Meet With The Steve Jobs Of The Medical Malpractice Litigation Industry

Four Elements of a Medical Malpractice Case

Malpractice lawsuits are a serious and real threat to physicians. They can raise insurance costs for doctors and alter the medical practice.

In general, doctors have an obligation to their patients to follow accepted medical malpractice attorneys practices. This is called the standard of care.

To successfully sue a doctor for negligence, the patient must prove each of the following legal elements by the preponderance of evidence: duty; breach of that duty; causation; and damages.

Duty of Care

The primary element in a medical malpractice case is that the person who was injured was owed a duty of a doctor that was violated. Medical malpractice claims are different from other types of negligence cases in that they often involve a physician-patient relationship, which can be established through documents from a doctor or telephone consultations. Generally, physicians who treat patients must adhere to the accepted standards of their profession and practice.

Doctors could also be held responsible for the incompetence or negligence of their staff, for example, assistants or interns. They may also be held accountable for the actions of emergency personnel working under their supervision.

The next thing that a plaintiff has to prove is that the defendant failed to meet the standards of care under the circumstances. This can be proved by expert testimony regarding acceptable medical practices and the defendant's inability to adhere to these standards. The second aspect is that the breach directly affected the patient. To prove that you have committed a crime your lawyer must to show that the breach of duty by the defendant directly caused your injury or death of your loved one. This is known as proximate reason. For instance, if the negligent treatment you claim to have received could not have had any negative impact on your health, irrespective of whether or not it was performed in a way that was harmful, you will not be able to get compensation for any injuries, or even wrongful death, that were allegedly cause by the physician's behavior.

Breach of Duty

A doctor who does not fulfill their obligation of care to the client could be held responsible for negligence. In order to win a medical malpractice case, the injured party must establish four elements: a duty of care existed and that the doctor breached the obligation and the breach resulted in injury, and that the injury caused damages. The standard of care is the primary element in a medical malpractice case, and it's established by expert testimony. The standard of care is the amount an "reasonably prudent" doctor would do in similar or identical circumstances.

A physician violates this duty when he or she strays from the normal care of the patient. For instance, if the physician breaks the arm of a patient, the doctor is not able to properly set the arm or fails to cast the broken arm. The physician's failure to perform this obligation causes the broken arm to heal improperly, which results in partial or full loss of use and subsequent monetary damages.

In the majority of cases, medical malpractice lawyer malpractice claims are filed in state trial courts. However, in certain circumstances federal courts are also able to be able to hear these cases. The 94 federal districts courts across the United States each have a judge and jury panel that is responsible for hearing these cases. Most states have a system of state courts that specialize in these cases, but with different rules of procedure than federal district courts.

Causation

Doctors swear to not cause harm, and if they fail to uphold that duty and cause injury, the patient may be entitled to compensation for damages. Medical malpractice claims could also arise if the doctor performs a treatment with known risks, and the patient wouldn't have consented to the procedure had they been fully informed.

The plaintiff in a medical malpractice lawsuit must prove that the physician did not follow accepted standards of practice, that this failure was the direct cause of the injury or illness the patient was suffering from, and that the injury could not have occurred if it weren't because of the negligence of a physician. This burden of proof is known as the "preponderance of the evidence" standard that is less stringent than the "beyond a reasonable doubt" standard used to convict criminal defendants.

Medical malpractice lawsuits typically involve expert witness testimony and lengthy discovery procedures prior to trial. Both parties invest a lot of time and money prepping for a trial, whether it is settled or if it goes to court. This is one of the main reasons why malpractice claims can be so costly for both the plaintiff and the doctor affected, and is one of the reasons that physicians and health care organizations are in favor of reforming tort law in the United States.

Damages

Victims can be awarded damages for punitive or compensatory, based on the kind of medical negligence. Compensation damages compensate victims for the financial losses and expenses due to the negligence of the doctor like loss of income or cost of future Medical Malpractice Law firms treatments. Non-economic damages could include the compensation for physical and mental anguish.

Medical malpractice claims are filed in state trial courts. However, there are situations where a lawsuit could be filed in federal court. This is typically the case when a doctor is employed at a federally funded clinic like the Veteran's Administration, or if the physician is from another country, but is working in the United States under a treaty of extraterritorial jurisdiction.

Medical malpractice lawsuits are adversarial and require extensive legal discovery. This includes written interrogatories, depositions, and requests for production of documents. Victims of alleged medical malpractice could also be subject to the pressure of a jury trial and may face the threat of being denied their claim by a judge or dismissed by the jury.

To be successful in a medical malpractice claim, you must prove that the medical negligence or error caused your injury. The injury must be significant enough that a financial settlement would substantially make up for your financial losses and Medical Malpractice Law firms emotional distress. Additionally, New York medical malpractice laws have certain damages caps and other limitations on the amount which can be awarded to a patient who is successful in bringing a claim.