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Four Elements of a Medical Malpractice Case

Malpractice lawsuits are a real and feared threat for physicians. They drive up physician insurance costs and can affect the medical practice.

In general doctors owe patients the obligation to adhere to the accepted medical practice without any deviation or omission. This is known as the standard of care.

To sue a physician for negligence, the patient must establish the following elements using a majority: breach of duty, duty of duty, causation, and damages.

Duty of Care

The first element in a medical malpractice case is that the person who was injured was owed a duty of a doctor which was not fulfilled. Medical malpractice claims are different from other negligence claims in that they often involve a physician-patient relationship that can be established by things like doctor's records or phone consultations. In general, doctors who treat patients must follow the accepted standards of their profession and practice.

Doctors may also be held responsible for the incompetence or negligence of their staff members, for example, assistants or interns. In addition, they could be held accountable for the actions of emergency medical Malpractice law firm personnel under their supervision.

The plaintiff has to establish that the defendant's actions did not adhere to the standard of medical care in the circumstances. This can only be proven by expert testimony about acceptable medical practices, and the defendant's failure comply with these standards. The second aspect of malpractice is that this breach directly harmed the patient. To prove malpractice the lawyer you hire to show that the defendant's breach of duty directly caused your injury or death of your loved one. This is known as proximate reason. For instance, if an alleged negligent treatment wouldn't have had an adverse impact on your health, regardless of whether it was done or not, then you wouldn't be able to win damages for any injuries or deaths that were believed to have been caused by the physician's conduct.

Breach of Duty

A physician who fails to fulfill his or her duty of professional care to a patient could be held accountable for negligence. To succeed in a medical negligence case, the victim must prove four legal aspects that a duty of care or professional care was owed and the physician violated this obligation; the breach led to injury; and the injury was a cause of damages. The first aspect of a medical malpractice lawsuit revolves around the standard of care which is determined by experts' testimony. The standard of care is defined as what a "reasonably prudent" doctor would do in similar circumstances.

A physician breaches this duty in the event that he or she departs from the standard of care when treating the patient. If a doctor breaks the arm of a patient, he or she may fail to cast it correctly. The doctor's infraction of this duty causes the injured arm to heal incorrectly, resulting in the complete or partial loss of use, and further financial damages.

Medical malpractice cases are brought in state trial courts, however under limited circumstances federal courts are also able to be able to hear these cases. Each of the 94 federal district courts in the United States has a judge-jury panel that handles medical malpractice attorneys malpractice cases. The majority of states have a special system of state courts that deal with these matters. However, they are subject to different rules of court procedures than federal district courts.

Causation

Doctors swear to not cause harm, and if they fail to uphold this duty and cause harm the patient could be entitled to compensation for the damages. A medical malpractice claim may also arise when a doctor is performing a procedure that has known risks, and the patient wouldn't have agreed to the procedure had they been fully informed.

The plaintiff in a case of medical malpractice must prove that the doctor failed to adhere to accepted standards of practice, that this failure was the primary cause of the injury or illness the patient suffered and that the harm would not have occurred but because of the negligence of a physician. This burden of proof is known as the "preponderance of evidence" standard which is less stringent than the "beyond a reasonable doubt" standard required to convict criminal defendants.

Medical malpractice lawsuits typically involve expert witness testimony and lengthy discovery procedures prior to trial. Whether the case is settled or goes to trial, the lawyers on both sides have to spend considerable time and resources in preparing for the case. This is one of the main reasons why malpractice claims are so expensive for both the plaintiff and the physician involved, and it is one of the reasons that physicians and health care organizations are in favor of reforming tort law in the United States.

Damages

Depending on the kind of medical negligence, the victims can seek compensatory or punitive damages. Compensatory damages compensate the patient for the financial losses or costs resulting from the negligence of the doctor. This includes loss of income and future medical expenses. Non-economic damages include the compensation for physical pain and mental anxiety.

Medical malpractice claims are filed in state trial courts. However, there are some instances where a lawsuit could be filed in federal court. It's usually the case when doctors are employed by a clinic that is funded by federal funds like the Veteran's administration, or if the doctor is from another country but practices in the United States as part of an agreement that confers extraterritorial authority.

Medical malpractice lawsuits are generally adversarial and involve extensive legal discovery. This includes written interrogatories and depositions as well as requests for documents. The victims of medical malpractice could also be subject to the pressure of an open jury trial and could be at risk of having their claim rejected by a judge or dismissed by the jury.

You must prove that medical negligence or error caused the injury you suffered to win an action for medical malpractice. The injury must be significant enough that a financial settlement would substantially make up for your financial losses and emotional distress. New York medical malpractice law also has damage caps, and other limits to the amount that an individual patient could be awarded when they are successful in bringing claims.