Why Medical Malpractice Settlement Might Be Your Next Big Obsession

How to File a Medical Malpractice Case

A patient who finds a foreign object such as surgical clamps in her body after gall bladder surgery can bring a lawsuit against a doctor for medical malpractice. A successful lawsuit must establish the elements of medical negligence: duty, deviation from the norm and direct cause.

It is crucial for our clients to establish a direct connection between the breach of duty and the harm, known as proximate causation.

Causes of Injury

A medical malpractice claim may be filed by the victim or a legal representative. Depending on the circumstances this could be a spouse of the patient or an adult child parent, guardian ad-litem or executor or administrator of the estate of the patient who died. The plaintiff in a medical malpractice suit is the health professional. This could be a licensed doctor, nurse or therapist.

The majority of cases involving malpractice involve a lot of expert testimony. Medical experts are required to testify whether or whether the health professional adhered to the standards of care for their particular field. They must also testify to the harm resulting from the doctor’s actions or inactions.

Injuries that result from malpractice or negligence can be very severe. For example, a mistake in the diagnosis of a health issue could cause life-threatening complications. Other kinds of injuries be caused by operating on an incorrect body part or putting surgical instruments in the patient.

To prove a malpractice case the patient must demonstrate four legal elements: a duty that the physician owed to them; a breach of the breach; a resulting injury and medical malpractice lawsuits damages. In certain states, like New York, the law sets a limit on the amount of money that can be awarded in an injury resulting from a malpractice claim.

Causation

The injury element, also known as causation is one of the most important elements in a medical malpractice case. To establish causation, the plaintiff must show that they sustained their injury on the balance of probabilities because of the negligence of a physician. This can be a difficult task due to a variety of reasons.

For instance, a lot of injuries that are the basis of a medical malpractice lawsuit stem from long-term, or ongoing conditions that were already present prior to treatment. Often the statute of limitations for a claim involving medical malpractice is extended over a period of years and the injuries can develop gradually.

In these instances it can be difficult to prove that a particular medical professional's breach of standard of care led to the injury. However, the patient who was hurt might be able use evidence collected by the attorney, including medical documents and expert testimony.

In the discovery process as part of the legal process for the preparation of a trial your attorney can request that the defendants' lawyers disclose expert testimony and other documents. The doctor who is representing the case will be asked to appear in deposition. This is a declaration that's given under oath. Your lawyer can challenge the doctor's findings and cross-examine them. The jury will decide if the plaintiff has proven all the elements of the case which include breach of duty, breach and causation.

Negligence

When a medical negligence claim is filed the plaintiff must to convince the jury that it was more likely than not that the physician committed a breach of professional duties and those breached duties caused harm. The plaintiff's attorney must demonstrate this through evidence obtained during discovery. This includes requesting documents, including medical records from all parties involved in a lawsuit. Depositions, where statements are made under oath, and recorded for trial, are also part of this procedure.

A doctor breached his or her professional obligations when he/she did something that a prudent doctor would not do in similar circumstances. It must be proved that the breach was the cause of the injury directly to the patient. This is referred to as causation or the proximate cause. For instance when a patient is taken to the hospital for a hernia operation and is later told that he or the gall bladder removed instead. This is medical malpractice as the removal of the gall bladder was not beneficial to the patient.

Medical malpractice lawsuits must be filed within a legally defined period of time, also known as the statute of limitations, that varies from state to state. The injured patient must establish that the substandard care resulted in injury, and then he or she must show how much compensation he or she deserves.

Damages

You deserve to be compensated for any injuries that you've suffered as a result of medical negligence. Scaffidi & Associates can help you receive full and fair compensation for your losses.

The first step is filing and serving a complaint and summons on all named defendants in the lawsuit. The parties engage in discovery. This is a process where documents and statements are made public under the oath. Medical records and notes of the doctor are usually requested during discovery.

In the majority of states, to receive compensation for injuries caused by negligence, you must to prove four things including a duty of good faith owed by the healthcare provider, a breach of this duty; a causal link between the breach and injury; and damages that result from the injury. If your lawyer can prove all of these elements, you will have a strong case for financial compensation in a medical malpractice attorney malpractice case.

In certain cases the court can make punitive damages available, which are intended to penalize the perpetrator and discourage others from engaging in similar misconduct. This is rare however, especially in medical malpractice cases. The courts must have very clear evidence of malice before they can make these extraordinary awards.