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How to File a Medical Malpractice Case

A patient who finds an object foreign to her body, such as surgical clamps in her body following gall bladder surgery is able to make a claim for medical malpractice law firms malpractice. A successful lawsuit must prove the legal aspects of medical negligence: duty, deviance from this duty, direct causes, and injury.

Our clients must establish a direct connection between the breach of duty and the injury. This is known as proximate cause.

Causes of Injury

A medical malpractice case can be filed by the injured person or a legal person to act on their behalf. This could be a spouse or adult child or parent, guardian or administrator of the estate of a deceased person, depending on the circumstances. The defendant in a medical malpractice lawsuit is the health professional. This could be an accredited doctor, nurse or therapist.

The majority of cases involving malpractice involve the testimony of experts. Medical experts must be able to prove whether or whether the healthcare provider adhered to the standards of care for their specific area. They must also testify regarding injuries caused by physician's actions or inactions.

Injuries that result from malpractice or negligence can be very severe. For example, a mistake in the diagnosis of a health issue could have life-threatening consequences. Other kinds of injuries include operating on the wrong body part or leaving instruments inside the patient during surgery.

The patient must prove four legal elements in a malpractice claim the duty owed to the patient by the physician and a breach of that duty; injury caused by the breach and resulting damages. In some states, like New York, the law sets a limit on the amount of money that can be awarded in a malpractice claim.

Causation

The injury element, also referred to as causation, is one the most important elements in medical malpractice cases. To prove causation the plaintiff must show that they suffered their injury on a balance of probabilities due to of the physician's negligence. This can be a challenging job due to various reasons.

Many of the injuries that form the basis for medical malpractice attorneys negligence lawsuits result from long-term illnesses or conditions that existed prior to when treatment began. Often the statute of limitations for a claim involving Medical Malpractice Law Firms malpractice extends over a number of years, and injuries can develop gradually.

In these cases it can be difficult to prove that one particular medical professional's breach of standard of care caused the injury. The attorney may have collected evidence, including expert testimony and medical records, that the injured patient may use.

During the discovery process as part of the legal process preparation for a trial, your lawyer may request that the lawyers of the defendants provide expert testimony and other documents. The doctor who is representing the case will be asked to give deposition. This is a testimony that's given under the oath. Your lawyer can challenge doctor's findings and cross-examine them. The jury will decide if the plaintiff has proven all the elements of the case including breach of duty and causation.

Negligence

The plaintiff must convince jurors, in a case of medical malpractice in court, that it is more than likely that the doctor did not fulfill his or her responsibilities as a doctor and that these actions led to injury. The plaintiff's lawyer must prove this using evidence gathered through pretrial discovery, which entails asking for disclosure of documents such as medical records from all parties involved in the lawsuit. This also includes swearing statements that are recorded and used in trial.

A doctor has violated their professional duty when they did something that reasonable and prudent doctors would not have done in the same circumstances. However, it must be proven that the breach directly caused the injury to the patient. This is referred to as causation or proxy causes. For instance the patient is admitted to the hospital for a hernia surgery and is later told that he or the gall bladder removed instead. This is medical malpractice since the removal of the gall bladder did not benefit the patient.

Medical malpractice lawsuits must be filed within a legally prescribed time frame, known as the statute of limitations, which varies by state. The person who has suffered injury must prove that the negligent care resulted in injury, and then prove the amount of financial compensation he or she deserves.

Damages

You deserve to be compensated for any injuries that you've suffered due to medical negligence. Scaffidi & Associates can help you receive fair and full compensation for your losses.

The first step is filing and serving a complaint and summons on all defendants named in the lawsuit. The parties then engage in discovery, a process by which documents and statements are disclosed under an oath. During discovery medical records and doctor's notes will typically be sought.

In most states, in order to receive compensation for injuries sustained by negligence, you must to establish four elements including a duty of good faith due to the healthcare provider and a breach of that obligation; a causal connection between the breach and injury and damages resulting from the injury. If your lawyer can prove all these aspects of a medical negligence claim, you will have an enviable case.

In certain instances, the court may give punitive damages that is intended to punish a wrongdoer, and discourage others from committing similar misconduct. This is not the norm, however, in medical malpractice cases. The courts must have clear evidence of malice before they can decide to award these extraordinary damages.