- A.R.S. § 12-502, checked 2026-11-09. “either under eighteen years of age or of unsound mind, the period of such disability shall not be deemed a portion of the period limited for commencement of the action”
- A.R.S. § 12-2505, checked 2026-11-08. “the claimant's action is not barred, but the full damages shall be reduced in proportion to the relative degree of the claimant's fault”