Why You Need a Medical Malpractice Lawyer

A medical malpractice lawyer can help injured patients get compensation for their losses. The common law system governs medical malpractice claims.

In the common law, doctors are expected to adhere to a certain standard of care when treating patients. If a doctor does not adhere to the accepted medical standard and causes an injury or death or even death, he could be held responsible for negligence.

Duty of Care

Bridgeport medical malpractice law firm professionals must adhere to set standards that are accepted by the medical profession as being reasonable and prudent in providing treatment. If these standards aren't followed and if they cause injury or health complications the patient could have grounds to file a medical malpractice lawsuit.

The first thing to do in a malpractice case is to establish that you were a client of the healthcare provider and that they owed you a duty to act in a reasonable way. The next step is to prove that the breach of that duty occurred. This is usually done an expert witness that can provide an objective analysis and evaluation.

An expert witness can determine whether the defendant's actions were less than the accepted standard in your case. To enable the expert to arrive at this conclusion, they will need to be able review your medical records and conduct an examination or interview of you.

You must also be able to prove that the breach of duty directly caused the injuries. This is known as causation and it is the third element of a malpractice claim. In most cases, you will require a direct cause-and-effect relationship between the breach of duty and the resulting injury. A mistake in diagnosis, for instance, could lead to the wrong medication being prescribed or treatment being given. This could cause an adverse reaction such as a heart attack.

Breach of Duty

As with all other professionals physicians, doctors are legally bound by an obligation to exercise care and caution. Doctors are held to a higher standard, however, because they are medical experts and make life-or-death decisions. The obligation of care can be found in the regulations and laws for specific kinds of treatments and procedures.

In a case of negligence, it is vital to prove that the defendant had the duty of care for the plaintiff. It must be proven that the defendant breached this duty of care. This means that the doctor did not meet the standards of care in the given circumstance. The quality of care is usually determined by what an ordinary person would do in the same circumstances. For instance, a reasonable driver would not stop at when there is a red light.

In a malpractice case expert witnesses are often needed to testify about the standard of care and how it was violated. They can also discuss the reason behind the injury and explain how they could have prevented it from happening.

Damages

In the United States, physicians are required to have malpractice insurance in order to cover any potential losses that might arise from medical negligence. In order to file an action for damages, the plaintiff must prove both actual financial losses (such as medical expenses and lost wages) as well as non-economic losses (such as suffering and pain).

The amount of compensation you receive from a successful malpractice lawsuit is contingent upon how well your New York medical malpractice attorney defends your losses. Your attorney will establish medically required costs by looking over your medical records, using expert testimony, and collaborating with economic experts. Your medical malpractice lawyer must prove the loss of your earnings by proving the amount of days that you missed from work due to medical issues, and that these missed days were the result district of columbia medical malpractice lawyer the defendant’s negligence.

Non-economic damages can be difficult to prove. You may need the assistance of an expert witness who can provide details of your mental, physical, and emotional distress as direct result of the defendant's negligence. Other forms of non-economic damages include loss of consortium, which is an inability to maintain a romantic and sexual relationship in the same way you used to with your spouse or your significant other. The lawyer representing the defendant will challenge your non-economic damages with the help of interrogatories, depositions, as well as requests for documents and sworn declarations.

Statute of limitations

As in every state, New York has a statute of limitations that must be met prior to a medical negligence case can be filed. If not the court will decide to dismiss the case. An experienced New York medical malpractice lawyer is aware of these specifics and will ensure your claim is filed prior to the deadlines that are set by law.

In most cases, victims of medical malpractice has to file his or her lawsuit within two and a half years of the date that the negligence or act of a health care provider caused the injury or death. However like all laws there are some exceptions to this rule. For instance, if the error made by the health care professional was part of an ongoing course of treatment, the 30-month legal "clock" will not begin until that course of treatment is completed or when the patient is informed of the diagnosis.

In some cases patients may not recognize the problem until a long time later, for example, if a foreign body remains in the body following surgery or treatment. In order to tackle this issue, the majority of states have embraced what is known as the discovery rule. This allows injured victims in certain circumstances to extend their deadlines. Your attorney will know the specific laws in your state and carefully examine your case's timeline to avoid administrative errors which could cause delays to your claim.