Why You Need a Medical Malpractice Lawyer

A medical malpractice lawyer can help injured victims receive compensation for their losses. The legal system that governs medical malpractice cases is based on common law.

In common law, doctors must observe a standard of care in treating their patients. If a doctor violates accepted richmond hill medical malpractice law firm practices and results in injury or death then he could be held liable for negligence.

Duty of Care

Medical professionals must adhere to a set of standards accepted by the medical industry as reasonable and prudent in providing medical healthcare. If these standards aren't adhered to and the failure results in harm or health issues the patient may have grounds to file a alexandria medical malpractice attorney malpractice lawsuit.

The first element in a malpractice lawsuit is to establish that you were a patient of the healthcare provider and that they owed you an obligation to act in a reasonable manner. You must then prove the breach occurred. This is usually done the use of expert testimony which can provide a objective analysis and evaluation.

The expert witness can determine whether the defendant's actions were not in line with the accepted standards in your particular case. The expert will examine your medical records and also interview or question you in order to make this determination.

You must also establish that the breach directly led to your injury. Causation is the third factor in a malpractice lawsuit. In the majority of cases, you will require a direct cause & result relationship between the breach of duties and the subsequent injury. For example, a misdiagnosis could result in the wrong treatment or medication being prescribed and in turn causes an adverse reaction, like heart attacks.

Breach of Duty

Doctors, just like other people, have a legal obligation to behave with reasonable care and with caution. However, doctors are held to a more stringent standard because they are considered medical experts and are able to make life and death decisions. The duty of care can be found in the regulations and laws for certain types of treatments and procedures.

In a negligence case, it is vital to prove that the defendant owed the obligation of taking care of the plaintiff. Then, it must be established that the defendant did not fulfill that duty of care. This means that the doctor did not perform to the required standard of care for the situation. The standard of care is usually determined by what an ordinary person would do under similar situations. For instance an honest driver would not stop at a red light.

In a case of negligence, experts are often required to testify about the standards of care and how it was violated. They can also describe the reason for the injury and what could be done to stop it from occurring.

Damages

Physicians in the United States are required to have malpractice insurance to protect the potential losses that could result from medical negligence. To make a claim for damages, the plaintiff has to prove actual financial losses (such as ramsey medical malpractice lawyer expenses and lost wages) and non-economic losses (such as suffering and pain).

The amount you are awarded from a successful malpractice lawsuit is contingent on the way in which your New York medical malpractice lawyer presents the case for your losses. Your lawyer will establish your medically necessary expenses by examining your medical records, testimony from experts and the assistance of economic experts. Your medical malpractice attorney must prove that you lost your earnings by proving the amount of days you were away working due to medical problems, and proving the fact that these days were a result of the negligence of the defendant.

Non-economic losses can be more difficult to prove and could require the assistance of a professional who will give evidence about your physical, emotional, and mental suffering as a result of negligence committed by the defendant. Loss of consortium is a different type of non-economic harm. This is the inability to have an intimate, sexual relationship with your spouse or any other significant person like you used to. The lawyer for the defendant will attempt to challenge your non-economic damages by a process of interrogatories, depositions, and demands for documents and declarations under swearing.

Statute of limitations

Like all states, New York has a statute of limitations that must be fulfilled before a medical malpractice claim can be filed. If not the court could dismiss the case. A New York medical malpractice attorney who has experience will be well-versed in the nuances of these deadlines and will ensure that your claim is filed prior to the deadlines stipulated by law.

In the majority of cases, a victim of medical negligence has to file a lawsuit within two-and-ahalf years from the date the act or omission committed by the health professional resulted in the death or injury. However as with all laws, there are a few exceptions to this rule. If, for instance, the error made by the health professional was part of a continuous course of treatment, the "clock" of 30 months cannot begin until the course of treatment is completed or the patient is informed of the diagnosis.

In some cases the patient may not realize the problem until a long time after, for example the case where a foreign body remains within the body after surgery or treatment. To deal with this issue, a majority of states have embraced what is known as the discovery rule. This allows injured victims in certain circumstances to extend their timeframes. Your attorney will be familiar with the rules of your state and will go over your case's timeline carefully to avoid mistakes in the administration that could cause delays to your claim.