Medical Malpractice Law
Medical mistakes can occur even with the best training or a pledge to not causing harm to others. When they do, the consequences can be devastating for patients.
The law of malpractice is a part of tort law that addresses professional negligence. A malpractice lawsuit must satisfy the following four requirements:
Malpractice claims in the United States are typically filed in state trial courts. To gather evidence, a range of legal tools are used to gather evidence, including depositions under an oath.
Duty of care
If you are in an established doctor-patient relationship, the doctor has a duty of caring to you. This applies whether the doctor is treating you in a hospital, or in your home. However, there are some situations where doctors could be accountable for malpractice, even without the existence of a patient-doctor relationship.
A person who is obligated to perform a duty of care has to act in a way that reasonable people would act in the same situation. A driver, for instance has a duty to care to drive safely and not to cause injury to other road users. If the driver fails to uphold this obligation and results in an accident, he/she can be held liable for any injury that results.
Doctors are accountable for the care of their patients at all times. This includes situations where a physician is not your official physician, such as when asking an expert to provide advice in an elevator or a restaurant. However, the obligation to be a good neighbor is often governed by Good Samaritan laws.
Medical professionals are also required to take care to inform their patients about the dangers involved in certain procedures and treatments. Inaction to warn patients is the breach of a doctor's duty. Doctors can also violate their duty of care when they give you a medication that is known to interact with other medications you are taking.
Breach of duty
In general, doctors are under a duty to their patients to provide their patients with medical treatment that conforms to accepted standards of practice. This standard is governed by the laws of today and by standards established by medical associations. If a physician fails to meet this duty they are committing negligence. A
malpractice lawyer will look over the evidence to determine if the standard of care was breached.
A doctor can breach their obligation of care in a variety ways. It is not just a question of what they did that a reasonable person wouldn't do in the same circumstance; it also includes what they could have done, but didn't do. Most of the time, it is necessary to obtain expert witness testimony to determine what the accepted medical standard of care would have been.
A doctor could have erred in their obligation if they prescribe drugs that are dangerously interfering with another drug. This is a common mistake which can have grave health consequences.
But, simply proving that an error in duty was committed is not enough to prove malpractice. To be awarded damages, you have to show an immediate link between the breach of duty committed by the doctor and your injury or illness. This is called causation. This can be a complicated connection to establish in some instances, but a skilled malpractice lawyer will work hard to discover the evidence required to prove the link.
Causation
A malpractice claim is admissible only if the plaintiff can demonstrate that the defendant's negligence caused the injury and losses. The process of proving medical negligence requires the use of expert testimony to prove that a patient-provider relationship existed and that the service provider violated the accepted standard of care. It is essential that the harm to an individual be directly related to the act or omission which violated the standard. This is known as causality or proxy causes.
When proving the legality of a lawyer, it is necessary to prove that the lawyer's lapse resulted in significant negative consequences for you. It is essential to prove that the costs of a lawsuit are greater than your losses. The plaintiff must also prove that the negligence led to tangible and quantifiable damages.
The majority of malpractice cases undergo an investigation process that involves oral depositions. Your lawyer can represent you at these depositions, asking questions of the experts in defense to challenge their conclusions and prove that the evidence supports your assertions. A medical malpractice lawyer with experience is essential to your case because establishing the four elements, including duty breach, causation and harm, can be complicated and time-consuming. Your lawyer will be aware of each step in the process and will ensure that you meet all requirements. The more steps you can complete, the higher your odds of winning.
Damages
The amount of compensation a patient will receive in a medical
malpractice law firms claim will depend on the severity their injuries, as well as how much money they'll need to pay medical bills loss of income, any other financial losses. In some instances there may be punitive damages awarded to the plaintiff in retaliation for the doctor's behavior. However, they are not common since doctors must have been reckless or intently to be awarded punitive damages.
The law requires that anyone asserting medical malpractice demonstrate four elements or legal requirements: (1) there was an obligation of care on the part of the doctor; (2) the doctor violated this duty by a deviation from the standard of practice; (3) as a consequence of the doctor's negligence the victim was injured and (4) the harm is quantifiable in terms of the amount of money. In addition the victim must file a lawsuit within the time limit which varies according to the state.
The law recognizes the fact that some medical malpractice claims can be expensive and complex to resolve, especially when they are based on complex issues like proximate causes or the possibility of foreseeability. Its aim is to grant victims the redress that they are entitled to, without allowing unnecessary and opportunistic lawsuits slow down the process. It also aims to reduce costs by obligating all defendants to take responsibility for the success of a claim (joint-and-several liability); restricting the amount a plaintiff may recover if the other defendants aren't able to pay ("damage cap"); and preventing physicians from practicing defensive medical, which requires them to change their treatment plans in response to the threat or malpractice lawsuits.