Malpractice Compensation: The Good The Bad And The Ugly

Medical Malpractice Settlements

It can be difficult to receive the full amount of compensation for medical malpractice. Victims of malpractice are required to bargain with the doctor who is accused and their insurance company who are legally recognized as defendants.

Victims are entitled to compensation for their damages but how do judges and juries calculate the value of a case? This article will explore the main factors that go into an agreement for a malpractice settlement.

Damages

In general the case of a settlement for medical malpractice is composed of two kinds of damages: economics and non-economics. Economic damages are based upon calculable losses, which include medical bills and future care costs. Non-economic damages include pain and suffering, disfigurement and loss of enjoyment of living.

Your attorney and you will consult with economists and financial experts to determine the worth of your damages. If you suffer permanent disability due to negligence of a physician, then the value of future lost income is also calculated. This is called present value and is a complex calculation your lawyer will engage an expert to help with.

It is important to have an expert medical malpractice lawyer on your side. You could be entitled to thousands or millions of dollars in compensation depending on the severity and the extent of your injury.

Many types of medical malpractice are covered by a high settlement amount that includes missed diagnoses, prenatal mistakes that cause maternal suffering, and minor surgical errors. Certain malpractice cases however, have lower settlement amounts. These include minor surgical mistakes or allergic reactions that can be treated with medications. These kinds of injuries aren't likely to result in a disability that lasts a lifetime and do not need the same compensation as severe injuries that require ongoing treatment.

Costs of litigation

Like any malpractice case there are many factors that influence the worth of a medical malpractice settlement. These include economic damages that are the price of your past and future costs resulting from the malpractice lawsuit incident, as well as non-economic damages.

The first is the cost of the medical bills you've suffered, the anticipated cost of any future medical treatment, and any lost earnings from being unable to work due to your injury. The latter is compensation for the suffering, pain, and reduced quality of life that you have endured because of the negligence that caused your injury. Non-economic damages are based on the severity of an injury. This is determined using the severity multiplier (also known as a multiplier) that ranges between two and five.

While it might seem that malpractice lawsuits are dragging doctors to the courtroom for frivolous accusations however, the reality is that malpractice suits represent only about 0.3 percent of healthcare expenses and are vital to ensure patients get the medical treatment they need. Most medical malpractice cases are settled outside of court by lawyers who calculate the appropriate amount of money.

Aside from state laws establishing the minimum value of a case involving medical malpractice the place in which your claim is filed can affect the value of your claim. For example, jurors in Baltimore City and Prince George's County are generally very favorable toward victims of medical malpractice, while Anne Arundel, Carroll County and Montgomery County are less so.

Attorney's Fees

In the majority of medical malpractice lawsuits your lawyer will be paid on a contingency basis. This means that the attorney will not get paid unless they are able to negotiate a settlement or a verdict for you, whether through negotiations or trial. This is an excellent option to get top-quality legal representation without needing to cover the initial expenses of hiring an attorney in a typical case.

If a malpractice case is successful, your lawyer will charge you a certain percentage of the amount you receive in compensation. It's usually 33%, but may vary depending on the experience of your lawyer and knowledge. Since your lawyer is only paid if they recover money for you, their interests are aligned with yours. They will always work hard to maximize the amount of money you receive from your malpractice settlement.

This arrangement could be beneficial for some victims, but it could also be harmful when dealing with medical malpractice cases. Having a fee arrangement that places the financial interests of lawyers against the interests of their clients is harmful to the relationship between the lawyer and the client. Additionally, this type of fee structure creates an incentive to advise clients to take a lesser amount than what their case is worth, which could be detrimental in a number of instances.

Settlements Outside of the Courtroom

Despite what you may be seeing on television, over 90 percent of viable malpractice cases settle out of court with the help of attorneys who calculate a fair settlement. This is due to the fact that large insurance companies are more inclined to avoid costly litigation.

During negotiations for a settlement the injured claimants can seek compensation for both economic and non-economic losses. Economic damages are a way to cover past and future medical bills as well as any medication or rehabilitation therapy costs. The damages also cover lost wages due to the absence from work because of it.

Non-economic damages, on the other hand, deal with mental stress and loss of quality of life. Mental anguish is characterized by severe emotional distress, which can cause post-traumatic disorder or apathy, as well as anger. Loss in quality of life results from the inability to exercise and sleep or maintain healthy relationships.

Many doctors and insurers believe that malpractice claims are creating an unjust trend of increasing settlements. Medical negligence claims account for 0.3 percent of healthcare costs, according to research and data.

A settlement that is not in court lets the victim keep their privacy, and prevents public disclosure about what happened. Contrarily, going to trial forces the victim to revisit what they suffered and potentially expose them to judgments that are hurtful from others. This is why the decision to settle a case out-of-court an important decision that every victim should carefully consider.