How to File a Medical Malpractice Lawsuit

A patient who believes he or she suffered losses due to an error made by a healthcare provider can bring a lawsuit against a medical malpractice. These types of cases differ from other personal injury claims in that they use the professional standard of care to determine the degree of negligence.

In the United States, claims of malpractice are handled by state trial courts. Each state has its own laws and procedures.

Duty of care

A doctor, surgeon or nurse, or any other health care professional, owes their patients a duty of care. This legal concept basically states that any health care professional who treats you has an obligation to observe accepted medical practices without omission or deviation.

The medical standard of care is the legal standard to which all medical malpractice claims are evaluated. It is crucial to a successful claim, since it lays out a specific method for the victim and his or her attorney to prove negligence by proving that a medical professional did not meet the standards of care.

Proving the standard of care often requires the assistance of a medical expert witness. They are essential in establishing the standard of medical care applicable to the particular case, and also determining how defendants allegedly violated the law.

Additionally, it is necessary to show that the breach of duty led to your injury or Medical malpractice lawsuits illness. In medical malpractice lawsuits damages could include hospital bills loss of income and future earning capacity, pain, suffering, and even punitive damages. Your lawyer must establish the exact amount of these damages, which could be greater than the original medical expenses. This is a little easier in certain circumstances than in others. There are many doctors who work in hospitals that grant them staff privileges, and in those instances, the doctor's employer could be held liable under theories of vicarious responsibility.

Breach of duty

A doctor is bound to the patient to follow medical standards of care when providing treatments or services. Patients who are injured by a doctor's negligence can file a malpractice lawsuit.

Medical negligence can encompass a wide range actions, like mistakes in diagnosis, medication dosage, health management, treatments and post-care. In order for a lawsuit to be valid the plaintiff must show four legal elements. These include:

In the first place, there needs to be a connection between doctor and the patient. The physician must have the obligation of informing the patient of any risks or complications involved in the procedure. Failure to do this could render the physician liable for malpractice, even if the procedure was executed perfectly. If the doctor did not inform the patient that a certain procedure was likely to have an average of 30% risk of losing limbs then the patient may not have agreed to it.

The second thing to be proved is an infraction to the standard of care. To establish that the doctor strayed from standard care, the lawyer will need expert witness testimony. It must also be proved that the breach of standard of care caused the patient's injuries.

It can take a long time to resolve medical negligence claims in the court system. This involves a significant amount of doctor and attorney time, thorough review of the records, interviewing experts and conducting research into legal and medical literature. A doctor facing a malpractice lawsuit is required to pay significant court fees, attorney's products and expenses, as well as expenses for expert testimony.

Causation

All healthcare professionals such as doctors, nurses, and other healthcare providers are humans and will make mistakes. When these mistakes reach the level of malpractice, patients could suffer life-threatening injuries. Proving that a health care provider committed a breach of his or her duty and caused an injury requires both legal and medical knowledge. A successful case must demonstrate four legal elements: a physician-patient relationship; the doctor's professional obligation to the patient; the breach by the doctor of this obligation; and the injury that resulted from that breach.

It must also be proved that the doctor's deviance from the standards of care was a direct and primary cause of injury. This element has a higher legal standard than "beyond reasonable doubt" in criminal cases. The plaintiff's lawyer must convince the jury/fact-finder it is more than likely that negligence by the doctor caused the injury.

A medical expert is often required early in the process to establish all of these elements. According to Rhode Island law only doctors with sufficient education, training and experience in the area of the suspected malpractice are able to give expert testimony. This is the reason why selecting an expert medical malpractice attorney professional who is competent is such an important aspect of the case of a malpractice.

Damages

Medical malpractice lawsuits aim to recover damages which include the future and past expenses incurred as a result of an injury. These expenses could include hospital bills or doctor visits, suffering and pain, as well as lost wages. The jury will decide on the amount of damages to be awarded based on evidence presented.

During the trial, the plaintiff or their attorney must prove four legal elements: (1) a physician had a professional obligation to them; (2) the doctor breached this duty by acting negligently; (3) the doctor's negligence caused injuries and (4) the injury caused damages that are quantifiable. Discontent with a doctor's work isn't a cause of negligence, but a real injury must be present. A qualified expert witness will be able to determine if a doctor medical malpractice lawsuits deviated from the standard of care.

The legal process for a malpractice lawsuit can go on for several years, with lots of time spent in "discovery," which involves the exchange of documents and statements made under oath by the parties involved in the case. While many cases settle before reaching the courtroom, a minority of these claims go all through to a jury trial and verdict.

In an effort to cut costs of litigation, certain states have taken a variety of administrative and legislative steps, known collectively as tort reform measures to limit liability for negligence. A few states have implemented alternative dispute resolution methods that include binding arbitration. These alternatives to civil litigation are designed to reduce litigation costs, expedite the handling and resolution of malpractice claims, reduce the number of generous juries, and filter out claims that are not worth the effort.