How to File a Medical Malpractice Case

A patient who discovers that an object foreign to the body like surgical clamps, remains 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, deviation from this duty, direct causes, and injury.

It is important for our clients to establish a direct connection between the breach of duty and springmall.net the injury, known as proximate causation.

Causes of Injury

A medical negligence case may be filed by the injured patient or by a person legally appointed to represent them. This could be the spouse, adult child or parent, guardian or administrator of an estate belonging to a deceased patient depending on the specific circumstances. In a medical malpractice case, the defendant is the health care provider. This could be a doctor, nurse or therapist, or any other health professional.

Malpractice cases usually involve many expert witnesses. Medical experts must testify as to whether the healthcare provider was acting in accordance with the standards of hughson medical malpractice attorney care within their specific field of expertise. They also need to testify on injuries caused by physician's actions or inactions.

Injuries caused by negligence and mistakes can be catastrophic. A misdiagnosis can have serious consequences, including an illness that could be life-threatening. Other kinds of injuries include operating on the incorrect body part or leaving surgical instruments inside the patient.

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

Causation

The element of injury is known as the causation. It is one of most crucial aspects of a medical malpractice claim. To prove causation, the plaintiff must prove that the injury was caused by the doctor's negligence. This can be a challenging task due to several reasons.

Many of the injuries that form the basis for medical negligence lawsuits result from long-term conditions or ongoing illnesses that existed before treatment began. Often the statute of limitations for a medical malpractice lawsuit extends out over a number of years, and injuries may develop slowly.

In these situations it can be difficult to prove that a specific medical professional's breach of standard of care caused the injury. However, the patient who was hurt could be able to make use of the evidence gathered by the attorney, including medical records and expert testimony.

In the discovery process, which is a part of the legal process prepping for a trial your lawyer may request that the defendants' lawyers disclose expert testimony and other documents. The doctor defending the lawsuit will then be required to testify in a deposition, which is the testimony under oath. Your lawyer will be able to cross-examine doctor and contest their findings. The jury will then decide if the plaintiff has proven the essential elements of their case such as duty, breach, causation and injury.

Negligence

When a medical negligence claim is filed the plaintiff has to convince the jury that it was more likely than not that the physician committed a breach of professional duties and those breaches resulted in injuries. The lawyer representing the plaintiff must demonstrate this with evidence gathered through pre-trial discovery, which involves asking for disclosure of documents such as medical records from all parties involved in the lawsuit. Depositions, where statements are made under oath and recorded for use at trial, are also part of this procedure.

A doctor breached the professional duties of a doctor when he/she did something that a reasonable prudent doctor would not do in similar circumstances. It must be proven that the breach resulted in injury directly to the patient. This is referred to as causation or proximate causes. For example when a patient is taken to the hospital for a hernia operation and then has his or his gall bladder removed instead. This is hot springs medical malpractice lawyer negligence since the procedure was not beneficial to the patient.

Medical malpractice lawsuits must be filed within a legally-defined period of time, called the statute of limitations, that varies from state to state. The person who suffered the injury must prove that the substandard treatment resulted in injury, and after that they must prove what monetary compensation they deserve.

Damages

If medical negligence caused you to suffer an injury, you have the right to be made whole. Scaffidi & Associates can help you receive a fair and complete compensation for your losses.

The first step in a lawsuit is to make a complaint and serve it or summons, as well as other documents on all defendants. The parties participate in discovery. This is a process which involves the disclosure of documents and statements made public under an oath. Medical records and the notes of the doctor are usually requested during discovery.

In most states, in order to receive compensation for injuries sustained through malpractice, you need to prove four things that include a duty of care that the healthcare provider is obligated to perform, 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 of these elements, you have an extremely strong case for financial recovery in a medical malpractice claim.

In certain instances the court can give punitive damages that is intended to punish the perpetrator and deter others from engaging in similar crimes. This isn't often however, especially in medical malpractice cases. The courts must have clear evidence of intent to commit a crime before they are able to give these extraordinary damages.