Birth Injury Compensation

It could be devastating when your child suffers birth injury due to an error by a medical professional. These injuries usually require lifelong treatment and treatment, which can result in massive financial burdens.

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

Costs of Treatment

Attorneys, insurance companies, and judges consider the severity of the birth injury and the impact it has on the child's development when determining the amount compensation to be awarded. For instance in the event that a child requires continuous medical treatment it will increase the value of an claim.

Medical treatment for birth injuries can be very expensive. Compensation for birth injuries could help families pay for these expenses. Lawyers often work with experts to create an "Life Care Plan," which estimates the lifelong expenses incurred by a child's accident. These expenses include hospitalization, surgery, medical treatments and prescriptions, home improvements and equipment, etc.

Your legal team will gather medical records from the time of pregnancy and birth of your child, as well personal accounts from relatives. These will be used to prove that your child sustained an injury as a result of medical negligence and to demonstrate the extent of the harm caused.

Many states have enacted medical indemnity funds in order to offer financial aid to families of children who suffer from birth injuries. These funds either collect part of malpractice insurance premiums or require hospitals and doctors to contribute to a resource pool. In addition to providing financial assistance, these programs may reduce the need for families to pursue a lawsuit. However, JLARC staff found that these programs do not always meet their objectives and should be improved.

Life Care Planning

Children with disorders such as hypoxic ischephalopathy, cerebral palsy, or hypoxic ir will need medical care throughout their lives. These include physical therapies as well as specialized equipment and home health care. These costs can be substantial.

A life-care planning document is an outline of the future medical, education, home and other expenses children with disabilities will have to pay for throughout his or her life. These plans are used to calculate the economic portion of a settlement in the case of birth injury. They must be comprehensive and carefully drafted to meet the strict requirements of evidence for legal admissibility in the court.

Experts in planning for life can assist in the preparation of these documents using their input and the formal opinions of disabled children's doctors as well as therapists and caregivers. The plans include a detailed account of the injury and the diagnosis. They describe the underlying causes of the disability and the long-term effects.

A medical malpractice lawyer should work with a life planner to develop the most appropriate plan for their clients' situation. The goal of the plan is to ensure that your child receives adequate compensation to cover all of his or her future medical and other expenses. The funds are usually placed in a special needs trust managed by an approved administrator. Typically the amount awarded will be adjusted periodically to accommodate the changing needs of your child's requirements.

Pain and Suffering

In cases involving birth injuries and damages are awarded to compensate the plaintiff for the past and future pain and discomfort. This includes mental and physical distress from the injury, as well as the inability to engage in the activities that are normally enjoyed by other people.

You can also recover lost earnings if the injury of a victim limits their options professionally or prevents them working at all. Additionally, families could be compensated if needed to take care of an injured child.

Medical malpractice cases usually have very high verdicts due to the fact that juries tend to show compassion for victims and hold medical professionals accountable for their mistakes. Because of this, many doctors and hospitals prefer to settle rather than risk an appeal, which can be expensive and stressful for all parties involved.

During the trial attorneys from both sides will collect evidence to back their arguments. They will share documents in a process known as discovery, which is the process of taking testimony from witnesses under swearing. In most states, defendants can also demand access to the records of the plaintiff.

A successful birth injury lawsuit requires a skilled lawyer in these kinds of cases. A knowledgeable attorney will examine your case to determine if you have a valid claim and will work to find the most effective settlement.

Punitive Damages

Some medical malpractice lawsuits also contain punitive damages. These are intended to communicate a message and discourage future reckless behavior. The award of these damages is made when there is a high degree of malice or negligence on the part of the doctor. However, they are rare in cases of birth injuries.

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

Economic losses are calculated by the estimation of ongoing treatment costs, including long-term facilities and other services. They can also include the loss of earnings if an injury has caused both parents to lose their job.

The legal team will prepare an offer package that they will give to malpractice insurers. This document will describe the birth injuries and their effects on the child and family, and ask for compensation for the losses. The attorneys will negotiate until a settlement has been reached with the medical practitioners. During this process, the lawyers will share information about their cases with the opposing side through discovery, which includes taking depositions from witnesses who swear to their testimony under oath.