15 Shocking Facts About Birth Injury Case That You Never Knew
Birth Injury Compensation
If your child suffers a birth injury resulting from the negligence of a doctor or wrongful action, it can be devastating. These injuries typically require lifetime treatment and care, leaving you with enormous financial costs.
Additionally, many birth injury cases are an intricate debate over medical malpractice versus medical mistakes. Our lawyers can explain the distinctions.
Costs of Treatment
In determining the amount to give for a birth injury lawyers from insurance companies and judges take into account the degree of the injury as well as its impact on the child's life quality. If a child needs extensive medical treatment that continues in the future the value of the claim will rise.
Medical treatment for birth injuries can be very expensive. Compensation for birth injuries could assist families with these costs. Lawyers often work with experts in putting together an "Life Care Plan," which calculates the life-time costs incurred by a child's injury. These costs include hospitalization, surgery, medical treatments such as prescriptions, home repairs and equipment, etc.
Your legal team will collect medical documents from the pregnancy and birth of your child, in addition to personal accounts from relatives. They will use these records to show that your child suffered an injury due to medical negligence and to demonstrate the extent of the damage caused.
Many states have medical indemnity funds, which provide financial aid to families of children who suffer birth injuries. These funds pay a portion of the malpractice insurance premiums or require hospitals and doctors to contribute to the pool of resources. These programs can help families with financial assistance and help reduce the need to file a suit. JLARC staff however found that these programs didn't always achieve their goals and need to be improved.
Life Care Planning
Children who suffer from disorders like cerebral palsy and hypoxic ischemic brain disease will have permanent medical requirements. These requirements include physical therapy, specialized equipment, and home health care. In many cases, these costs can be quite substantial.
A life-care planning plan is an important document that outlines the future medical, educational home, and other expenses a child with disabilities will have to pay for throughout his or her lifetime. These plans are frequently used to calculate the financial portion of damages in a birth injury lawsuit. They must be comprehensive and carefully drafted to meet the strict requirements of evidence for admission in court.
Experts in life-care planning may assist in the development of these documents based on the input and formal opinions from a child's doctors, therapists, and caregivers. The plans also contain an in-depth description of the injury's initial diagnosis. They also explain the root causes of the disability as well as its long-term consequences.
A medical malpractice attorney must collaborate with a life-care planner to create the most effective plan for their client's needs. The aim of the plan is to ensure your child is compensated enough to cover all future expenses and health care. The money is usually placed in a trust to cover special needs, and is overseen by an administrator approved by the trustee. Typically the amount allotted will be re-adjusted periodically to reflect changes in your child's requirements.
Suffering and Pain
In a birth injury lawsuit, damages are awarded for a plaintiff's past and future suffering and pain. This includes the physical and mental suffering caused by the injury as and the inability to take part in activities that others could be able to do.
It is also possible to recuperate for income loss if the disability of a victim limits their career options or prohibits them from working at all. Families can also be compensated for the care and treatment of an injured child.
Medical malpractice claims often have very high verdicts because juries tend to show empathy for the victims and hold doctors accountable for birth injury lawsuit errors. Many doctors and hospitals settle rather than risk a trial that is expensive and difficult for all parties involved.
During the litigation, lawyers for both sides will collect evidence to prove their points. They will share documents in a process known as discovery, which is the process of the deposition of witnesses to obtain statements under an oath. The defendants may also request to see the plaintiff's medical records which is permitted in many states.
A successful birth injury lawsuit requires a lawyer who has experience in these kinds of cases. An experienced lawyer will examine the details of your case, determine if the case meets the legal requirements and make sure you get the best settlement for your financial needs.
Punitive Damages
Some medical malpractice suits include punitive damage awards which are meant to serve as a warning and deter future negligence. They are awarded in instances of grave negligence or when there was intentional misconduct on the part the doctor. However, they are extremely rare in cases of birth injuries.
After the attorney has identified the appropriate defendants, they must find and analyze evidence to back up their assertions. They must prove that the injuries caused by the medical professionals did not conform to the standards of care. The legal team must also prove the losses that were incurred with the injuries, referred to as "damages." These damages could be economic or non-economic.
Economic losses are usually calculated by estimating the cost of the child's ongoing medical treatment, which includes long-term care facilities as well as other services. It is also possible to include the loss of earnings if the injury caused one or both parents to quit their jobs.
The legal team will develop a demand package that they will present to the malpractice insurers. The document will explain the birth injury and its effect on the child's family and in order to seek compensation to cover the costs of these loss. The attorneys will negotiate with medical professionals until an agreement is reached. During the discovery process, attorneys will share information with the other party on their case. This may include taking depositions of witnesses who testify on oath.