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Things You Should Know About Birth Injury Malpractice Claims

Birth injuries can be devastating to parents and children alike. Medical professionals have a duty to identify complications and prevent injuries during childbirth. However, at least 90% of board-certified OB-GYNS face at least one malpractice lawsuit in their career. Birth Injury lawsuits can help you get financial compensation and hold responsible parties accountable. If you are planning to take legal action against a medical facility or its staff, it’s best to understand how birth injury claims work.

1. Necessary Evidence in Birth Injury Cases

When building a solid lawsuit for Birth Injury Malpractice, you need to gather sufficient evidence to support the claim. The most critical evidence in most claims may include information that shows injuries were caused by negligence. Ideally, most cases allege medical negligence during birth, so you need to prove any malpractices by using necessary evidence. As such, it’s essential to gather sufficient evidence demonstrating that negligence led to the newborn’s injuries.

You need expert testimonies to demonstrate negligence, cause, and injury severity. Experts can quickly establish neonatal care standards and the level of care a competent physician should provide in similar circumstances. You’ll also be required to disclose any evidence your experts used to derive their conclusions. These may include deposition testimony, medical records, and diagnostic reports.

Most importantly, be ready to submit evidence about any losses due to the birth injuries arising from negligence. This may include wage statements, medical bills, and expert opinions regarding the child’s needs and care.

2. Typical Compensation for Birth Injury Lawsuits

While there are no guarantees that your birth injury lawsuit will get financial compensation, it’s essential to understand how the payments work and the tentative amounts. You can either be awarded a lump sum or periodical payments.

If you get a lump sum, the settlement amount minus any costs, benefits, and payments is managed on the child’s behalf until they’re 18 years old. This means the child doesn’t depend on the defendant to meet their needs. Instead, the receiver has the liberty to decide how to invest or spend the money. If the money is invested wisely, the proceeds can cover the child’s needs for many years. And since some conditions may be tricky to determine at early stages, a lump sum is flexible due to compounding effects.

On the other hand, a court may require both parties to determine if the settlement should be paid in annual payments. In this case, a portion of the amount may be used to buy annuities depending on the life expectancy of a cerebral palsy child. This means the annual payments are dependent on the cost of annuities. In some instances, the available annual payments may not be sufficient to cover all the needs, especially if more complications and disabilities develop later.

3. Admissible Elements of Malpractice

Birth injury claims can be complex, exhausting, and time-consuming. You are responsible for proving that the physician breached the standard care protocols, causing injuries. Proving breach of duty requires ample proof of some or all the elements of malpractice.

The claim requires a precise determination of whether the medical professional owes you the duty of care. Ideally, the patient and the doctor should have an established relationship; the latter is legally obligated to provide standard medical care in the labor room.

The element of breach of duty seeks to establish whether the physician breached breach of duty. Similarly, negligence aims to establish whether the child was injured due to the doctor’s inaction or action.

4. Timeframes for Filing a Lawsuit

Every legal solution has a definite timeframe within which you must start the lawsuit. The time limit for the mother is capped at 2.5 years from the birth injury. However, the time can be extended if the mother continues to get treatment from the same negligent hospital. On the other hand, if the child or the mother dies from birth injuries, the next of kin has up to 2 years to file the claim.

If you are making claims for the child’s injuries, you must file the lawsuit within ten years from when the malpractice occurred. If the lawsuit is against the state or other government entity, a written notice must be submitted within three months of the occurrence.

5. Birth Injury Malpractice Lawsuit Process

Birth injury lawsuits can differ, but they often follow a similar process. The attorneys from the Tinker Law Firm PLLC may send a demand letter asking for compensation before taking legal action. If the doctor declines, the lawyer starts to build a case to file a strong lawsuit.

After the court serves the defendant, both parties proceed to the discovery phase to establish the claim’s authenticity. On getting sufficient evidence, both parties can meet to discuss a settlement. If there’s no consensus, the case proceeds to trial and appeal.

Endnote

Negligence and breach of duty during childbirth can cause permanent injuries that require lifelong support. While such incidents are preventable, seeking compensation through legal procedures can provide the resources to cover your child’s treatment and care.

The post Things You Should Know About Birth Injury Malpractice Claims appeared first on Find US Lawyers.



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Things You Should Know About Birth Injury Malpractice Claims

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