10 Medical Malpractice Settlement-Friendly Habits To Be Healthy

How to File a Medical Malpractice Case

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

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

The reason for injury

A medical malpractice lawsuit can be filed by the person who was injured or a legal representative. Based on the circumstances, this could be the spouse of the patient or an adult child parent, guardian ad Litem or the executor or administrator of the estate of the patient who died. In a medical malpractice case the defendant is the health care provider. This could be a nurse, doctor or therapist, or any other licensed health professional.

Expert testimony is usually required in cases of malpractice. Medical experts must determine if the medical professional performed his duties in accordance with the standard of medical care within their special area of expertise. They must also testify to the damage caused by the actions or inactions of a doctor.

Injuries resulting from malpractice and negligence can be quite severe. For instance, a wrong diagnosis of a health condition can cause life-threatening complications. Other types of injuries include performing surgery on the wrong body part or putting instruments inside the patient during surgery.

The patient must establish four legal elements of a malpractice claim: a duty owed to the patient by the doctor and a breach of this duty; injury caused by the breach and the consequential damages. In certain states, such as New York the law limits the amount of money that can be awarded for a malpractice case.

Causation

The injury element, also known as causation, is one of the most important elements of a medical malpractice law firm malpractice case. To prove causation, medical malpractice Lawsuit the plaintiff must prove that the injury was caused by the doctor's negligence. This is a difficult task due to a variety 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 in the process of being treated prior to. The time limit for a medical malpractice case could be extended over the course of several years and injuries can develop slowly.

In these cases it is difficult to prove that a medical professional's failure to adhere to the standard of care and led to the injury is difficult. The attorney may have collected evidence, such as expert testimony and medical records that the injured person may use.

During the discovery process, which is a part of the legal procedure for prepping for trial, your lawyer will seek disclosure of expert testimony and other documents from the lawyers of the defendants. The doctor who is defending the case will be asked to take deposition. This is a testimonies that's given under an oath. Your lawyer can challenge doctor's findings and cross-examine them. The jury will decide then if the plaintiff has proven the necessary elements of their claim, which includes breach of duty, causation, breach of duty and injury.

Negligence

The plaintiff must convince the jury, when bringing a lawsuit for medical malpractice in court, that it is more than likely that the doctor acted in violation of his or her responsibilities as physician and that the violations caused injury. The lawyer for the plaintiff must prove this using evidence gathered through pretrial discovery, which entails the disclosure of documents, including medical records from all parties involved in the lawsuit. Depositions, where statements are made under oath, and recorded for trial, are also a part of this process.

A doctor breached the professional duties of a doctor if he or she did something that a prudent doctor would not do in the same 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 proximate cause. For instance, a patient goes to the hospital for a procedure to treat a hernia and ends up having his or the gall bladder removed instead. This is medical malpractice because the removal of the gall bladder did not benefit the patient.

Medical malpractice lawsuits must be filed within the legal time frame, also known as the statute of limitations. This is different from state to state. The patient who was injured must prove that the substandard treatment caused injury, and then they have to prove the amount of compensation they deserve.

Damages

You deserve to be compensated for any injuries you have suffered due to medical negligence. At Scaffidi & Associates, we will assist you in receiving full and fair compensation for your loss.

The first step is filing and serving the complaint and summons to all named defendants in the lawsuit. The parties then begin discovery, a process by which documents and statements are made public under the oath. Medical records and the doctor's notes are typically requested during discovery.

In the majority of states, to be eligible for compensation for injuries incurred by negligence, you must 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 these elements of a medical negligence claim, you will have an impressive case.

In some cases, courts can make punitive damages available, which are intended to punish the culprit and deter others from engaging in the same conduct. But, this isn't often the case in medical malpractice cases as courts require precise proof of malice before they can give these extraordinary awards.