A birth injury attorney can help families file lawsuits against doctors and hospitals for preventable injuries suffered by newborns during childbirth. These injuries can lead to lifelong medical complications like cerebral palsy, Erb’s Palsy, or spinal cord damage. A successful lawsuit can help a family secure compensation for costly treatments, lost income, and pain and suffering. A reputable Mead Valley Birth Injury Attorney can guide your case through the legal process with clarity and dedication.
Catastrophic Injuries
When a newborn suffers brain damage or another life-altering injury due to medical malpractice, families often need specialized legal representation. A lawyer with experience handling birth injury cases can help families recover compensation for their losses and rebuild their lives.
A doctor’s failure to properly monitor fetal distress, an ineffective delivery maneuver, or improperly performing a C-section may constitute medical negligence. Determining if medical professionals breached the standard of care, a legal term that describes how responsible health care providers would have behaved under similar circumstances, is the first step in filing a birth injury lawsuit.
Catastrophic injuries are severe physical or mental harms that permanently alter a victim’s quality of life. They can include spinal cord injuries that cause paralysis, traumatic brain injury associated with lasting cognitive impairments, and severe burns requiring extensive grafting and rehabilitation.
Medical Malpractice
A medical professional’s negligence during pregnancy, labor, or delivery can lead to birth injuries. These injuries can cause serious health problems for the child that will impact their life forever. These cases are considered medical malpractice.
For example, if a baby does not receive enough oxygen during birth, they may suffer a brain injury such as anoxic or hypoxic encephalopathy. This can also result in other neurological disorders such as cerebral palsy or brachial plexus injury, which can affect movement and muscle tone.
These cases are more complex than typical personal injury claims, because the medical professionals and hospitals will often deny fault. This is why it is important to have a lawyer with proven experience in medical malpractice cases. A qualified lawyer can ensure that the family is compensated for lost income, medical bills, and future care costs.
Expert Witnesses
An expert witness is an individual who is hired to analyze a case and provide his or her opinion. They are highly knowledgeable in their field, and they help judges and juries understand complex medical details. An expert witness can make or break a birth injury lawsuit.
A strong legal case requires medical evidence, eyewitness testimony, and an expert witness. This evidence demonstrates the existence of a doctor-patient relationship, adherence to the medical standard of care, breach of the standard of care, and causation.
Physician expert witnesses should have active clinical practice in the area of medicine about which they testify and be willing to submit their deposition transcripts and courtroom testimony for peer review. They should also disclose blemishes on their professional record that could discredit their testimony.
Settlement Negotiations
A newborn baby suffering from a birth injury can require ongoing medical care that affects the family’s finances. A skilled birth injury lawyer can evaluate the impact and determine how much to request in a settlement.
Once a qualified lawyer has determined your child is eligible for legal action, they will collect evidence like medical records and bills, witness statements, expert opinions, and more. They will also file a lawsuit, ensuring all legal deadlines are met. Finally, they will negotiate with the insurance company on your behalf to secure a fair settlement.
Trial Preparation
Oftentimes, trial preparation is under-prioritized by legal teams, since the vast majority of cases settle or end up in summary judgment. However, a thorough and organized case can help the jury understand the facts presented in court more fully.
Trial preparation is a massive array of tasks that includes identifying and securing fact and expert witnesses, preparing evidence for presentation in trial, developing legal arguments, securing technology needed to present trial exhibits and visual aids (charts, maps, etc.), and preparing for the trial itself (opening statements, presenting evidence, witness testimonies, and closing arguments).
It also includes submitting jury instructions, planning the trial schedule, and addressing any pre-trial motions from opposing counsel or the judge. Keeping track of all the tasks involved can be challenging, but our legal team is experienced in managing and monitoring this aspect of trial.