Medical Malpractice Settlement Strategies That Will Change Your Life

How to File a Medical Malpractice Case

A patient who discovers an object foreign to the body such as surgical clamps inside her body following gall bladder surgery can make a claim for medical malpractice. A successful claim must demonstrate the elements of medical malpractice: duty, deviation from the norm and direct reason.

Our clients must establish a direct connection between the breach of duty, and the injury. This is referred to as proximate cause.

Cause of Injury

A medical malpractice claim may be filed by the injured person or an attorney. This could be the spouse or adult child guardian, parent or administrator of the estate of a deceased patient depending on the specific circumstances. The plaintiff in a medical malpractice suit is the health professional. This could be a doctor, nurse, therapist or any other licensed health professional.

Malpractice cases usually require the testimony of experts. Medical experts must provide evidence to prove that the doctor was acting in accordance with the standards of medical care within their specific field of expertise. They must also testify to the harm caused by the actions or inactions of the doctor.

Injury caused by negligence and mistakes can be devastating. For instance, a wrong diagnosis of a health condition can have life-threatening effects. Other types of injuries involve operating on the wrong body part or putting surgical instruments in the patient.

The patient must prove four legal elements of a malpractice claim the duty owed to the patient by the physician; a breach of this duty; an injury caused by the breach; and resulting damages. In some states, like New York, the law puts a limit on amount of money that can be awarded for the malpractice claim.

Causation

The injury element, also known as causation, is among the most important elements of medical malpractice cases. To prove causation, a plaintiff must show that they sustained the injury based on a balance of probabilities as a result of the negligence of a physician. This can be a challenging task for several reasons.

For instance, many injuries that are the subject of a medical-malpractice lawsuit stem from long-term or ongoing conditions that were present prior to treatment. Often the statute of limitations for a medical malpractice lawsuit extends over a variety of years, and injuries may develop slowly.

In these instances the proof that a medical malpractice lawyer professional's breached the standard of care led to the injury is difficult. However, the person who was harmed could be able to make use of evidence collected by the attorney, like medical documents and expert testimony.

During the discovery process, which is part of the legal procedure for preparation for trial, your lawyer may seek disclosure of expert testimony and other evidence from defendants' attorneys. The doctor who is representing the case will be asked to give a deposition. This is a testimonies that is made under the oath. Your lawyer may challenge the doctor's findings and cross-examine them. The jury will decide whether the plaintiff has proved the elements of the case including breach of duty, breach of contract and causation.

Negligence

If a claim for medical malpractice is filed, the plaintiff will have to convince the jury that it was more likely than not that the physician violated professional duties and that the breaches resulted in injuries. The plaintiff's attorney must be able to prove this by utilizing evidence collected during discovery. This includes requesting documents, including medical records and other records from all parties in a lawsuit. Depositions, in which the statements are made under oath and recorded to be used at trial, are also a part of this procedure.

A doctor has breached their professional duty if they did something reasonable and prudent doctors would not have done under the same circumstances. However it must be proved that the breach directly caused injury to the patient. This is referred to as causation or proximate causes. A patient might go to the hospital in order to repair a hernia, but end up having their gall bladder removed. This is medical negligence because the procedure was not beneficial to the patient.

Medical malpractice lawsuits must be brought within a legally-defined period of time, called the statute of limitations, which varies according to the state. The patient who is injured must prove that the substandard care caused injury and then he or she must show how much compensation he or she deserves.

Damages

If medical negligence has led you to sustain an injury, you are entitled to be compensated. At Scaffidi & Associates, we can assist you in obtaining full and fair compensation for your loss.

The first step is filing and serving an order and complaint on all defendants named in the lawsuit. The parties then begin discovery, a process by which documents and statements are revealed under oath. Medical records and the notes of a doctor are typically requested during discovery.

In the majority of states, to receive compensation for injuries caused by negligence, you must to establish four elements such as a duty of care that the healthcare provider is obligated to perform, a breach of this obligation; a causal connection between the breach and injury and housesofindustry.org damages resultant from the injury. If your attorney can establish all of these elements, then you've got an extremely strong case for financial compensation in a medical malpractice claim.

In some instances courts may make punitive damages available, which are designed to punish the offender and deter others from engaging in similar misconduct. It is not common, however, in medical malpractice cases. The courts must have clear evidence of malice before they can give these extraordinary damages.