Medical Malpractice Law

Medical malpractice cases can result in injuries that result from a medical professional's negligence. There are various laws regarding these cases, which include specific statutes of limitations and medical malpractice attorney damages.

Medical malpractice occurs when a doctor, hospital or other healthcare professional fails to treat a patient with the level of care other doctors would provide under similar circumstances. Examples of malpractice are misdiagnosis, surgical errors, and birth injuries.

Complaint

Medical malpractice is a special part of tort law that deals with professional negligence. It is defined as an act or omission committed by medical professionals that is in violation of the accepted norms of the medical profession which causes injury to the patient [2223.

Your lawsuit begins when you start a civil court action if you have been injured by hospital negligence. In this document you will provide the details of your case. You also list the hospital as well as any doctors who worked with you. Based on the circumstances, you might decide to make an agreement in advance that any health care providers won't be identified as individuals in the lawsuit (this is known as "no-name agreements").

Then you write down the injuries and the amount of money associated to each. This includes past and future medical expenses, income loss because of being unable to work or perform work, pain and suffering and any other losses that you've suffered as a result the doctor's negligence. These documents should be delivered as quickly as you can your attorneys so that they can begin an in-depth investigation.

Summons

If you believe you've been injured by medical malpractice, your lawyer prepares the summons and complaint and has them filed with the court. The clerk of the court assigns a unique number to the case. The identifier used is known as the index number and it will follow the case as it moves its way through the courts.

A lawsuit takes a lot of time, effort and money by the attorney representing the plaintiff. These funds are required to fund legal discovery and to pay for expert medical witnesses. Even when the medical malpractice claim is not successful the case will cost the attorney an enormous deal of time and work product.

A lawsuit must show that the health care professional violated an obligation imposed by law, this breach caused injury to claimant and the injury is severe enough to warrant legal action. In the United States, a patient must demonstrate four elements or legal requirements for a valid medical malpractice claim: the existence of a duty; a breach of that duty; damages; and causation. Medical malpractice claims are controlled by state law, however in certain instances the case may be transferred to federal district courts.

Discovery

After a civil summons have been filed with the appropriate court the formal discovery process starts. This is when your medical malpractice attorney will spend a lot of time trying to gather evidence in the case. This might include reviewing medical records with the services of a medical review company.

This is a crucial step in the legal process as it can help your lawyer uncover crucial details to support your claim. It is also the longest component of a medical negligence lawsuit.

At the pretrial discovery phase your attorney will seek certain documents and interrogatories from the defendants in your case. The defendants will be given the chance to respond to these requests. The questions are put under the oath of the defendant and must be answered honestly. These questions are used by defendants to make defenses against your case. This is why it's so important to hire an experienced medical malpractice lawyer. They can make sure that all the evidence is presented in simple language for juries and judges.

Request for Admission

Many states require that a patient injured in a medical negligence case submit their claim to a panel composed of medical experts. They will look over the evidence and witness statements and consider arguments to determine if the claim is valid. The statute of limitations is a law that requires medical malpractice lawsuits to be filed in court within a certain timeframe.

In order for the legal counsel of a patient to make the medical malpractice claim, it has to be proved that the healthcare professional did not meet the accepted standards of care in his or her specific area of expertise. This is often referred to as the standard of care yardstick and it's essential that the injured patient's legal team can identify specific instances of a deviation from the standard of care.

Trial

To prove that a doctor committed malpractice the patient must establish that: (1) the doctor owed her a professional duty of care; (2) the physician breached that duty by violating the standard of care; (3) this breach resulted in injury; and (4) the injury caused damages. This element requires expert testimony from a medical professional who can help the jury comprehend relevant medical standards. It is often difficult for the injured person and his legal team to bridge the gap between the common knowledge and experience of the ordinary juror and the highly specific knowledge and expertise needed to determine the extent of malpractice.

Malpractice claims can be filed in the state trial court that is able to handle the case. However, in some circumstances, they may also be filed in federal district courts. Both trial courts adhere to the same rules as other civil litigants. In the depositions of defendant physicians, the attorneys from both sides ask questions. After a direct examination, the opposing attorney can cross-examine a doctor who has testified. This process continues until the questions of both sides are exhausted.