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Why You Need a Medical Malpractice Lawyer

A medical malpractice lawyer assists injured patients get compensation for their losses. The common law system governs medical malpractice lawsuits.

According to common law, doctors are required to adhere to a specific standard of care when treating patients. If a doctor does not adhere to accepted medical practices and results in death or injury, the doctor could be held liable for negligence.

Duty of Care

Medical professionals must adhere to set of standards that are recognized by the medical profession as being sensible and prudent in providing healthcare. When those standards are not met and that failure causes harm or health issues the patient may have grounds to file a medical malpractice lawsuit.

The first step in a malpractice lawsuit is to prove that you had a doctor-patient relationship with the healthcare provider at issue and that the entity or person had a legal obligation to act with reasonable care. Then, you need to prove the breach of the duty occurred. This is typically done using expert testimony that can provide an objective analysis and evaluation.

This expert witness will help determine whether or not the defendant's actions fell below the accepted standard of care in your particular situation. The expert will need to review your medical records, and then interview or testify against you to arrive at this conclusion.

You must also be able to prove that the breach of duty directly caused you to experience injuries. This is known as causation, and it is the third element in a malpractice claim. In the majority of cases, you will require a direct cause and effect connection between the breach of duties and the resulting injury. For example, a misdiagnosis could result in the wrong medication or treatment being administered, which could result in an adverse reaction such as heart attacks.

Breach of Duty

Like all doctors medical professionals, doctors are under a legal obligation to act with diligence and care. However doctors are held to an even higher standard due to the fact that they are considered medical experts and deal with life and death decisions. The obligation of care is outlined in the regulations and laws for certain types of treatments and procedures.

In a negligence case, it is important to establish that the defendant was bound by the obligation of taking care of the plaintiff. Then, it has to be proved that the defendant breached that duty of care. This means that the doctor did not meet the standards of care in the specific circumstance. The standard of care is typically determined by what a normal person would do in similar circumstances. A reasonable driver, for example, would not run an intersection at a stoplight.

In a malpractice case experts could be required to provide evidence on the standard of care that was not met and the manner in which this standard was violated. They can also explain the cause of the injury and suggest ways to have prevented it.

Damages

Physicians in the United States are required to carry malpractice insurance to cover the potential losses that could result from medical negligence. To file a claim, the plaintiff will need to prove both financial losses (such medical expenses and lost wages), as well as noneconomic losses (such suffering and pain).

The amount of compensation you receive from a successful lawsuit for malpractice is contingent on how your New York medical malpractice lawyer defends your losses. Your attorney can establish your medically necessary expenses through a thorough review of your medical records, testimony from experts and the assistance of economic experts. In order to prove your loss of earnings, your medical malpractice lawyer has to prove the number of days you were away from work because of your medical issues and the fact that the absences were the result of the defendant's negligence.

The non-economic loss can be more difficult to prove, and may require the help of a professional who will give evidence about your physical, emotional and mental pain due to the infractions committed by the defendant. Loss of consortium is another type of non-economic harm. It is the inability to enjoy a romantic, sexual connection with your spouse or another significant individual as you used to. The defendant's attorney will challenge your non-economic losses through a process of interrogatories, depositions and requests for documents and evidence under oath.

Statute of Limitations

As in every state, New York has a statute of limitations that must be met before a medical malpractice claim can be filed. If not, the court will dismiss the case. An experienced New York medical malpractice lawyers malpractice lawyer, he has a good point, is well-versed in these details and will make sure that your claim is filed prior to the deadlines set by law.

In most cases, victims of medical malpractice has to file his or her lawsuit within two and a half years from the date on which the negligence or act of a medical professional resulted in the death or injury. As with all laws this rule is not without exceptions. If, for instance, the error committed by the health professional was a part of a continual course of treatment, the "clock" of 30 months will not start until the course of treatment is completed or the patient has been informed of the diagnosis.

In certain instances, a patient may not realize the problem until a long time after for instance, if a foreign body is left within the body after surgery or treatment. In order to deal with this issue, a majority of states have embraced what is known as the discovery rule. This permits injured victims in certain situations to extend their deadlines. Your lawyer is well-versed in the laws of your state and will scrutinize your case's timeline carefully to avoid mistakes in the administration that could impede your claim.