If you or your child suffers injuries during labor or the birthing session, you will no doubt have medical expenses associated with the injuries. Some birth injuries are so severe that they cause permanent and disabling conditions, and even cause life threatening complications. Not only must you ensure appropriate medical care for yourself and/or your child in the present, but you must also be concerned with his or her ongoing care and welfare. A personal jury claim is often the only recourse for paying medical care and other expenses associated with the birth injury.
Financial Liability for Your Birth Injuries
Birth injuries are covered by the liability insurance of medical practitioners and institutions. Claims filed for birth injuries are classified as malpractice suits. As medical malpractice has lasting implications for medical professionals and healthcare facilities, liability insurance carriers typically fight birth injury claims vigorously.
The Initial Consultation for a Birth Injury Claim
The first step in hiring a personal injury attorney is scheduling an initial consultation meeting. During the initial consultation, the birth injury attorney will review your case with you, including your recollection of events and all of the medical documentation and other sources of information you have available at the time.
The lawyer will help you determine whether your case is winnable under current personal injury law in your jurisdiction and based on the specific circumstances of your case. He or she will also help you decide what damages to seek and may be able to give you an estimate of the compensation you might receive. Your birth injury attorney will inform you of the manner in which malpractice cases usually proceed, and will let you know what to expect in your claim and how long the process may take.
Additionally, the attorney will provide you an estimate of legal fees and will discuss payment arrangements during the initial consult, though most personal injury lawyers who handle birth injury claims work on contingency. Under a contingency agreement, you will only be required to pay for legal services if you receive damages in your case, at which point the attorney would receive a specific percentage of the awarded damages – a percentage agreed to in your contract at the time you hire the lawyer.
What Help can a Birth Injury Attorney Provide?
Birth injuries result from negligence or misconduct by a medical care professional or institution. Filing a personal injury claim against a medical practitioner or institution can be very complicated as insurance companies are notorious for tying up claims for as long as possible and for attempting to settle claims for as minimal of compensation as they can.
Hiring a medical malpractice personal injury attorney is essential to filing a successful birth injury claim. He or she can help you obtain the complete medical records necessary for proving your claim, and will be instrumental in securing expert medical witnesses and eye witness testimony or statements for substantiating your claim as well.
Your birth injury lawyer can advise you on your options, including settling out of court or proceeding to trial with your claim. He or she will attempt to negotiate as high a settlement as possible with the insurance company in an effort to avoid a lengthy malpractice trial and in order to get you the compensation you deserve as soon as possible. If your claim must proceed to trial, your attorney will argue the case, help you prepare for testifying, and will collect the evidence and witnesses’ necessary for increasing your chances of winning in court.
A birth injury lawsuit can be very stressful and having an understanding and knowledgeable legal advocate can lessen the burden substantially. A personal injury lawyer familiar with malpractice cases and birth injury claims can significantly increase your chances of seeing sufficient damages for covering medical and other current and ongoing expenses associated with your injuries.