How to File a Medical Malpractice Case

A patient who discovers an object foreign to her body, such as surgical clamps inside her body after gall bladder surgery can sue for medical negligence. A successful claim must establish the legal elements of medical negligence: duty, deviation from this duty, direct causes, and injury.

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

The reason for injury

A medical malpractice claim may be filed either by the person who suffered the injury or a legal representative. This could be a spouse or adult child, parent, guardian or administrator of an estate belonging to a deceased patient, depending on the circumstances. In a medical malpractice case the defendant is the health care provider. This could be a nurse, doctor, therapist or any other licensed health professional.

Expert testimony is usually required in malpractice cases. Medical experts are required to testify whether or the medical professional adhered to the standards of care for their particular field. They also need to testify on the injury caused by the doctor's actions or actions or.

The injuries that result from malpractice and negligence can be quite severe. A mistake in diagnosis can have devastating consequences, like a life-threatening condition. Other kinds of injuries be caused by operating on an incorrect body part or leaving surgical instruments inside the patient.

The patient must establish four legal elements of a malpractice lawsuit that include a duty owed to the patient by the doctor or a breach of the duty; injury caused by the breach; and the resulting damages. In some states, such as New York, the law sets a limit on the amount of money that can be awarded in an action for malpractice.

Causation

The injury element, also known as causation, is among the most crucial elements in medical malpractice cases. To prove causation the plaintiff must prove that they sustained their injury on the balance of probabilities because of the negligence of a physician. This can be a challenging task for a number of reasons.

Many of the injuries that form the basis for a medical negligence lawsuit result from long-term illnesses or conditions which were present before treatment started. The time period for filing a medical malpractice lawsuit can be extended over several years and injuries can develop slowly.

In these situations, it is difficult to prove that one particular medical malpractice attorney professional's breach of standards of care caused the injury. However, the patient who is afflicted might be able use evidence collected by the attorney, like medical documents and expert testimony.

During the discovery process that is part of the legal process prepping for a trial your attorney can request that the lawyers for the defendants be made aware of expert testimony and other documents. The doctor defending the lawsuit will then be called to testify during a deposition, which is testimony given under an oath. Your lawyer will be able to cross-examine doctor and challenge the doctor's findings. The jury will decide then if the plaintiff has proved the essential elements of their case including duty, breach, causation and injury.

Negligence

The plaintiff must convince jurors, in a case of medical malpractice, that it is more likely that the doctor violated his or her responsibilities as a physician and that those actions led to injury. The lawyer representing the plaintiff must demonstrate this with evidence gathered through pretrial discovery, which involves the disclosure of documents, including medical records from all parties involved in the lawsuit. Depositions, in which the statements are made under oath, and recorded for use at trial, are also a part of this process.

A doctor has breached their professional obligation in the event that they did something a reasonable and prudent doctor would not have done in similar circumstances. However it must be established that the breach directly caused injury to the patient. This is called causation or proximate causes. For instance, a patient goes to the hospital for a hernia procedure and ends up having his or her gall bladder removed instead. This is medical negligence since the removal did not benefit the patient.

Medical Malpractice Lawsuits (Jejucordelia.Com) must be brought within a legally prescribed period of time, also known as the statute of limitations that varies from state to state. The victim must prove that the care provided was substandard and resulted in injury, and then he or she must demonstrate the amount of compensation he or she deserves.

Damages

You should be compensated for any injuries you've suffered due to medical negligence. Scaffidi & Associates can help you receive fair and full compensation for your losses.

The first step is filing and serving a summons and complaint to all named defendants in the lawsuit. The parties then proceed to discovery, a process by which documents and statements are disclosed under oath. During discovery medical records and doctor's notes are usually requested.

In the majority of states, you need to prove four things to be compensated for injuries incurred by medical malpractice such as a duty due to the healthcare provider and a breach of the obligation; a causal connection between the breach and the injury suffered by the patient as well as damages that result from the injury. If your attorney can prove all of these elements of a medical negligence claim, you will have a strong case.

In certain cases the court can award punitive damages, which are designed to punish the perpetrator and discourage others from committing the same offense. This is rare however, in medical malpractice cases. The courts must have a clear evidence of malice before they can give these extraordinary damages.