logo

How to File a Medical Malpractice Case

A patient who discovers a foreign object such as surgical clamps within her body after gall bladder surgery could make a claim for medical negligence. A successful claim must establish the legal elements of medical negligence: duty, deviance from this duty, direct causes, and injury.

Our clients must establish a direct link between the breach of duty and the injury. This is referred to as the proximate reason.

Cause of Injury

A medical malpractice claim can be filed either by the victim or an attorney. This can be the spouse or adult child, parent, guardian or administrator of the estate of a deceased patient, based on the circumstances. The plaintiff in a suit for medical malpractice lawyer negligence is the health professional. This could be a doctor, nurse or therapist, or any other health professional.

Expert testimony is usually required in malpractice cases. Medical experts must be able to prove whether or not the health care provider was in compliance with the standard of care for their specific area. They must also testify to the damage caused by the actions or inactions of the doctor.

Injury caused by negligence and malpractice can be severe. An incorrect diagnosis can lead to serious consequences, like life-threatening conditions. Other kinds of injuries involve operating on the wrong body part or leaving surgical instruments inside the patient.

The patient must prove four legal elements in a malpractice claim that include a duty owed to the patient by the physician or a breach of the duty; injury caused by the breach and the resulting damages. In certain states, like New York, the law restricts the amount of money that can be awarded for a malpractice claim.

Causation

The injury element, also referred to as causation, is one of the most important elements in a medical malpractice case. To prove causation, the plaintiff must prove that they sustained the injury on the basis of probabilities as a result of the physician's negligence. This can be a challenging task due to a variety of reasons.

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

In these cases, it is difficult to prove that a certain medical professional's violation of the standards of care caused the injury. The attorney could have gathered evidence, including medical records and expert testimony that the injured person can use.

During the discovery process, which is an integral part of the legal procedure for prepping for trial, your lawyer will request disclosure of expert testimony as well as other documents from defendants' attorneys. The doctor who is defending the case will be required to testify in deposition. This is a testimonies which is under an oath. Your lawyer is able to cross-examine doctor and contest their conclusions. The jury will decide if the plaintiff has proven the elements of the case which include breach of duty, breach and causation.

Negligence

The plaintiff must convince the jury, when filing a claim for medical malpractice, that it is more likely that the doctor acted in violation of his or her responsibilities as a physician and that those violations caused injury. The plaintiff's attorney must demonstrate this through evidence gathered during discovery. This involves soliciting documents, including medical records and other records from all parties in the lawsuit. This process also includes sworn statements that are recorded and used at trial.

A doctor has breached their professional obligation when they did something that a reasonable and prudent doctor would not have done under the same circumstances. It must be proved that the breach caused the injury directly to the patient. This is known as causation or causal proximate causes. For instance the patient is admitted to the hospital for a hernia procedure and is then able to have his or his gall bladder removed instead. This is medical malpractice law firms negligence because the removal did not benefit the patient.

Medical malpractice suits must be filed within a certain time limit, known as the statute of limitations. This differs from state to state. The person who suffered the injury must show that the inadequate treatment resulted in injury, and after that they must show what compensation they're entitled to.

Damages

If medical negligence has led you to suffer an injury, you are entitled to be compensated. Scaffidi & Associates can help you receive fair and full compensation for your losses.

The first step in a lawsuit is to file and serve a complaint as well as summons and other documents on all defendants. The parties then proceed to discovery, a process by which documents and statements are disclosed under oath. During discovery medical records and notes from a doctor are typically requested.

In many states, to get compensation for injuries caused by negligence, you must to establish four elements such as a duty of care owed by the healthcare provider and a breach of that obligation; a causal connection between the breach and injury; and damages resultant from the injury. If your lawyer can prove all of these elements, you have an excellent case for financial compensation in a medical malpractice claim.

In certain instances, a court may make punitive damages available, which are intended to penalize the wrongdoer and deter others from committing the same offense. This is not the norm however, in medical malpractice cases. The courts must have clear evidence of malice before they can decide to award these extraordinary damages.