Birth Injury Compensation

It can be a devastating experience if your child suffers a birth injury as a result of an error by a medical professional. These injuries may require lifetime treatment and treatment. You'll be left with a huge financial burden.

Many birth injury cases also involve a complex debate over medical errors versus malpractice. Our lawyers can help you understand the differences.

Costs of Treatment

Attorneys, insurance companies and judges consider the severity of the birth injury and the impact it affects the child's quality of life in determining the amount of compensation to be paid. For instance when a child needs an ongoing medical procedure it will increase the value of the claim.

The medical treatment for birth injuries can be expensive. Compensation for birth injuries could assist families with these costs. Lawyers and experts often collaborate to create an "Life Care Plan" which estimates the costs of a child's injury over the course of their lives. These include hospitalization expenses including surgical interventions, specialized medical treatment and prescriptions, home improvement projects and equipment, and more.

Your legal team will collect medical records from your child's pregnancy and elsmere birth injury attorney, as well as firsthand accounts from relatives. They will use these records to demonstrate that your child suffered an injury due to negligence on the part of a medical professional and to prove the extent of the damage caused.

Many states have established medical indemnity funds which provide financial assistance to families of children who suffer birth injuries. These funds either collect a portion from malpractice insurance premiums, or require hospitals and doctors to contribute to an asset pool. These programs can provide families with financial aid and help reduce the necessity of filing a lawsuit. However, JLARC staff found that the programs don't always achieve their goals and should be improved.

Life Care Planning

Children with conditions such as cerebral palsy or hypoxic ischemic encephalopathy are likely to have lifelong medical needs. These include physical therapies as well as specialized equipment and home health care. These expenses can be substantial.

A life-care plan is a document that specifies the future medical educational, in-home, and other costs disabled children will have to pay throughout his or their life. These plans are often used to help calculate the financial portion of the damages awarded in a birth injury lawsuit. These plans should be thorough and carefully written in order to satisfy the strict requirements of admissibility.

Experts in planning for life can assist in the preparation of these documents using input and formal opinions of a disabled child’s doctors, therapists, and caregivers. The plans also include an in-depth description of the injury that caused it and its diagnosis. They outline the root causes of the impairment as well as the long-term consequences.

A medical malpractice lawyer should collaborate with a health care planner to come up with the most suitable plan for their clients' situation. The aim of the plan is to ensure that your child is provided with adequate compensation to cover all of their future expenses and medical care. The money awarded is typically placed into a special needs trust, which is overseen by a licensed administrator. Typically, the amount of funds awarded will be adjusted periodically to reflect changes in your child's needs.

Pain and Suffering

In a birth injury lawsuit damages are awarded to cover the plaintiff's future and past suffering and pain. This includes the physical and mental suffering caused by the injury as also the inability to engage in activities that others can participate in.

It is also possible to claim the loss of income if the disability of a victim limits their options for employment or stops them from working at all. Families may also be compensated to care for an injured child.

The verdicts for medical malpractice cases are typically very high as juries tend to be sensitive to the victims and hold doctors accountable for their mistakes. Many doctors and hospitals opt to settle rather than risk a trial that is expensive and birth injury lawsuit stressful for all parties involved.

During the trial, lawyers for both sides will gather evidence to support their arguments. They will exchange documents in a process known as discovery, which involves deposing witnesses to get their statements under oath. The defendants may also ask to examine the medical records of a plaintiff, which is legal in all states.

An experienced lawyer who has handled this type of case is required to file a successful claim for birth injury. A seasoned attorney will analyze the details of your case, determine if it is in line with the specifications for a lawsuit and make sure you get the best financial settlement possible.

Punitive Damages

Certain medical malpractice lawsuits contain punitive damages, which are intended to convey a message and discourage any future negligent behavior. They are granted in cases of serious negligence or where there was willful misconduct on the part the medical professional. However, they are very rare in cases of birth injuries.

After identifying the defendants, the attorney needs to gather and analyze the evidence to support the claim. They must prove that the injuries incurred by medical professionals did't meet a high level of care. The legal team must also prove the losses that were incurred with the injuries, referred to as "damages." These damages could be economic or non-economic.

Economic losses are usually calculated by making estimates of the cost of the child's ongoing treatment, including long-term care facilities as well as other services. They can also include lost earnings in the event that an injury resulted in both parents to lose their job.

The legal team will create a demand form that they can present to the malpractice insurers. The document will outline the birth injuries and the impact they have on the child and the family, and ask for compensation for the loss. The attorneys will negotiate until a settlement has been reached with the medical professionals. During the discovery process, lawyers will exchange information with other party about their case. This includes depositions of witnesses that are required to testify under oath.