If you or a family member received burn treatment at Regional Medical Center at Memphis — known throughout the Mid-South as "The Med" — act immediately. Tennessee's statute of limitations for personal injury claims is only 1 year, one of the shortest deadlines in the country. Once that deadline passes, your right to compensation is permanently and irrevocably lost.
Regional Medical Center at Memphis — universally known in the Mid-South as "The Med" — operates the region's premier burn care facility, serving West Tennessee, Eastern Arkansas, and Northern Mississippi from its position as the area's only Level I Trauma Center. The burn center, affiliated with the University of Tennessee Health Science Center, provides comprehensive acute burn care including emergency wound management, skin grafting, inhalation injury treatment, and reconstructive surgery. The facility's long history as the safety-net trauma center for the entire Mid-South means it has treated some of the most severe and complex industrial burn cases in the region.
Memphis's geographic position at the intersection of major interstate highways, the Mississippi River barge corridor, and the largest rail freight hub in North America makes it one of the most logistically significant cities in the country — and one where industrial burn hazards are pervasive. FedEx's global hub at Memphis International Airport, the surrounding distribution center ecosystem, and the chemical industry along the river all contribute to a high volume of industrial burn injuries that may give rise to third-party civil claims.
The Med's records — produced in the context of a Level I Trauma Center with academic medical center ties — constitute strong evidentiary documentation of burn severity, treatment complexity, and long-term prognosis. These records are critical to establishing the full value of a burn injury claim in Tennessee's civil courts.
Tennessee Code Annotated § 28-3-104 gives personal injury victims only one year from the date of injury to file a civil lawsuit. This is not a soft guideline — it is an absolute legal deadline. Tennessee courts do not extend this deadline because you were hospitalized, because you were physically unable to consult an attorney, or because your workers' compensation case was still pending.
For burn injury victims treated at The Med, the 1-year deadline begins running on the day of the injury — not the day of discharge, not the day you finished reconstructive surgeries, and not the day you learned who was legally responsible. By the time a burn patient has completed acute care, moved through skin grafting and rehabilitation, and begun to understand the long-term impact of their injuries, a substantial portion of that one-year window may already be gone.
If a public entity — such as a municipal utility, a Tennessee state agency, or a county government — contributed to your burn injury, pre-suit notice requirements may impose additional deadlines even shorter than one year. Call an attorney today. Every day of delay puts your claim at risk.
Memphis sits at the convergence of the nation's most active logistics, chemical, and agricultural corridors. The Mississippi River chemical corridor — stretching from the Memphis industrial districts south through the Delta — carries a dense concentration of petrochemical, fertilizer, and industrial chemical facilities whose operations generate serious burn risks. The city's role as the world's largest air cargo hub drives an enormous network of distribution, warehousing, and package handling operations, all of which involve industrial equipment, loading dock hazards, and vehicle-related burn risks.
Tennessee's Workers' Compensation Law covers medical expenses and wage replacement for workers injured in Tennessee. However, workers' comp does not compensate you for pain and suffering, permanent disfigurement, or the full scope of your long-term losses. It also limits your ability to sue your direct employer for those damages.
The pathway to full compensation is the third-party civil lawsuit. Under Tennessee law, if any party other than your direct employer contributed to the conditions that caused your burn — by failing to maintain a safe workplace, by supplying defective equipment, or by creating a chemical or electrical hazard — you can file a separate civil lawsuit against that party. Recoverable damages in a third-party claim include:
Tennessee's 1-year deadline under Tenn. Code Ann. § 28-3-104 applies to all these claims. The filing of a workers' compensation claim does not toll or extend this deadline. An attorney can file suit to lock in your rights while negotiations continue.
Records produced by Level I Trauma burn centers like The Med carry substantial evidentiary weight in personal injury litigation. Treatment documentation typically includes:
If your burn was caused by someone else's negligence — a dangerous worksite, defective equipment, a chemical supplier's failure to warn, or an unsafe property — you likely have a viable third-party claim. Tennessee law allows burn victims to pursue civil lawsuits even while receiving workers' compensation. The fact that your injuries were severe enough to require treatment at The Med — a Level I Trauma burn center — is significant evidence of injury severity. But Tennessee's 1-year deadline is unforgiving. Call us or submit the form on this page immediately for a free, confidential review. No fee unless you win.
Only 1 year under Tennessee Code Annotated § 28-3-104. This is one of the shortest deadlines in the United States, and it begins running on the date of your injury — not your discharge date, not the date your treatment concluded. If government entities such as municipal utilities or state agencies are involved, pre-suit notice requirements may impose even shorter deadlines. Contact an attorney immediately — do not wait.
Yes. Under HIPAA and Tennessee law, you have the right to obtain your complete medical records from Regional Medical Center at Memphis (Regional One Health). You can request records through the facility's Health Information Management department, or your attorney can submit a HIPAA-compliant authorization on your behalf — which is typically the fastest and most complete method for obtaining records needed for litigation, and essential given Tennessee's tight 1-year deadline.
Tennessee's 1-year deadline is unforgiving. Get a free case review from a burn injury attorney today — before it's too late.
Tennessee's 1-year statute of limitations is one of the shortest in the country. Evidence disappears, witnesses become unavailable, and your window closes fast. Get your free review today and protect your rights.
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