What-Birth-Injury-Case-Experts-Want-You-To-Learn-w
Birth Injury Compensation
It can be devastating for your child if they suffer a birth injury as a result of negligence by a doctor. These injuries may require lifetime treatment and care. The family will be left with enormous financial costs.
In addition, many birth injury cases are a complex argument over medical malpractice versus medical mistakes. Our lawyers can help you understand the differences.
Costs of Treatment
When determining how much to award for a birth injury attorneys from insurance companies and judges consider the extent of the injury and its impact on the child's life quality. If a child requires extensive medical treatment which continues for a long time, the value of the claim will increase.
Medical treatment for birth injuries can be very expensive. Compensation awarded for a birth injury can help families cover these costs. Lawyers and experts often collaborate to develop an "Life Care Plan" which estimates the costs of a child's injuries over the course of his or her life. These include hospitalization costs, surgical intervention, specialized medical treatment prescriptions, home renovations and equipment, and much more.
Your legal team will gather medical records from the time of pregnancy and birth of your child, in addition to personal accounts from relatives. These records will be used to show that your child was injured due to medical malpractice and to prove the extent to which the injury occurred.
Many states have medical indemnity fund that provides financial aid to families of children born with birth injuries. These funds collect a portion of malpractice insurance premiums or require doctors and hospitals to contribute to a pool of resources. In addition to providing monetary assistance, these programs could also decrease the requirement for families to bring a lawsuit. However, JLARC staff found that these programs do not 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 permanent medical requirements. This includes physical therapy, specialized equipment and home health care. These expenses can be substantial.
A life-care planning document an outline of the future medical, educational, home and other expenses children with disabilities will be liable for throughout their lifetime. These plans are used to calculate the economic portion of the compensation awarded in cases of birth injury. They should be comprehensive and meticulously drafted to meet the strict requirements of evidentiary for admissibility in the court.
Life-care planners can assist in the creation of these documents in accordance with information and formal opinions from a disabled child's doctors or therapists as well as caregivers. The plans also contain a detailed account of the initial injury and diagnosis. They describe the underlying cause of the disability and its long-term effects.
An attorney for medical malpractice should collaborate with a planner for life to develop the most effective plan for their client's situation. The goal of the plan is to ensure that your child receives enough compensation to cover all of their future costs and expenses. The funds awarded are typically placed in a special needs trust which is administered by an approved administrator. Typically the amount awarded will be adjusted periodically to reflect changes in your child's future needs.
Suffering and Pain
In a birth injury case, damages are awarded for the plaintiff's past as well as future suffering and pain. This includes physical and mental discomfort caused by the injury and also an inability to participate in activities that are enjoyed by others.
You may also recover earnings if the injury of a victim hinders their professional options or prohibits them from working all. Families can also be compensated to care for an injured child.
Medical malpractice claims often have extremely high verdicts, as juries tend to show empathy for victims and hold doctors accountable for errors. Many hospitals and doctors prefer to settle rather than risk an expensive trial and difficult for all parties involved.
Both sides will gather evidence to support their arguments during the litigation. They will exchange documents through a process known as discovery, which is the process of interviewing witnesses to obtain their statements under the oath. The defendants can also ask to look over the medical records of the plaintiff which is permitted in all states.
A successful birth injury lawsuit requires a lawyer with experience in these kinds of cases. An experienced attorney will review the facts of your case, determine if it satisfies the legal requirements and work to secure the best financial settlement possible.
Punitive Damages
Some medical malpractice lawsuits also contain punitive damages. These are meant to convey a message and discourage any future negligent behavior. They may be awarded in cases involving particularly grave negligence or when there was malice on the part of the medical professional. They are rare in the case 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 caused by the medical professionals were not up to standards of care. The legal team must also show evidence of the losses that are associated with the injuries, which are known as "damages." These damages can be either economic or non-economic.
Economic losses are calculated by estimating ongoing treatment costs, including long-term facilities and other services. They could also include lost earnings if an injury caused one or both parents to lose their job.
The legal team will draft the demand package which they will submit to malpractice insurance providers. The document will explain the birth injury, its effects on the child's family and as well as request compensation to pay the costs associated with these loss. The lawyers will negotiate until a settlement has been reached with the medical providers. During the discovery process, attorneys will exchange information with other party about their cases. This may include taking depositions of witnesses who testify on oath.
