Birth Injury Legal Help

When a child is born suffering from an injury or illness due to medical negligence families are confronted with massive financial burdens. A birth injury lawyer can assist families obtain compensation to pay for medical expenses and improve the quality of life for their children.

To prevail in a birth injury lawsuit, families must demonstrate four elements:

Statute of Limitations

Regardless of how the injury occurred, it's crucial to seek legal advice as soon as you suspect that medical negligence. This will ensure that your claim is filed in time for your state's statutes of limitations and you will have enough time to construct a strong claim and get fair compensation.

A person generally has two and a half (2-1/2 years) to bring a lawsuit for medical malpractice. The time period begins from the date of the incident. New York law extends this deadline to 10 years in lawsuits brought on behalf of children, provided the child has not reached their 18th birthday.

In order to win a birth-related injury lawsuit, you must show that the defendant violated their obligation to you by causing your child's injuries. Causation is established by expert testimony and documents that show the best practices and have been accepted by the medical community.

Your attorney will conduct an investigation and collect the relevant evidence in your case, including medical records and tests results from both you and your child. Then, they'll identify potential defendants and request the necessary documents from the insurance companies. Once complete, they will send a demand note to the at-fault parties asking for financial damages. If they refuse to negotiate then your lawyer will file a lawsuit in court. A lawsuit is usually resolved by trial, with each side presenting evidence and arguments before a jury and a judge.

Medical Experts

Birth injuries can cause devastating harm to the child and his family. It is essential to seek legal help as soon as you can. The attorney can then build an evidence-based case using medical records and depositions of doctors. Lawyers can also request a medical expert to give an opinion or analyze the case. This is an essential step in any medical malpractice case.

Many birth injuries are difficult to prove, as the symptoms may not be evident until a long time later. Parents may not be aware of birth injuries until their child has failed to meet developmental milestones or their pediatrician has stated that there are intellectual and physical deficits. A possible injury may be detected by indicators such as admission to the NICU or a need for a CT or MRI scan following the birth.

Causation is also an essential element in a successful lawsuit for birth injuries. You must show that the defendant's failure in duty caused your child to be injured. If the doctor hadn't committed the breach of duty, then your child would not have sustained an injury.

Most medical malpractice cases that involve birth injury and birth injuries, are settled outside of court. In a settlement, defendants must reach an agreement on an amount in dollars to settle the claim. The amount must reflect your present and future damages. Your lawyer will work with medical and financial experts to determine the appropriate amount.

Defendants

In order to be successful in a birth injury lawsuit, you must prove that your medical professional breached their duty of care. This is usually done by obtaining the opinion of a medical expert witness. The medical expert will examine the evidence of your case, including depositions from the doctors involved in your case as well as any medical records. He or she will establish whether your doctor's actions were accordance with the proper standard of care required for professionals with similar training and expertise under the circumstances.

An attorney will also work with financial experts to evaluate your losses and determine reasonable damages that take into account the past, present and future expenses. Your attorney will negotiate with the hospital or physician's malpractice company and will file a lawsuit if necessary to obtain the maximum amount of compensation for the harms your child has sustained.

In contrast to the majority of lawsuits, birth injury cases often resolve in settlements. Settlements occur when all parties agree to pay a minimum amount of money and the legal process ceases. If your case doesn't resolve, it may be referred to trial, where an arbitrator and judge will decide what happens.

A birth injury is a serious medical issue that can have long-lasting effects for your child and family. It is essential to work closely with a birth injury lawyer who has experience dealing with such claims.

Settlement

Your attorney should be working to get a fair settlement for your family. This will depend on the severity of your child's injuries as well as the resulting demands. For instance, a serious birth injury could require many years of treatment, often all-hours-of-the-day. Your lawyer will consult medical and care experts in order to determine the amount of care required, and make an appropriate claim.

In many cases the hospital's or doctor's malpractice insurance company will offer to settle the matter without the need for litigation. In these situations your lawyer will file an order package that includes an exhaustive description of the facts of your case, along with a proposed amount of money to settle it. The insurance company will scrutinize your information and respond by counter-offering. Your lawyer will work with the insurance company to determine an appropriate settlement.

If a settlement isn't reached, your lawyer may file a lawsuit for medical negligence in the county of the injury. Based on the circumstances, you may claim as defendants your doctor and any other doctors or hospitals involved in the birth of your child and the injury. Your attorney will be able to gather more details after filing a lawsuit, including depositions and sworn testimonies from witnesses through the discovery process. This information will support your legal arguments.