Birth Injury Lawsuits Explained

Families expect that their medical doctors and other professionals will maintain a high level of care. Birth injuries can be devastating for families when they are not properly treated.

Contact a birth injury attorney for help when you suspect that your child has suffered an injury that could be prevented during birth due medical negligence. A reputable lawyer will review your case at no cost and charge no upfront costs. To prove your claim, you must establish the four elements.

Duty of Care

Few events in life are more joyful and memorable than the birth of a child. However, the birth process can turn traumatic for parents who have medical errors result in serious injuries to the baby during labor and birth. These errors can be irreparable and Birth Injury Lawsuits cause a family face a lifetime of challenges.

Medical professionals and doctors are required by law to treat patients with the care and skill ordinarily expected of health professionals in their field in similar situations. This is known as the duty of care. In order to win a case against an at-fault healthcare provider it is necessary to prove that the medical professional breached this obligation. This usually means proving how the medical professional's actions, or lack thereof, differed from what a competent and reasonably trained medical professional would do under similar circumstances.

The second aspect of a negligence claim is causation. You must establish through medical records and testimony from an expert that the healthcare provider responsible for the breach of duty led to your child's injuries. For instance, a healthcare professional might not have been able to observe your child's vital signs during labor and delivery. This could have led to brain damage from prolonged oxygen deprivation.

Damages are the last part of a successful negligence case. You must prove that you or your child suffered actual significant, quantifiable damages as a result of the healthcare professional's failure when it came to their duty of care. This typically includes past and future medical expenses, lost wages and non-economic losses like suffering and pain.

Causation

Medical professionals are required to their patients to provide them with care that is in line with standards in their field. A doctor or nurse who fails to meet the standard of care may cause injury to a patient, and could result in an action for damages. In order to succeed in a case involving birth injuries, an attorney will need to prove that the breach of duty was responsible for the injury to your child. This must be proven with evidence like medical records and expert testimony.

It is also crucial to establish that your child would not have suffered a traumatic injury when a medical professional been able to provide the level of care expected. Medical experts are asked to examine the case to determine if a doctor or hospital acted in a manner not in accordance with the accepted medical standards.

Birth injuries can have life-altering consequences that require a lifetime of medical treatments and other expenses. It is important to hold at-fault doctors as well as hospitals accountable for their negligence and seek compensation to the future of your child's needs.

An experienced lawyer who has handled medical malpractice cases can handle the entire legal process for you, which includes responding to insurance requests and bringing a lawsuit against the responsible parties. They can also create an evidence-based argument and obtain expert testimony, recover medical records as well as other documents and negotiate an appropriate settlement to cover your family's losses and lifetime cost of care.

Damages

A birth injury lawsuit requires the expertise of medical experts who review medical records, testimony from your family and you and other evidence. They will help you prove that the doctor or hospital involved in your case breached their duty of care and caused your child injuries. They will also calculate the damages you have suffered as a result of these injuries. Included are your present and future medical expenses in addition to lost wages, loss in quality of life emotional distress and other losses.

It can be a devastating experience for your family if nurses, doctors and other medical staff make inexcusable mistakes prior to or even after the birth injury law firm of your child. It can be difficult to take legal action against doctors and hospitals who have acted negligently or with a lack of care. They have teams of lawyers who are employed full-time to protect their clients, denying claims or limit settlements.

Medical professionals can be held responsible for their actions by hiring a New York birth injuries lawyer. Your lawyer will handle communications with insurers, file your claim in court, and build an evidence-based case to prove the liability. They will also fight for you to get a fair jury verdict or settlement for your losses and care costs over the course of your lifetime. They can also start a lawsuit before the deadline for any applicable statute of limitation, as the clock begins to run from the date the malpractice or medical error occurred.

Statute of Limitations

A successful claim for compensation in a case of birth injury includes four parts. Your attorney can explain each one and develop a solid legal argument to support your claim.

Medical negligence claims are based on the defendant's obligation to you an obligation of care and that the defendant violated this obligation, and that the breach directly caused the injuries to your child. It is essential to prove causation in order to be successful in an action. This means that the defendant's actions or inability to act would not have caused your child's injuries.

The defendants can challenge any of these elements. They may claim that there isn't a doctor-patient relationship or that the standard care is not what you claim it is. They can also challenge your proof or the opinions of your expert witnesses.

You'll need to submit medical records, other documents, as well as an explanation of what happened during the birth of your child. You'll also have to submit a demand packet, which includes the names of all individuals you think should be named as defendants. An experienced attorney can assist you in identifying the correct defendants and make sure that there is sufficient insurance coverage. Lawyers can assist in advancing costs associated with litigation, like the costs of highly skilled medical experts. This could help ease some of the financial burden that comes with pursuing an injury claim arising from birth.