How to File a Medical Malpractice Lawsuit
A medical malpractice lawsuit against a hospital or doctor requires proof that the defendant breached his or her duty to patients. This could include medical and hospital documents.
Our lawyers have years of experience in conducting effective depositions. They may be doctors, other medical professionals who are in private practice, or working at a hospital or clinic.
Negligence
Patients are entitled to receive certain standards of care when they visit a hospital, doctor, or health care professional. Unfortunately these standards aren't always met or even complied with. The results of this breach can be devastating.
When someone suffers injury or death as a result of a doctor's negligence, they could file a lawsuit against the medical professional. To establish a case the injured person must establish four legal aspects which are breach of duty, duty, causation and damages.
Malpractice is defined as an act or omission of the physician that goes against the accepted norms of medicine within the medical profession, and causes injury to the patient. It is an aspect of tort law that addresses civil wrongs that are not legal obligations or criminal offenses.
Medical negligence is different from normal negligence in that the victim must demonstrate that the doctor was aware, or ought to have known, that their actions were going to cause harm before they are able to claim malpractice. Normal negligence does not. For instance a surgeon who accidentally creates a cut on a vein or nerve during surgery would be negligent, but not malpractice because the surgeon did not intend to cause harm.
In a medical malpractice lawsuit, the defendant has a legal obligation to treat the patient according to the standards of care that a reasonably competent healthcare professional with comparable experience and training in similar situations would provide. The violation of this duty is a crucial element because it demonstrates that the alleged negligence caused the injury.
Damages
Damages in a malpractice case are in relation to the losses you have suffered due to a doctor's negligence. These could include both financial loss, like the expense of medical treatment in the future, and non-economic losses like suffering and pain.
To recover damages, you must show that the doctor breached the duty of care, that the doctor's deviation from that standard resulted in injury, and this injury resulted in quantifiable financial consequences. This is a complicated legal analysis that typically requires expert witness testimony.
Some of these losses are obvious, such as if your doctor made an error that caused an illness or other medical issue and you required further treatment as a result. Other damages aren't as evident, like when your doctor is unable to diagnose you correctly, and you are not able to receive the proper treatment.
You are able to sue for wrongful-death in the event that your doctor's negligence results in your death. In these claims, you are entitled to all the benefits you could have gotten in a survival case, plus punitive damages.
In most states, there are limits on the amount you can recover in a malpractice case. These caps vary by state, and often apply to both economic and non-economic damages. Some states also have rules that limit how long you can wait to bring a lawsuit.
Time Limits
As with any lawsuit there are time limits which must be observed or the case could be barred. A
malpractice lawsuit should generally be filed between two and six years following the time when the mishap occurred. The timeframe for filing a malpractice lawsuit is different for each state.
It is crucial to consult an attorney as soon as possible. The law firm will conduct an investigation to determine whether a mistake occurred and whether it will hold up in the court. This can take weeks or even months.
Medical malpractice cases are governed by different laws and the statute of limitations is frequently altered. In Pennsylvania, a patient has two years from the time that they were aware of the error. This is known as the discovery rule.
In certain states, the statutes of limitations begin to run on the date on which the malpractice occurred. This can be an issue if the mistake does not trigger any immediate symptoms. As an example, suppose the doctor is negligently leaving an object that is foreign in the body after surgery. The patient might not find the object until three years after the surgery. In this case the statute of limitation might have started to run from the date of the procedure instead of the discovery of the error.
Expert Witnesses
A lot of medical malpractice cases rely on expert witnesses to clarify the facts of the case. A plaintiff's expert witness will provide testimony regarding the doctor's duty of taking care of the patient as well as the standards of medical care in the area and the specialization for doctors with similar qualifications and skills and the ways in which the defendant departed from those standards. The expert will explain how the defendant's departure directly caused the injury to the patient.
The defendant will engage a professional to counter the plaintiff's expert and provide their professional opinion as to whether the doctor's actions met the guidelines of care. It is common for experts to disagree with one with respect to their opinions, but the fact finder decides who is the most trustworthy on their education and experience.
It is best for the expert to continue working in the medical field since they are more informed about current practice. Judges and jurors are likely to find practicing professionals more credible than experts who solely rely on court testimony.
It is also recommended to use an expert witness who has expertise in the area of the negligence. A medical professional who has expertise in treating breast cancer, for instance, could present a an argument that is convincing as to the cause of an injury. A knowledgeable Ocala medical
malpractice law firm lawyer will be aware of which expert witnesses to call for your case.