Birth Injury Litigation

Medical negligence during labor and birth can result in severe birth injuries to infants. These injuries can have a lasting impact on the infant and their family.

A successful lawsuit can pay for future and ongoing medical costs, loss of wages, and other damages. A successful lawsuit can require years to obtain.

Compensation

Despite remarkable medical advances birth can be a risky. Mothers and babies alike expect that doctors behave professionally and avoid making mistakes that could cause long-lasting damage. If you believe that an institution or doctor is liable for the injury of your baby and/or death, you should consult a New York birth injuries lawyer to determine the legal options you have.

A successful claim for birth injury law firm injuries will result in financial compensation. This could cover current and future medical expenses as well as lost wages, attorneys emotional distress and other areas of potential damage. In some instances juries and judges can also award punitive damage for unacceptable behavior.

Your attorney will collaborate in conjunction with a network of experts witnesses to understand what happened and define the accepted standard of care. They will review your medical records and evaluate the actions of the medical staff that was present during your birth. This will help them create a strong case and increase your chances of success.

Before filing a lawsuit, your lawyer will generally attempt to negotiate with the malpractice insurer. This will require submitting an array of demands which will include a thorough account of the losses your family has suffered as well as the medical evidence to justify them. The malpractice insurer will then make an offer. If no settlement is reached the case will proceed to trial.

Damages

The damages that a plaintiff can receive can be either financial (such medical bill) or not-economic (such as pain and suffering). In many cases the jury awards both. The amount of compensation the victim will receive is based on how the accident has affected them as well as their past and future losses. Some states limit the amount of non-economic damages that juries can award.

In order to pursue compensation to recover compensation, it must be proved that the defendant violated their duty of care. This is accomplished by a combination of medical documents and expert witness testimony and depositions. Medical experts are people who are experts in a particular area of medical practice. They scrutinize all evidence in the case and testify at trial if necessary. In cases involving birth injury lawyer injuries, experts will be able to prove that the defendant's actions fall in a way that is not consistent with the standard of care expected from an expert in medicine who has the same education and experience under the circumstances of the case.

Attorneys can also depose anyone with a pertinent story or who has an exclusive perspective. These are sworn declarations which are not in court and allow attorneys to ask witnesses directly what happened. Some depositions are conducted over the phone or through a video conference, but the majority are conducted in a courtroom. These depositions can be difficult and stressful but they are essential to build a strong case and obtaining the best possible compensation for clients.

Statute of Limitations

In New York, as in many states, medical negligence claims must be filed within a time frame of a statute of limitations. Parents have up to two and a quarter years to file a lawsuit after the date of the wrongdoing, omission, or inaction that they believe caused their child's injuries.

Attorneys can look through your child's medical records to determine which obstetricians nurses, and other hospital staff might have been involved in your son's or daughter's birth. He or she can then seek any relevant documents and information that could help identify the cause of the injuries to your child.

If you want to prove that there was a malpractice, your lawyer has to prove that the defendant owed your child a obligation and violated that duty in failing to comply with the standards of care in similar circumstances. To prove this, you lawyer will work with medical professionals to analyze the actions of the medical professional to accepted practices and procedures.

A lawyer can help locate witnesses to testify in your case. These professionals can provide valuable insight into a doctor's decision making process and how an error or omission caused the birth injuries of your child. The evidence could be used by your lawyer to prove your compensation claim. A successful medical malpractice case involves two separate legal claims, one for the child who is injured and one for their parents.

Expert Witnesses

Families can seek compensation for medical bills, lost wages from absences from work Rehabilitation treatments and therapies as well as long-term care expenses with the right help. The key to winning a birth injury case is having the most experienced experts available for your case.

These individuals can review the evidence and provide a professional opinion as to whether a medical professional acted in breach of their duty of care when they performed an act which could have resulted in an infant's injuries. They can simplify medical terms for juries or judge to understand.

The role of an expert witness is to give an impartial medical opinion that is reflective of the current state of knowledge at the time of the event. This means that they cannot ignore relevant information in order to present a favorable impression for either the plaintiff or defendant.

Experts should also examine the relevant medical records and contemporaneous literature with sufficient depth in order to form a sound opinion. In some cases experts may be required to give a deposition (sworn out-of court statement). These sessions can be daunting but are an important part of the preparation of for a trial. Your attorney can help prepare for these sessions and make sure that you are treated with respect.