15 Surprising Stats About Medical Malpractice Law

Why You Need a Medical Malpractice Lawyer

A medical malpractice attorney can help injured victims get compensation for their losses. The legal system that regulates medical malpractice cases is based on common law.

In the common law, doctors are required to follow a certain standard of care when treating patients. If a doctor deviates from the accepted medical norms and results in a death or injury, he may be liable for negligence.

Duty of Care

Medical professionals are expected to adhere to a set standard that are accepted by the medical profession as being reasonable and prudent in providing medical treatment. A patient might be legally able to bring a lawsuit for medical malpractice if the standards aren't met and the failure causes injuries or health issues.

The first element in a malpractice lawsuit is to prove that you were a patient of the healthcare provider and that they owed you an obligation to act in a reasonable way. The next step is to prove that the breach of that duty occurred. This is typically done an expert witness that can provide an objective analysis and medical malpractice attorney evaluation.

The expert witness will be able to help determine whether or not the defendant's actions fall below the accepted standard of care in your particular situation. To allow the expert to make this determination they must be able to examine your medical records and medical malpractice attorney conduct an examination or interview of you.

You must be able to establish that the breach directly led to your injury. Causation is the third element in a claim for malpractice. In most cases, you will require an immediate cause-and-effect connection between the breach of duty and the subsequent injury. For instance, a misdiagnosis could result in the wrong medication or treatment being administered and that in turn causes an adverse reaction, like heart attacks.

Breach of Duty

As with all other professionals who are legally obligated to act, doctors also have an obligation to exercise the utmost care and caution. Doctors are held to higher standards but because they are medical experts and have the authority to make life-or-death decisions. The duty of care can be found in the laws and standards that govern specific types of treatments and procedures.

One of the primary elements that must be proven in a negligence lawsuit is that the defendant owed a duty of care to the plaintiff. It must be proved that the defendant did not fulfill that duty of care. This means that the doctor did not live up to the standard of care applicable to the situation. The standard of care is typically determined by what an ordinary person would do in similar situations. For instance an honest driver would not run an intersection with a red light.

In a case of negligence, experts are usually needed to testify about the standard of care and the way in which it was violated. They can also discuss how the injury was caused and what could have been done to avoid it from occurring.

Damages

In the United States, physicians are required to have malpractice insurance to protect against potential losses that might arise from medical malpractice law firms negligence. In order to file a claim, the plaintiff will need to prove both financial losses (such medical expenses and lost wages), as well as noneconomic losses (such pain and suffering).

The amount you receive from a successful malpractice lawsuit is contingent on how effectively your New York medical malpractice attorney will argue for your losses. Your attorney can establish your medically necessary expenses through a review your medical records, the testimony of experts, and the use of economic experts. In order to prove your loss of earnings the medical malpractice lawyer must also demonstrate the number of days you were off work because of your medical complications and the fact that these absences were the result of the defendant's negligence.

Non-economic damages are more difficult to prove. You may need assistance from an expert witness who can explain your physical, mental and emotional suffering as a direct result of the defendant's negligence. Loss of consortium is a different type of non-economic harm. This is the inability to enjoy a romantic, sexual connection with your spouse or another significant individual as you once did. The lawyer representing the defendant will challenge your noneconomic damages by way of interrogatories, depositions, as well as requests for documents and sworn testimony.

Statute of Limitations

Like all states, New York has a statute of limitations that must be fulfilled before a medical malpractice claim can be filed. If not the court will not dismiss it. A New York medical malpractice attorney who has experience will be well-versed in the specifics of these deadlines and ensure that your claim is filed within the deadlines set by law.

In the majority of cases, victims of medical malpractice has to file his or her lawsuit within two and a half years of the date when the negligence or act of a healthcare professional resulted in the death or injury. As with all laws, this law is not without exceptions. If, for instance the error of the health care provider was a part of a continual treatment plan, then the "clock" of 30 months will not start until the treatment is completed or the patient is informed of the diagnosis.

In certain instances, a patient may not discover the problem until a considerable time later, for example the case where a foreign body is left in the body following surgery or treatment. Because of this, many states have enacted the legal concept known as the discovery rule, which allows injured victims to extend deadlines in certain situations. Your attorney will know the specific laws in your state and will go over the timeline of your case to avoid administrative errors that could delay your claim.