Birth Injury Lawsuits

Medical errors during childbirth can have devastating consequences. They can be extremely expensive to treat and can result in families facing significant financial burdens.

A lawyer can assess whether you have a legal claim for compensation. They will scrutinize your medical documents and other evidence.

You must prove that the birth injury suffered by your child was caused by medical professionals who violated their duty. You will require an expert witness.

Statute of limitations

The statute of limitations imposes the time limit for how long you can wait to file a lawsuit. Your case is dismissed if you fail to meet the deadline. It does not matter how serious the injury is or how legitimate your claim is. A national birth injury firm can help you learn about your state's statute of limitations and make sure that your case is filed within the proper deadline.

In most medical malpractice claims the statute of limitations begins to run on the date on which the act was committed or omitted. However, with birth injuries, some of these injuries may not be apparent at the time of the birth, and they may only be identified months or even years later. Most states have a rule that delays the start date of the statutes of limitations for these types of claims until the child becomes a legally mature.

This can be complicated because in normal circumstances, a person would not become an adult until they reached age 18. However, if your child suffers an extreme birth injury caused by medical malpractice, you might need to file a claim before the legal threshold has been reached. In these instances it is essential to seek legal advice from a lawyer for birth injuries immediately. A lawyer can help you preserve and gather evidence to show that a doctor's or another medical professional's negligence in observing accepted standards of care led to the child's condition.

Causation

The process of bringing a child into the world is a delicate process. Unfortunately, mistakes by medical professionals can result in serious injuries and lifelong consequences for families. If your child suffered a birth injury because of the negligence of a nurse, doctor, hospital, or another medical staff member's careless behavior during labor and delivery it could be a claim for medical negligence.

As with any medical malpractice claim, a birth injury lawsuit requires the establishment of four main elements: duty of care, breach of duty, causation, and damages. A lawyer can help to build a strong case by taking and analyzing evidence such medical records, imaging studies witness statements and expert testimony.

When pursuing a birth injury case, it's essential to hire an attorney who is experienced in these types of cases. Your lawyer will file a summons or complaint, and the defendant's reply is usually a yes or no. There is also a time of discovery, where both sides exchange information.

If the defendant is a doctor or HOME another health care professional their lawyers will seek to settle the matter outside of court. A medical malpractice lawyer with the experience of dealing with insurance companies can protect your legal rights and pursue full compensation for the harm to your child. Additionally many families receive financial support through a state's medical indemnity plans, which can offset the costs of treatment and long-term care of a child suffering from injuries from birth.

Damages

A birth injury law firm injury lawsuit typically demands damages for the victim's economic losses as well as non-economic. Economic losses could include medical bills, lost wages and the cost of treatment for a chronic illness like cerebral palsy. Other damages that are not economic include pain and discomfort and loss of enjoyment of living, and loss of consortium (the bond that exists between the child of a spouse and their spouse).

To get compensation for their clients, lawyers need to construct a strong case using evidence. Most often, the evidence comes from medical experts who testify about whether or not the medical professional violated the standard of medical care and caused an birth injury.

Parents should contact an attorney immediately if they suspect that a physician or hospital has acted in a negligent manner. A lawyer can help parents avoid missing the deadline when they suspect that a physician or hospital has been guilty of malpractice.

A lawsuit is typically initiated by an attorney filing an Summons and Complaint against the malpractice insurance company. The defendant is then given the opportunity to file an Answer and provide details about their side of the story through a process known as discovery. In this phase lawyers will exchange documents and evidence, which may include expert witness testimony. Before going to trial attorneys will often submit a set of demands to the malpractice insurance firm asking for a specific dollar amount to settle the claim.

Expert Witnesses

If you are filing an medical malpractice claim against a healthcare provider due to birth injuries, your lawyer typically requires expert witnesses to provide testimony on behalf of you. They are usually medical professionals or doctors who have expertise in a particular field and know accepted practices within their field of expertise. They can play a significant part in establishing the four elements of your case: breach of duty, breach or breach of contract, causation or damages.

If a medical professional has committed carelessness, like not monitoring a mother's high blood pressure or giving birth via a cesarean section instead vaginal birth, the legal procedure may become complicated and difficult to navigate without a knowledgeable legal team. Expert witness testimony can support your case and establish the facts in a jury trial.

Medical experts can provide unbiased opinions in two ways: consulting and witnessing. Experts who consult are hired to explain specific aspects of a particular case, such as medical records or imaging studies. This is typically the initial stage in a medical negligence suit prior to the defendant or plaintiff agrees to begin the trial.

A trial can be a stressful and stressful for victims of medical malpractice, specifically when cases of birth injuries involve children with permanent cognitive or physical impairments. If your case is taken to trial, you will need to prove the defendant's negligence. This requires proving the defendant erred from the standard of care accepted and that the deviation led to the injuries to your child.