Ohio Burn Injury Lawyer: Your Rights After a Burn

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By Michael Shemtoub, trial attorney, Beverly Law. Updated November 2026.

What to do after a burn in Ohio

Flame and flash caused 46% of the burns among burn center admissions from 2020 to 2024, according to the American Burn Association (ABA fact sheet). A third-degree burn destroys the outer and inner layers of skin and can look white or charred (Cedars-Sinai). The ABA says any full-thickness burn, and deep burns of the face, hands, feet or genitals, call for immediate burn center consultation (ABA referral guidelines).

Once care is under way, keep the item that burned you and take photos as the wound changes. Save texts with the landlord or store, and collect witness names. Do not sign anything from an insurer before a lawyer reviews it.

The deadline to file in Ohio

R.C. 2305.10(A) requires an action based on a product liability claim, or for bodily injury, to be brought within two years after the cause of action accrues (R.C. 2305.10). The cause of action accrues when the injury occurs.

Subsection (B) changes that for exposure cases. A bodily injury caused by exposure to hazardous or toxic chemicals, ethical drugs or ethical medical devices accrues when a competent medical authority tells the plaintiff about an injury related to the exposure, or when the plaintiff should have known through reasonable diligence, whichever comes first. Separate provisions cover chromium, Agent Orange-type agents, DES and asbestos.

Government defendants:

• Political subdivisions: suit within two years after accrual, or any shorter period that applies (R.C. 2744.04(A)).
• The State: a Court of Claims action within two years after accrual. For injury claims covered by R.C. 9.821 to 9.83, the claimant must first try to have the claim compromised by the Office of Risk Management in the Department of Administrative Services (R.C. 2743.16).

How fault works in Ohio

R.C. 2315.33 lets a plaintiff recover if their contributory fault was not greater than the combined tortious conduct of all other persons, both those sued and those not sued (R.C. 2315.33).

Suppose a man is burned when the regulator on a new gas grill fails. He sues only the store that assembled it, and the store says he lit it with the lid closed. If the jury assigns him 30%, the store 30% and the grill maker 40%, his 30% is measured against the 70% held by everyone else, including the maker he never sued. He can recover, with his damages reduced by his share. If his share is greater than everyone else’s combined, he is barred.

Damages and caps in Ohio

Punitive damages require clear and convincing evidence of malice or aggravated or egregious fraud (R.C. 2315.21).

The higher medical tier applies to permanent and substantial physical deformity, loss of use of a limb, loss of a bodily organ system, or a permanent physical functional injury that keeps the person from independently caring for themselves. R.C. 2323.43 has no inflation adjustment in its text, and it does not apply to wrongful death actions. This page covers only the limits listed here; a lawyer licensed in Ohio can tell you whether any other limit applies to your claim.

Burns at work in Ohio

Under R.C. 4123.74, an employer that complies with the workers’ compensation law is not liable in damages at common law or by statute for a workplace injury (R.C. 4123.74). The intentional tort exception in R.C. 2745.01 is narrow. The worker must prove the employer acted with intent to injure, or with the belief that injury was substantially certain to occur, which the statute defines as deliberate intent. Deliberately removing an equipment safety guard creates a rebuttable presumption of intent (R.C. 2745.01).

For suits against outside companies, under R.C. 4123.931 the party that paid comp becomes a statutory subrogee with rights against the third party, and the net recovery is subject to its right of recovery (R.C. 4123.931). Unless the parties agree otherwise, a settlement is divided by a statutory formula between the worker’s uncompensated damages and the subrogation interest.

Burn centers in Ohio

Ohio has eight burn centers in the ABA directory, and six of them are ABA-verified. Two of the verified centers treat children only.

Source: American Burn Association, Find a Burn Center, directory checked November 2026.

Who may be liable for a burn

A burn claim points at whoever controlled the danger. In a rental home, the landlord who let the furnace or wiring go may be responsible. At work, a contractor sharing the site with your employer may be. If a product failed, look at whoever designed, built or sold it. Gas and electric utilities can be liable for leaks and line work. A restaurant or coffee shop can be liable for food or drinks served dangerously hot. Water does not have to boil to cause harm: the Consumer Product Safety Commission says a burn can occur after six seconds at 140°F or thirty seconds at 130°F (CPSC).

How Beverly Law helps in Ohio

Beverly Law is a California firm. Its attorneys are licensed in California and Washington, and for burns in Ohio the firm works with licensed Ohio attorneys through its referral network. A free case review connects you with an Ohio-licensed burn injury attorney, usually within one business day.

Related pages

• Burn injury lawyer · Burn injury law by state · Burn centers · Pennsylvania burn injury law · Michigan burn injury law

This page is general information about Ohio law, not legal advice, and reading it does not create an attorney-client relationship. Laws change; a lawyer licensed in Ohio can tell you how they apply to your case.

Common questions

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Burn Injury Lawyer

Important: Attorney Advertising. This page is general information, not legal or medical advice, and reading it does not create an attorney-client relationship. Beverly Law is a California firm whose attorneys are licensed in California and Washington; for injuries in other states it works with attorneys licensed there through its referral network. Last reviewed: November 6, 2026.