How Birth Injury Case Has Changed My Life The Better

Birth Injury Compensation

It could be devastating when your child suffers birth injury as a result of a doctor's negligence. These injuries could require long-term treatment and care. You'll be left with huge financial costs.

Many birth injuries cases involve a tense debate about medical malpractice versus medical errors. Our lawyers can help you discern the differences.

Costs of Treatment

When determining how much to award for a birth injury law firms injury lawyers from insurance companies and judges look at the severity of the injury and the impact it has on the child's quality of life. If a child needs extensive medical treatment which 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 could help families pay for these expenses. Lawyers often work with experts to create a "Life Care Plan" which calculates the life-time cost of a child's injuries. These costs include hospitalization, surgery, specialized medical treatments such as prescriptions, home repairs and equipment, among others.

Your legal team will gather medical records from the pregnancy as well as the birth of your child, along with personal accounts from relatives. These will be used to show that your child suffered an injury due to medical negligence and to demonstrate the extent of the damage caused.

Many states have enacted medical indemnity funds to help families of children suffering from birth injuries. These funds pay a portion of malpractice insurance premiums, or require doctors and hospitals to contribute to a pool of resources. In addition to providing monetary aid, these programs can also help reduce the requirement for families to pursue a lawsuit. JLARC staff however found that these programs did not always meet their goals, and could be improved.

Life Care Planning

Children who suffer from disorders such as cerebral palsy or hypoxic ischemic encephalopathy are likely to have lifelong medical needs. These needs include physical therapy, special equipment, and home health care. These costs can be quite significant.

A life-care plan is a document that specifies the future medical, educational, in-home and other expenses that disabled children are expected to pay throughout his or his or her life. These plans are used to calculate the economic portion of the compensation awarded in cases of birth injury. The plans must be precise and carefully written in order to meet the strict requirements of admissibility.

Life-care planners can assist in the creation of these documents with feedback and formal opinions from the child's medical professionals or therapists as well as caregivers. The plans contain a thorough account of the injury and the diagnosis. They also explain the root reason for the disability and its long-term effects.

A medical malpractice lawyer should collaborate with a life-care planner to develop the most effective plan for their client's specific situation. The plan's goal is to ensure that your child is compensated enough to cover their future expenses and health care. The funds are usually put into a special needs trust that is managed by a reputable administrator. Typically the amount allotted will be re-adjusted periodically to meet any changes in your child's needs.

Suffering and Pain

In a case involving birth injuries, damages are awarded to compensate the plaintiff for any future pain and discomfort. This includes physical and mental suffering caused by the injury, as and the inability to take part in activities that others could be able to do.

It is also possible to recover income if a victim's injury limits their options professionally or stops them from working at all. Families can also be compensated to help care for an injured child.

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

During the lawsuit lawyers on both sides will collect evidence to support their arguments. They will exchange documents in the course of discovery, which entails taking testimony from witnesses under an oath. In most states, defendants can also ask to see the records of the plaintiff.

A successful birth injury lawsuit requires a lawyer who has experience in these kinds of cases. An experienced attorney will go over the details of your case, determine if it satisfies the specifications for a lawsuit and seek out the most favorable financial settlement possible.

Punitive Damages

Certain medical malpractice lawsuits include punitive damage awards, which are meant as a stern warning to prevent future negligence. These damages are awarded when there is a substantial amount of malice or negligence on the part the doctor. However, they are rare in cases of birth injuries.

After identifying the defendants the attorney needs to gather and analyze the evidence to support the claim. They must prove that the injuries caused by the medical professionals did not conform to the an acceptable standard of care. The legal team also needs to provide evidence of the damages resulting from these injuries, known as "damages." This information can be both economic and non-economic in the sense that it is not a loss.

Economic losses are calculated by estimating ongoing treatment costs, including long-term facilities and other services. They may also factor in losses in earnings if the accident caused one or both parents to leave their jobs.

The legal team will prepare a demand letter to present to the malpractice insurance companies. This document will describe the birth injuries and the impact they have on the child as well as the family, and request compensation for these losses. The lawyers will negotiate until a settlement has been reached with the medical practitioners. During the discovery process, lawyers will exchange information with other party on their case. This may include depositions of witnesses who swear to testify under oath.