"Ask Me Anything": Ten Answers To Your Questions About Medical Malpractice Litigation

Four Elements of a Medical Malpractice Case

Physicians are concerned about malpractice lawsuits as an actual threat. They drive up physician insurance costs and may alter the medical practice.

In general, doctors owe patients the obligation to follow accepted medical practices without any deviation or the slightest omission. This is called the standard of care.

To sue a doctor over malpractice, a patient has to be able to prove the following elements by a majority: breach of duty, duty of duty, causation and damages.

Duty of Care

The most important element in a medical malpractice case is that the person injured was owed a duty by a doctor that was not met. Medical malpractice claims are different from other negligence cases because they usually involve a physician-patient relationship, which can be established by things like doctor's records or telephone consultations. In general, physicians who treat patients must adhere to accepted guidelines in their field and practice.

Doctors can also be held responsible for the negligence or incompetence of their staff members, medical malpractice lawsuit for example, assistants or interns. Additionally, they can be held liable for the actions of emergency medical personnel working under their supervision.

The next thing that a plaintiff has to prove is that the defendant failed to satisfy the standard of medical care in the specific circumstances. This is only proven through expert testimony on acceptable medical practices and the defendant's reluctance to comply with these standards. The second aspect of malpractice is that this breach directly caused injury to the patient. To prove that you have committed a crime your lawyer must to show that the breach of duty by the defendant directly caused your injury or the death of a loved one. This concept is known as the proximate cause. If, for instance, the alleged negligent treatment would not have had an adverse effect on your health, regardless of whether or not it was performed in a way that was harmful, you will not be able to claim damages for any injuries, or even wrongful death that was allegedly cause by the physician's behavior.

Breach of Duty

A doctor who fails to fulfill his or her duty of professional care to a patient can be held accountable for negligent behavior. To win a medical malpractice case, the injured party must prove four elements: that there was a duty of care and the doctor breached the duty, that the breach resulted in injuries, and then the injury caused damages. The first element of a medical malpractice lawsuit centers around the standard of care which is determined through expert testimony. The standard of care is defined as what would a "reasonably prudent" doctor would do in similar or similar circumstances.

The breach of this obligation occurs when he is not following the standard of care while providing treatment to the patient. If a doctor fractures the arm of a patient he or she may fail to cast it correctly. The doctor's infraction of this duty causes the broken arm to heal incorrectly, resulting in the complete or partial loss of use, and further financial damages.

In the majority of instances, medical malpractice lawsuits are filed with state trial courts. However in certain circumstances federal courts are also able to be able to hear these cases. The 94 federal districts courts across the United States each have a judge and jury panel that handles these cases. A majority of states have a system of state courts that handle these cases. However, they have different rules for court procedures than federal district courts.

Causation

Physicians swear to not cause harm, and should they violate this obligation and cause injury patients may be entitled to compensation for the damages. A medical malpractice lawsuit could occur when a doctor decides to perform a procedure that carries known risks, and the patient would have declined the procedure if they had been fully informed of the potential consequences.

The plaintiff in a medical malpractice lawsuit must show that the doctor did not comply with accepted standards of practice, that the failure was the primary cause of the illness or injury the patient suffered and that the harm would not have occurred but for the physician's negligence. This burden of proof is known as the "preponderance of the evidence" standard, which is less demanding than the "beyond a reasonable doubt" standard used to convict criminal defendants.

Medical malpractice lawsuits typically require expert testimony and lengthy pretrial discovery procedures. Both sides invest a lot of time and resources in the preparation of a case, whether it's settled or if it is a court case. This is a major reason why malpractice claims are expensive for both the plaintiff and the physician involved. It is one of the main reasons that physicians and health care groups are a part of efforts to reform tort law in the United States.

Damages

Depending on the kind of medical negligence, the victims can seek compensatory or punitive damages. Compensatory damages pay for financial losses and expenses caused by the negligence of a physician like loss of income or cost of future medical care. Non-economic damages could include the compensation for physical and mental anxiety.

Medical malpractice claims are usually filed in a state trial court. However, medical malpractice lawsuit there are instances where a lawsuit could be filed in federal court. This is typically the case when doctors are employed by a clinic that is funded by federal funds such as the Veterans Administration or in the case of a doctor who is from another country but practices in the United States as part of an agreement with extraterritorial authority.

Medical malpractice lawsuits are mostly adversarial and involve extensive legal discovery. This includes depositions, written interrogatories and requests for production of documents. The victims of medical negligence may also have to endure a jury trial, and face the possibility of their claim being rejected by a judge or rejected by a juror.

You must demonstrate that medical negligence or mistake caused the injury you suffered to win a case for medical negligence. The damage must be serious enough that a monetary award would substantially make up for your financial losses and emotional trauma. New York medical malpractice law also has damage caps, and other limitations on the amount a patient can receive when they are successful in bringing an appeal.