I am certain it was due to the talent, wisdom, and dedication of Mr. Baseluos that we won my case. It was difficult, long, and unique, but none of that hindered him.
I lost about half of my vision due to an autoimmune response to a vaccine and am now legally blind. There is a program to compensate vaccine injuries and I hired Mr. Baseluos to represent me through this vaccine court. I initially considered representing myself but now I know that would have been a failing effort. In the vaccine court, the government can be very contentious and petitioners with injuries are often unsuccessful because many cases can't be "proven" to satisfaction of the court. Mr. Baselous was familiar with the unique format of the vaccine court and the specialized rules for the program. He is one of the select attorneys listed as qualified to work in the program and, I believe, he's the only one in the San Antonio area.
During my case, the government argued especially aggressively against my claim. Previously, it had never been established whether or not the influenza vaccine could cause optic neuritis. Mr. Baseluos identified approximately 20 prior claims in the program and each of them had been settled with the government without any ruling as to whether the injury could be caused by the vaccine. Due to my young age, successful career, and significant injury, our claim was for a large sum of money - primarily lost future earnings. I believe this is why the government contested my claim whereas it settled with all who had come before me.
We had no specific precedence to rely upon but Mr. Baseluos assembled a team of extremely specialized experts on my behalf. This included a neuro-ophthalmologist from Baltimore, a renowned immunologist specializing in molecular mimicry from the University of Southern California, a radiologist specializing in eyes and brains, and others. Mr. Baseluos spent more than five years coordinating the efforts of this team to argue my case. He reviewed dozens of scientific reports from both parties as well as hundreds of referenced scientific studies. Ultimately, Mr. Baseluos presented a strong argument, based on extremely technical scientific data, and backed by an army of acclaimed medical and scientific experts, which showed that the influenza vaccine, through a process called molecular mimicry, is capable of triggering an autoimmune response that can lead to optic neuritis. The argument was so strong and complete that the court accepted it and rejected the counter-argument by the government and its scientific experts.
Mr. Baseluos set a precedence in the vaccine court. Unlike us, every following case of influenza vaccine induced optic neuritis will be able to point to a previous ruling in favor of the injured person.
During our arguments over financial damages, Mr. Baseluos was equally as committed and competent as he had been during our fight over causation. He brought aboard an expert accountant, a Medicare and medical insurance specialist, and other experts. The arguments over financial damages were frustrating to me because they seemed to be even more obvious than the causation, but Mr. Baseluos systematically refuted the government's arguments and, ultimately, we agreed to an amount of money I believe was fair.
During this case, Mr. Baseluos worked tirelessly on my behalf. We spoke late into the night regularly as he was finalizing reports or preparing for the multi-day hearings in the case. Mr. Baseluos was passionately devoted to my case. I cannot imagine another attorney being so invested or working so diligently.
He took on and beat the government, their scientific experts, and their limitless resources.
He set precedence in the vaccine court.
He steadfastly represented me for over half a decade.
In the end, my case was successful due to the preparedness and dedication of Mr. Baseluos and I am grateful to have found him.