How to File a Medical Malpractice Lawsuit

Both lawyers and Download free physicians must invest considerable time and funds in many medical malpractice lawsuits. This can include attorney time and court costs, expert witness fees and other expenses.

A medical malpractice claim may be filed if a healthcare professional is negligent or has committed misconduct or committed a mistake or acted in a way that was not. The injured party can seek compensation for economic losses, such as future or past medical expenses as well as non-monetary damages, like pain and discomfort.

Complaint

A medical malpractice lawsuit is made up of many moving parts and requires a solid evidence to prevail. The injured patient, or their attorney in the event that the patient has passed away, must be able to prove each of these elements:

The defendant violated this obligation. The defendant failed to meet this duty. The breach directly caused injury to the plaintiff. This element of an action for malpractice is called "causation." A breach of the standard of care itself does not cause injury; however, it must be shown that the breach directly caused the injury and was the main cause of the injury.

In order to protect a patient's rights, and to ensure that a doctor is not committing further mistakes, it is essential to file a complaint with the state medical board. But, filing a report is not the start of an action, and is often just a beginning step in making the malpractice claim move. It is recommended to talk with a Syracuse malpractice attorney before making any report or other document.

Summons

A summons or claim is filed in the court and is sent to the defendant doctor as part of the legal process. A court-appointed lawyer for the plaintiff will then review these documents and, if it is found that there may be a case of malpractice then they will file an affidavit and complaint to the court detailing the medical error that is claimed to be the cause.

The next step in the legal process is obtaining evidence through pretrial discovery. This includes making requests for evidence like hospital billing and clinic notes, as well as taking the deposition of the defendant physician. Attorneys will then ask the defendant under oath regarding his or her knowledge of the case.

This information will be utilized by the lawyer representing the plaintiff to establish the elements of a claim for medical negligence in the course of trial. This includes the existence of a duty on the physician's part to provide care and treatment to patients; the physician's breach of this duty causality between the breach and the patient's injuries or death and a significant amount of damages resulting from the death or injury to be able to justify a monetary compensation.

Discovery

During the process of discovery, both sides are able to ask for and receive evidence that is relevant to the case. This includes medical records that were taken prior to and after an incident of alleged negligence, details about experts as well as copies of tax returns or other documentation relating to expenses out of pocket that the plaintiff claims to have paid, as well as the names and contact details of any witnesses who will be testifying at trial.

The majority of states have a statute of limitations that limit the time a patient has to claim compensation after suffering injuries due to an error made by a doctor. These time limits are determined by state laws and are subject to a rule called the "discovery rules."

In order to win a medical negligence lawsuit, the patient must demonstrate that the negligence of the doctor caused a specific injury like physical pain or loss of income. They must also prove causation, i.e. that negligence caused their death or injury.

Deposition

Depositions are question-and-answer sessions that are conducted in front of a court reporter who documents both the questions as well as the answers. The deposition is a part of the discovery process through which the parties collect evidence to be used in the trial.

Depositions allow attorneys to ask witnesses, typically doctors to answer a series of questions. If a physician is interrogated by a lawyer, the doctor must answer all questions honestly under oath. Usually, the physician is questioned questions by an attorney and then cross-examined by a different attorney. This is an essential stage of the process and requires the full attention and focus of the physician.

Depositions are a great way for attorneys to get details about the doctor, including his education, training and experience. This information is crucial to showing that the doctor violated the standards of care in your case and that the breach directly resulted in injury. For instance, doctors who have trained in the area of malpractice cases typically will declare that they have a vast experience in performing certain procedures and practices that could be relevant to a specific medical-malpractice claim.

Trial

Your lawyer will make a complaint to the court and will issue a summons. This initiates a legal process of disclosure, referred to as discovery where you and your physician's team collaborate to collect evidence to support your case. This usually includes medical malpractice lawsuits records as well as testimony of an expert witness.

The purpose of proving malpractice is to prove that your doctor's actions did not meet the standards of care. Your lawyer must convince a jury that it is more likely than not your injuries wouldn't have occurred if your physician acted according to the standards of care. The lawyers for your doctor will present defenses that contradict the evidence that your attorney has presented.

Despite the belief that doctors are targets for frivolous claims of malpractice Evidence from decades confirm that jury verdicts are based on reasonable assessment of the severity of the damage and negligence and that juries are skeptical of inflated award amounts. The vast majority of malpractice cases settle before trial.