How to File a Medical Malpractice Lawsuit

A patient who believes he has suffered a loss due to an error by a doctor can file a medical malpractice lawsuit. These cases differ from personal injury lawsuits due to the fact that they employ a professional standard to determine negligence.

In the United States, malpractice claims are settled through state trial courts. Each state has its own laws and procedures.

Duty of care

A surgeon, doctor, nurse or other health care professional owes a duty of care to their patients. This legal concept essentially states that any health professional treating you owes a duty to uphold the accepted medical practices, without omission or deviation.

This medical standard of care is a legal metric that any medical malpractice claim is evaluated. It is crucial for a successful case because it provides an exact method for the victim and his or her attorney to prove negligence by showing that a medical professional did not adhere to the standard of care.

Proving the standard of care often requires the assistance of a qualified medical expert witness. Experts like these are crucial to establish the relevant medical standard of care, and also determining how that standard was breached by the defendants in a medical malpractice case.

It is also essential to prove that this breach of duty directly caused your injury, illness or death. In medical malpractice cases, damages can include hospital bills and lost income future earning capacity, suffering, pain and even punitive damage. Your lawyer will need to demonstrate the amount of damages you are entitled to, which can be more than your initial medical expenses. This is easier in some circumstances than in others. Many doctors work in hospitals that offer them staff privileges. In those instances, the doctor's employer could be held liable under theories of vicarious responsibility.

Breach of duty

A doctor is bound towards the patient to comply with medical standards when providing treatments or services. When a doctor violates that obligation and an injury occurs the patient is injured, the patient may make a claim for malpractice.

Medical negligence can encompass an array of actions such as errors in diagnosis, medication dosage and health management, treatment and Medical malpractice lawsuits post-care. A lawsuit must be valid if the plaintiff can demonstrate four legal elements. These are:

First, there must be a doctor-patient relationship. The physician must have an obligation to inform the patient of any potential risks or complications involved in the procedure. In the absence of this, it could render the doctor liable for mistakes, even though the procedure was performed perfectly. If the doctor failed to inform the patient that a certain procedure was likely to have a 30% chance of causing limb loss, then the patient could not have consented.

The second element to be proved is a breach of the standard of care. To do this, the lawyer needs to have expert witness testimony to prove that the doctor was not following the standard of care. It is also necessary to prove that the breach of the standard of care resulted in the patient's injuries.

It may take a lengthy time to complete medical negligence claims in the court system. It involves a significant amount of doctor and attorney time, a thorough review of the records, interviewing experts, and analyzing the legal and medical literature. A doctor who is facing a malpractice suit is required to pay significant court fees, attorney's product and costs, and expenses for expert testimony.

Causation

Nurses, doctors, and other healthcare professionals are individuals and they make mistakes. When these mistakes reach the level of malpractice, patients can be afflicted with life-threatening injuries. Proving that a healthcare provider committed a breach of his or her duty and caused an injury requires both legal and medical knowledge. A successful claim requires four legal elements to be proved such as a relationship between a doctor and patient, the doctor's duty of care for the patient, the doctor's failure to fulfill this duty, and then the injury caused by the breach.

It must also be proved that the physician's deviation from the standards of care was the primary and primary cause of injury. This is a more stringent legal standard than "beyond reasonable doubt" in criminal cases. The lawyer representing the plaintiff has to convince the jury or fact finder that it is more likely than not that the doctor's actions were negligent, medical malpractice lawsuits and that negligence was the primary result of the injury.

Expert medical testimony is usually required early in the process to establish the validity of all these elements. Under Rhode Island law, only doctors with a sufficient qualifications, training as well as expertise regarding the area of claimed malpractice can provide an expert testimony in the matter. This is why choosing a qualified medical expert is such an important aspect of an investigation into a case of malpractice.

Damages

Medical malpractice lawsuits seek to recover damages that cover the future and past expenses due to an injury. The expenses could include hospital bills or doctor visits, the cost of suffering and wages. The jury will decide on the amount of damages to be awarded based on evidence presented.

During the trial the lawyer or plaintiff must prove four legal elements: (1) a physician has a professional responsibility to them; (2) the doctor breached this duty by acting negligently; (3) the doctor's negligence caused injury; and (4) the injuries caused by negligence resulted in damages. A dissatisfaction with a doctor's work does not constitute malpractice, but a specific injury must be present. A qualified expert witness will be able to clarify whether a doctor did not follow the standard of care.

The legal process for a malpractice claim could last for many years. This is because "discovery" involves the exchange of documents and sworn statements from the parties involved. While many cases end up being settled before reaching the courtroom, a small percentage of these claims make it all through to a jury trial and verdict.

To limit liability for malpractice, some states have taken several administrative and legislative measures collectively known as tort reform. Some states have implemented alternative dispute resolution schemes including binding arbitration. These alternatives to civil litigation are designed to lower costs of litigation, speed up the process of settling malpractice claims, eliminate overly generous juries, and filter out claims that are frivolous.