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How to File a Medical Malpractice Case

A patient who finds an object foreign to the body such as surgical clamps in her body following gall bladder surgery could make a claim for medical malpractice. A successful claim must prove the elements of medical negligence: duty, deviation from the norm and direct cause.

It is crucial for our clients to establish a direct connection between the breach of duty and the damage that is known as proximate causation.

Causes of Injury

A medical negligence case may be filed by the injured patient or a person legally designated to represent them. Based on the circumstances, this could be the spouse of the patient or an adult child parent, a guardian ad litem, or the executor or administrator of the estate of the patient who died. The plaintiff in a medical malpractice suit is the health care provider. This could be a doctor, nurse or therapist, or any other licensed health care professional.

Expert testimony is usually required in malpractice cases. Medical experts are required to provide evidence to prove that the doctor did what was required of care in their particular field of expertise. They must also testify to the harm that was caused by the doctor's actions or inactions.

The consequences of malpractice and negligence can be extremely serious. For instance, a misdiagnosis of a health problem could have life-threatening consequences. Other kinds of injuries involve operating on the wrong body part or leaving surgical instruments inside the patient.

The patient must prove four legal elements in a malpractice case: a duty owed to the patient by the doctor or a breach of the obligation; a harm caused by the breach and the resulting damages. In certain states, such as New York the law limits the amount of money awarded for a malpractice claim.

Causation

The injury element, also referred to as causation, is among the most important elements of a medical malpractice case. To establish causation, the plaintiff must prove that their injury was caused by the doctor's negligence. This is a difficult task due to a variety reasons.

Many injuries that are the basis for medical negligence lawsuits result from chronic conditions which were present before treatment started. Often the statute of limitations for a medical malpractice claim extends over a number of years, and the injuries may develop slowly.

In these situations it is often difficult to prove that one particular medical professional's breach of standards of care caused the injury. The attorney may have gathered evidence, including expert testimony and medical records that the patient who was injured can use.

In the discovery process, which is a part of the legal procedure for prepping for a trial your lawyer may request that the defendants' lawyers disclose expert testimony and other documents. The doctor who is defending the case will be asked to appear in deposition. This is a statement that is made under an oath. Your lawyer is able to cross-examine doctor and challenge the doctor's findings. The jury will then decide if the plaintiff has proven the essential elements of their claim, which includes duty, breach, causation and injury.

Negligence

The plaintiff must convince the jury, when bringing a lawsuit for medical malpractice that it is more likely that the doctor acted in violation of his or her responsibilities as physician and that the breaches resulted in injury. The plaintiff's lawyer must prove this using evidence gathered through pre-trial discovery, which involves the disclosure of documents, including medical records from all parties who are involved in the lawsuit. This process also involves sworn statements that are recorded and used at trial.

A doctor has violated his or her professional obligations if he or she did something that a prudent doctor would not do under the same circumstances. It must be proven that the breach caused injury directly to the patient. This is known as causation or proximate cause. A patient might go to the hospital to repair a hernia, but instead end up having their gall bladder removed. This is medical negligence as the procedure was not beneficial to the patient.

Medical malpractice lawsuits must be brought within a legally defined period of time, also known as the statute of limitations, which is different for each state. The patient who was injured must show that the inadequate treatment resulted in injury, and after that they have to prove the amount of compensation they're entitled to.

Damages

You are entitled to compensation for any injuries that you've suffered as a result of medical malpractice law firms negligence. Scaffidi & Associates can help you get fair and complete compensation for your losses.

The first step is to file and serve a summons and complaint to all defendants named in the lawsuit. The parties participate in discovery. This is a process where documents and statements are made public under oath. During discovery, medical records and doctor's notes will typically be sought.

In the majority of states, to get compensation for injuries caused by negligence, you must to establish four elements such as a duty of care that the healthcare provider is obligated to perform, a breach of this duty; a causal link between the breach and injury and damages that result from the injury. If your attorney can establish all of these elements, you can make a a strong case for Medical Malpractice Lawsuits financial recovery in a medical malpractice attorneys negligence claim.

In some instances the court might award punitive damage that is intended to punish the wrongdoer and Medical Malpractice Lawsuits deter others from engaging in similar acts. But, this isn't often the case in medical malpractice cases since courts require specific proof of malice to award these awe-inspiring awards.