Birth Injury Compensation

It could be devastating when your child suffers birth injury due to a doctor's negligence. These injuries can require lifelong treatment and care. You will be left with enormous financial costs.

Many birth injuries cases have a complicated debate about medical malpractice versus medical errors. Our attorneys can explain the differences.

Costs of Treatment

Insurance companies, attorneys, and judges weigh the severity of the birth injury as well as the impact it can have on the child's life when determining the amount compensation to be awarded. If a child requires extensive medical treatment that continues for a long time the value of the claim will increase.

Medical treatment for birth injuries can be extremely expensive. Compensation for birth injuries can help families pay for these expenses. Lawyers and experts often work together to develop an "Life Care Plan" that estimates the costs of a child's injuries over the course of their lives. These costs include hospitalization, surgery, medical treatments and prescriptions, home improvements and equipment, etc.

Your legal team will collect medical records from the pregnancy as well as the birth of your child, as well firsthand reports from relatives. These documents will be used to prove that your child was injured as a result of medical malpractice and to demonstrate the extent to which the injury occurred.

Many states have passed medical indemnity funds to offer financial aid to families of children suffering from birth injuries. These funds pay a portion of malpractice insurance premiums or require hospitals and doctors to contribute to an account of resources. These programs can help families with financial assistance and lessen the need to file a suit. However, JLARC staff found that the programs don't always achieve their goals and need to be improved.

Life Care Planning

Children suffering from conditions such as cerebral palsy or hypoxic ischemic encephalopathy are likely to have lifelong medical needs. These include physical therapy, specialized equipment, and home health care. In many cases, these expenses can be substantial.

A life-care plan is a document that establishes the future medical education, home-based, and other expenses a disabled child will incur throughout his or her life. These plans are often used to calculate the economic component of the damages awarded in a birth injury lawsuit. These plans must be thorough and carefully drafted in order to meet the strict requirements of admissibility.

Life-care planners can assist to develop these documents with the input and opinions of the child's medical professionals or therapists as well as caregivers. The plans contain a thorough account of the injury and its diagnosis. They provide the cause of the disability and its long-term effects.

An attorney for medical malpractice should work with a life care planner to develop the most effective plan for their client's situation. The purpose of the plan is to ensure that your child receives adequate compensation to cover all of his or her future care and expenses. The money is usually put in a trust to cover special needs, and is overseen by an approved administrator. Typically, the amount of funds granted will be adjusted over time to accommodate any changes in your child's needs.

Pain and Suffering

In a case involving birth injuries and damages are awarded to compensate the plaintiff for future and past pain and discomfort. This includes physical and mental distress from the injury, and the inability to participate in activities normally enjoyed by others.

It is also possible to claim for lost income if the disability of a victim limits their professional options or prevents them from working at all. Families can also receive compensation for the care and treatment of an injured child.

The verdicts in medical malpractice cases tend to be extremely high because juries are often sympathetic to victims and hold doctors responsible for their errors. Many doctors and hospitals opt to settle rather than risk an expensive trial and stressful for all involved.

Both sides will gather evidence to back their arguments during the trial. They will also exchange documents during the process known as discovery, which entails deposing witnesses to obtain statements under swearing. In most states, defendants may also request to view the plaintiff's records.

A successful birth injury lawsuit requires a lawyer who has experience in these types of cases. An experienced lawyer will examine the facts of your case to determine if it is in line with the requirements for a lawsuit and ensure the highest settlement for your financial needs.

Punitive Damages

Some medical malpractice suits include punitive damages, that are intended as a stern warning to discourage future negligence. These damages can be awarded when there is a significant amount of negligence or malice on the part of the doctor. However, they are rare in cases of birth injuries.

After identifying the defendants the attorney must gather and review the evidence to support the claim. They must show that the injuries sustained by medical professionals did't meet an acceptable standard of care. The legal team must also be able to show the costs associated with these injuries, referred to as "damages." This information can be economic or non-economic in the sense that it is not a loss.

Economic losses are usually calculated by making estimates of the cost of the child's ongoing care, which includes long-term care facilities and other services. It is also possible to include losses in earnings if the injury caused one or both parents to leave their jobs.

The legal team will then prepare a demand letter for the malpractice carriers. The document will explain the birth injuries and the impact they have on the child and the family, and request compensation for the loss. The lawyers will negotiate with the medical providers until they reach a settlement. During this negotiation, the lawyers will share information regarding their cases with the opposing side by way of discovery, which may include depositions of witnesses who testify under the oath.