How to File a Medical Malpractice Case

A patient who discovers an object foreign to her body, such as surgical clamps in her body following gall bladder surgery is able to file a lawsuit for stone park medical malpractice lawsuit malpractice. A successful lawsuit must prove the legal aspects of medical negligence: duty, deviance from this duty, direct cause and injury.

It is vital for our clients to establish a direct relationship between the breach of duty and the injury called proximate causation.

Causes of Injury

A medical negligence case may be filed by the injured person or a legal person to act on their behalf. Depending on the circumstances, this could be a spouse of the patient or an adult child parent, guardian ad Litem or the administrator or executor of the estate of the patient who died. In a case involving medical malpractice, the defendant is the health care provider. This could be a licensed nurse, doctor or therapist.

The majority of cases involving malpractice involve many expert witnesses. Medical experts are required to testify whether or whether the health professional followed the standard of care for their particular area of expertise. They also have to testify about the injury caused by the physician's actions or actions or.

Injuries resulting from malpractice and negligence can be very serious. For instance, a misdiagnosis of a health issue could have life-threatening effects. Other types of injuries include performing surgery on the wrong body part or leaving instruments inside the patient during surgery.

The patient must establish four legal elements of a malpractice claim the duty owed to the patient by the doctor and a breach of this obligation; an injury resulting by the breach and resulting damages. In certain states like New York the law limits the amount of money awarded in a case of malpractice.

Causation

The injury element, also known as causation, is one of the most important elements in medical malpractice cases. To prove causation the plaintiff must demonstrate that they sustained their injury on the basis of probabilities because of the physician's negligence. This can be a difficult task for a number of reasons.

For instance, a lot of injuries that are the subject of a medical malpractice lawsuit are the result of long-term or ongoing illnesses that were present prior to treatment. The time period for filing a medical malpractice lawsuit can be extended for a number of years and injuries can develop slowly.

In these instances it is often difficult to prove that a certain medical professional's violation of the standard of care caused the injury. The attorney could have collected evidence, including expert testimony and medical records that the patient who was injured may use.

During the discovery process, which is a part of the legal process for preparing for trial, your lawyer will request the disclosure of expert testimony and other evidence from defense attorneys of the defendants. The doctor defending the lawsuit will be asked to testify during a deposition, which is testimony under the oath. Your lawyer may challenge the doctor's findings and cross-examine them. The jury will then decide whether the plaintiff has proven the essential elements of their claim, which includes breach of duty, causation, breach of duty and injury.

Negligence

The plaintiff must convince the jury, when bringing a lawsuit for medical malpractice, that it is likely that the physician violated his or her duties as medical professional and that these breaches resulted in injury. The plaintiff's attorney must prove this by using evidence gathered during pretrial discovery. This includes seeking documents, Vimeo.Com such as medical records and other records from all parties in the lawsuit. This also includes sworn statements that are recorded and used in trial.

A doctor breached his or her professional obligations if he or she did something that a reasonably prudent physician would not do in the same circumstances. However it must be proven that the breach directly caused the injury to the patient. This is referred to as causation or causal proximate causes. For instance the patient is admitted to the hospital for a procedure to treat a hernia and is then able to have his or her gall bladder removed instead. This is medical malpractice as the removal of the gall bladder was not beneficial to the patient.

Medical malpractice lawsuits must be brought within a legally regulated time frame, known as the statute of limitations which is different for each state. The patient who was injured must show that the inadequate treatment caused injury, then they must establish what compensation they are entitled to.

Damages

You should be compensated for any injuries you have suffered as a result of medical negligence. Scaffidi & Associates can help you get fair and complete compensation for your losses.

The first step is filing and serving an order and complaint on all named defendants in the lawsuit. The parties participate in discovery. This is where documents and statements are made public under the oath. During discovery, medical records and doctor's notes are usually requested.

In many states, to get compensation for injuries caused by malpractice, you have to prove four things: 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 caused by the injury. If your lawyer can prove all of these elements, then you've got an extremely strong case for financial compensation in a medical malpractice claim.

In certain instances courts may make punitive damages available, which are intended to penalize the offender and deter others from engaging in similar conduct. It is not common, however, in medical malpractice cases. The courts must have very clear evidence of malice before they are able to award these extraordinary damages.