How to File a Medical Malpractice Lawsuit
A patient who believes that he or she suffered a loss as the result of an error by a doctor can file a medical malpractice lawsuit. These cases differ from personal injury lawsuits because they use a professional standard to determine the extent of negligence.
In the United States, claims of malpractice are handled by state trial courts. Each state has its laws and procedures.
Duty of care
A surgeon, doctor or any other health professional is bound by a duty of care to their patients. The law states that any health care professional who treats you has an obligation to observe accepted medical practices without omission or deviation.
This medical standard of care is a legal metric that any medical malpractice claim is judged. It is crucial to a successful claim, because it provides a specific method to allow the injured person and his or her attorney to establish negligence by showing that a health care professional did not meet the standards of care.
Proving this standard of care often requires the assistance of a medical expert witness. They are crucial in establish the relevant medical standard of care and proving this standard was violated by the defendants in a medical negligence case.
It is also necessary to prove that the breach of duty caused your injury, illness, or death. In medical malpractice cases, damages typically include hospital costs, loss of income and earning capacity in addition to pain and suffering, diminished quality of life and even punitive damages. Your lawyer must prove the exact amount of the damages, which could be greater than your initial medical expenses. This is easier in some situations than in other. Many doctors work at hospitals that offer them staff privileges. In these instances, a doctor's employer could be held liable by virtue of theories of vicarious liability.
Breach of duty
A physician owes the patient the obligation to act in accordance with the medical standards of care when providing services or treatments. If a physician violates this obligation and causes injury the patient is injured, the patient may make a claim for malpractice.
Medical negligence can be a result of a wide range of actions, such as errors in diagnosis, dosage of medication, health management, treatment and follow-up care. To be able to claim valid the plaintiff must demonstrate four legal elements. These include:
First, there must be an established doctor-patient relationship. The doctor is required to inform patients of any risks and complications that may be involved in the procedure. Even if the procedure was done correctly, the doctor could be held accountable for their actions if they fail to inform the patient. For instance, if a doctor failed to inform patients that a particular operation was likely to have 30 percent chance of losing limbs, a patient might not have logically consented to the surgery.
The other element to be proven is a breach in the standard of care. To prove this, the lawyer must have expert witness testimony to prove that the doctor violated the standard of care. It must also be established that the breach of standard of care caused the patient's injuries.
The court system can be slow in settling medical negligence cases. This is due to the fact that it requires many hours of time from both the physician and attorney, in addition to extensive research interviews with experts and a thorough review of medical and legal literature. A physician who faces a malpractice lawsuit will need to pay for high court costs, attorney costs and work products, in addition to expenses for expert testimony.
Causation
Doctors, nurses, and other healthcare professionals are people and they make mistakes. When these mistakes reach the level of
medical malpractice, patients suffer serious and life-threatening injuries. Proving that a
medical malpractice law firm provider acted in breach of his or her duty and caused an injury requires the knowledge of a lawyer and medical professional. A successful claim requires four legal elements to be established that include a doctor-patient relationship, the doctor's duty of care to the patient, the doctor's violation of that duty, and the harm caused by the breach.
The injury must be proven to be resulted from the doctor's deviation from the standard of medical care. The legal standard for this factor is higher than the "beyond a reasonable doubt" required in criminal cases. The plaintiff's attorney must convince the jury/fact-finder that it is more likely that negligence of the physician caused the injury.
A medical expert is often required early in the process to establish all of these elements. According to Rhode Island law only doctors with the right education, training and experience in the field of claimed malpractice can give expert testimony. This is the reason that selecting a medical expert that is competent is crucial in a case of medical malpractice.
Damages
Medical malpractice lawsuits aim to collect damages that include past and future expenses due to an injury. These expenses can include hospital bills, doctor's visits as well as pain and discomfort and lost wages. The jury will decide on the amount of damages owed in accordance with the evidence presented.
The plaintiff or their lawyer must prove four legal elements in the trial: (1) the physician owed a duty to them; (2) the doctor did not fulfill this duty due to negligence; (3) the doctor’s negligence caused injury; (4) the injury resulted in measurable damages. Discontent with a doctor's work is not considered to be malpractice, but the actual injury must be present. A medical expert can help determine whether a doctor has violated the standard of medical practice.
The legal procedure for a malpractice claim can last years. This is because "discovery" involves the exchange of documents, and the sworn declarations of the parties involved. While a majority of cases settle before reaching the courtrooms, a portion of these claims make it all through to a jury trial and verdict.
To reduce litigation costs, some states have implemented a number of legislative and administrative actions that are collectively known as tort reform measures, to limit liability for malpractice. Some states have also implemented alternative dispute resolution strategies, such as binding arbitration. These alternatives to civil litigation are designed to reduce cost of litigation, speed up resolution and handling of malpractice claims, remove overly generous juries, and screen out claims that are not legitimate.