How to File a Medical Malpractice Case

A patient who finds that an object foreign to her like surgical clamps, remain inside her body following gall bladder surgery can be able to file a lawsuit for medical malpractice. A successful claim must establish the legal elements of medical negligence: duty, deviance from this obligation, direct cause and injury.

Our clients must establish a direct connection between the breach of duty and the injury. This is known as the proximate reason.

The reason for injury

A medical malpractice claim may be filed either by the injured person or an attorney. Based on the specific circumstances, this could be a spouse of the patient, an adult child or parent, guardian ad-litem or administrator or executor of the estate of the patient who died. The plaintiff in a lawsuit for medical malpractice is the health professional. It could be an accredited nurse, doctor or therapist.

Expert testimony is usually required in cases of malpractice. Medical experts are required to testify on whether or whether the healthcare provider followed the standard of care for their particular area of expertise. They must also testify as to the harm resulting from the actions or inactions of the doctor.

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

In order to establish a malpractice case the patient must demonstrate four legal elements: a duty that the physician owed to them; a breach of this duty; a subsequent injury; and damages. In certain states, like New York the law limits the amount of money that can be awarded for a malpractice claim.

Causation

The injury element, also referred to as causation, is one of the most crucial elements in a medical malpractice case. To establish causation the plaintiff must demonstrate that their injury was caused by the physician's negligence. This is a challenging task due to several reasons.

A lot of the injuries that form the basis of a medical negligence lawsuit result from long-term illnesses or conditions that existed prior to when treatment started. The time-limit for medical malpractice cases can be extended over a period of time and injuries may develop slowly.

In these cases it is often difficult to prove that a specific medical professional's breach of the standard of care caused the injury. However, the patient who was hurt might be able use evidence collected by the attorney, such as medical documents and expert testimony.

During the discovery process, which is an integral part of the legal process for prepping for trial, your lawyer can request the disclosure of expert testimony and other documents from the lawyers of the defendants. The doctor who is defending the lawsuit will then be called to testify during depositions, which are testimony under oath. Your lawyer may challenge the doctor's findings and cross-examine them. The jury will then decide whether the plaintiff has proved the necessary elements of their case, including the duty of care, breach, causation and injury.

Negligence

The plaintiff must convince the jury in a case of Medical malpractice law firms malpractice, that it is likely that the physician violated his or her responsibilities as a physician and that those breaches resulted in injury. The lawyer representing the plaintiff must show this through evidence gathered through pretrial discovery, which entails seeking disclosure of documents, which includes medical records from all parties involved in the lawsuit. Depositions, wherein statements are made under oath and recorded for use at trial, are also part of this procedure.

A doctor has violated their professional obligation by doing something that a reasonable and prudent doctor would not have done in the same circumstances. However it must be proven that the breach directly caused injury to the patient. This is referred to as causation or proximate cause. A patient might visit the hospital to repair a hernia but end up having their gall bladder removed. This is medical negligence as the procedure was not beneficial to the patient.

Medical malpractice lawsuits must be filed within the legal period, referred to as the statute of limitations. This differs from state to state. The patient who was injured must prove that the negligent treatment caused injury, and then they must show what compensation they are entitled to.

Damages

You are entitled to compensation for any injuries you have suffered due to medical negligence. Scaffidi & Associates can help you receive full and fair compensation for your losses.

The first step in a lawsuit is to file and serve a complaint, summons and other documents on all defendants. The parties then participate in discovery, a process in which documents and declarations are made public under the oath. Medical records and the doctor's notes are typically requested during discovery.

In most states, to be eligible for compensation for injuries incurred by malpractice, you have to prove four things such as a duty of care that is due to the healthcare provider, a breach of this duty; a causal link between the breach and injury and damages resulting from the injury. If your lawyer can prove all of these elements of a medical negligence claim, you'll have a strong case.

In some cases the court can decide to award punitive damages. These are intended to penalize the offender and deter others from engaging in similar misconduct. However, this is rare in medical malpractice cases as courts require clear evidence of malice to make these extraordinary awards.