Three Common Reasons Your Birth Injury Claim Isn't Working (And The Best Ways To Fix It)

The Benefits of a Birth Injury Settlement

A birth injury settlement can provide medical treatment that can be costly. The amount you receive may depend on the kind of birth injury that your child sustained.

The most severe birth injuries, such as cerebral palsy typically result in lifelong medical costs. These expenses are referred to as economic damages, and are not subject to maximum caps.

Compensation

When doctors and nurses make mistakes during childbirth that lead to permanent, life-altering consequences for the injured baby and/or mother, they may be held liable under the law of medical malpractice. In some cases, courts award damages for pain and suffering as well as loss of consortium future and past physical therapy, medical bills and more.

A birth injury lawsuit may also seek reimbursement for other costs that could have been avoided if a doctor had not committed negligence, like lost income or a diminished earning capacity. Parents who must care for their children with disabilities often face significant financial losses. Some birth injuries require expensive equipment or changes to the home. This can result in high costs.

Lawyers begin the claims process by sending an initial demand package to the malpractice insurance company of the doctor or hospital, which includes a detailed description of the injury along with all relevant records. The insurance company will then review the claim, and either accept it or reject it. If they reject the offer, attorneys will prepare to bring a lawsuit.

Some states have an indemnity fund for birth injuries that reduces the amount of medical malpractice premiums or fees charged by obstetricians. However, these funds may not be sufficient to provide for a lifetime of healthcare. They also do not prevent plaintiffs from seeking compensation from other defendants, such as the hospital where the negligence occurred.

Expert Witnesses

Medical professionals involved in a lawsuit regarding birth injuries owe a duty of care to the mother and child. If the medical professional fails to fulfill this duty and leads to an injury, they may be held accountable for malpractice. Expert witnesses are required to support this claim. They are usually doctors from the same or the same field who can explain in layman's terms the standard of practice and explain how the defendant medical professional violated the standard.

A birth injury lawyer with experience knows how to obtain and provide expert witness testimony. They also have the expertise to anticipate healthcare professionals defenses and counter them in a way that the case is presented in the most convincing light.

Your attorney will also help you determine your total losses, and to prove that they are there in the court. These include both economic and non-economic damages, such as medical bills or pain and suffering loss of enjoyment of life and loss of income.

A good birth injury attorney is also experienced in negotiating against insurers and is aware of the tactics they use to convince victims to accept settlements that are low-cost. Your attorney can help you resist these pressures and help move the case ahead until the medical practitioners are willing to settle. If they do not, your attorney can file a lawsuit to force them to negotiate in good faith.

Statute of limitations

There are strict deadlines for filing claims on behalf of children who have suffered birth injuries. For instance, medical negligence claims stemming from injuries to the mother must generally be filed within two years of the date of the negligent act or omission that gave rise to the claim. In contrast birth injury claims based on injuries sustained by the child may be filed as long as the child is 10.

To establish a solid case, you have to establish that the medical professional who treated your child erred in the applicable standard. This could involve extensive review of medical records and tests, as well as it could also involve interviewing other nurses, doctors and hospital personnel who observed the labor and delivery process.

If you can prove that a medical professional failed to uphold the standard of medical care, that does not mean that you automatically be able to win your case. You must also prove that this breach of duty directly caused the injuries to your child. This is known as causation, and is a widely litigated issue in medical malpractice cases.

Choosing an attorney with the resources to construct your case and get through trial is essential. The lawyer you choose to work with will typically advance lawsuit costs and only get paid if you are awarded compensation. This lets you concentrate your attention on your child's healing and gives you financial security in the event of a prolonged trial.

Time Limits

Each state has its own statute of limitations or time frame within which you must make a claim. This restriction ensures that legal cases are pursued in a timely manner and when evidence from the physical remains available and the accounts of witnesses remain fresh. For birth injuries, the statute of limitations is usually two and two-and-a-half years from date of negligence or malpractice.

There are some exceptions to this rule for infants who suffer injuries. For instance, New York laws allow for an extended period of limitations for medical malpractice claims made on behalf of children, which extends the time limit to 10 years from the child's birth.

An experienced birth injury attorney will know the particulars of each state's statute of limitations. They will also know about any particular considerations associated with a child’s birth injury case. Many birth injury cases include significant economic damages. These include future loss of income, or loss of life expectancy as well as the future and past medical costs. Economic damages are not subject to caps on maximum amounts which can increase the potential value of cases involving birth injuries.

A good birth injury attorney is familiar with the procedure of negotiating and settling claims with insurance adjusters. They will be able to spot a lowball offer and make use of their experience to counter with an appropriate settlement amount. In some cases the settlement can be reached outside of court. In certain cases it is necessary to go through a trial to get the amount you are due.