Birth Injury Lawsuits Explained

Childbirth is a risky and stressful experience, however families expect their medical professionals and doctors to uphold a high standard of care. When they do not, birth injuries can be devastating to families.

If you suspect your child was born with a preventable injury due to medical malpractice, birth Injury contact a birth injury lawyer for assistance. A reputable lawyer will review your case at no cost and charge no upfront fees. In order to prove your claim, you must establish the four elements.

Duty of Care

The birth of a baby can be one of the most exciting and memorable moments in a person's life. Unfortunately, the process can turn traumatic for some parents if medical mistakes cause serious injuries to the baby during labor and birth. These mistakes are often irreparable and force a family to confront a long list of challenges.

Medical professionals and doctors are under a legal obligation to treat their patients with the same care and skill that is expected from health care providers in similar professions in similar circumstances. This is called the duty of care. If you want to prevail against a healthcare provider at fault, you must prove that the medical professional breached this duty. This typically means proving that the medical professional's conduct or failure to act was different from what a reasonably educated and competent medical professional would have done under similar circumstances.

The second component in a negligence lawsuit is the issue of causation. You must prove with medical records and testimony from an expert that the healthcare professional in question's breach of duty led to your child's injuries. For instance, a healthcare professional may not have observed your child's vital signs during labor and delivery. This could have resulted in prolonged oxygen deprivation which, in turn, caused brain damage.

The final element of a successful negligence claim is the amount of damages. You have to prove that you and/or your child experienced real, quantifiable losses as a result of the healthcare professional's negligence in their duty to care. This typically includes future and past medical expenses, lost wages and other non-economic losses such as pain and suffering.

Causation

Medical professionals are required to their patients to provide treatment that is consistent with the standards of their field. If a medical professional or nurse is not able to meet this standard of care, it could cause injury to a patient, and lead to an action for damages. To succeed in a birth injury case the attorney must show that the breach of duty directly caused your child's injuries. This must be proved using evidence like medical records and expert testimony.

It is also essential to establish that your child wouldn't have suffered the injury If the medical professional had adhered to the standard of treatment. Medical experts are obligated to look into the matter and give their opinion on whether or not the hospital or doctor performed a procedure that was incompatible with accepted medical practices.

Birth injuries can have a profound impact on your life and require medical attention for a lifetime. It is essential to hold at-fault doctors and hospitals accountable for their negligence and obtain compensation that will the future of your child's needs.

A lawyer who has handled medical malpractice cases has the ability to manage the entire legal process including responding to insurance requests and bringing a lawsuit against the responsible parties. They can also build an evidence-based case and get expert testimony, locate medical records and other documents, and fight for a fair settlement to cover your family's losses as well as lifetime cost of care.

Damages

A birth injury lawsuit requires the expertise of medical experts who look over medical records, witness statements from your family and you as well as other evidence. They will help establish that the doctor involved in your case has not complied with their duty of provide care and harmed your child. They will then estimate the damages that you have suffered because of those injuries. This includes your current and future medical expenses and lost wages, loss of quality of life, emotional distress and other losses.

It can be devastating for your family if doctors, nurses and other medical staff make unavoidable errors prior to, during or after the birth your child. It can also be difficult to initiate legal action against the hospital and doctors who might have committed negligence or malpractice. They often have their own legal teams working full-time to protect their clients and deny claims, or reduce settlement amounts.

When you employ an New York birth injury lawyer who can hold the medical professionals responsible for your injuries. Your lawyer will handle communication with insurance companies and will make your claim to the court, and develop solid evidence-based arguments to prove the responsibility. They will also work to secure you an appropriate settlement or jury verdict to cover your losses and future healthcare costs. They can also file a lawsuit in time for any applicable statute of limitation when the clock begins to run from the day the malpractice or negligence occurred.

Statute of limitations

A successful claim for compensation in a birth injury case is based on four components. Your attorney can explain each element and create a strong legal argument in support of your claim.

Medical negligence claims require proving that the defendant owed you the obligation of care and Birth Injury that the defendant violated this obligation, and that the breach directly resulted in the injuries to your child. To be successful in a claim it is essential that you establish causation, which means that the injuries suffered by your child wouldn't have occurred but for the actions of the defendant (or failure to act).

The defendants have the option of challenging any of these elements. They may argue that there is no doctor-patient relationship or that standard of care isn't what you claim it is. They may also challenge your proof or the opinions of your expert witnesses.

You'll need medical records, other documents in addition to a statement describing what went wrong during the birth of your child. You will also need to make an application for a demand form that includes the names of all people you believe should be named defendants. A skilled lawyer can help to identify the proper defendants and ensure that there is adequate insurance coverage. A lawyer can help advance costs related to litigation, including the fees of highly experienced medical experts. This could help ease some of the financial burden that comes with litigating a claim for birth injury.