Four Elements of a Medical Malpractice Case

Physicians are worried about malpractice lawsuits because they pose real threats. They can raise insurance costs and could alter the practice of medicine.

In general doctors owe their patients the duty to uphold the accepted flower mound medical malpractice lawsuit practice without any deviation or the slightest omission. This is known as the standard of care.

To successfully claim a doctor's negligence, the patient must demonstrate each of the following legal elements with a preponderance of evidence: duty; breach of that duty; causation; damages.

Duty of Care

The primary element of a Pilot Point Medical Malpractice Lawyer malpractice case is that the person who was injured was owed a duty by the doctor that was breached. In contrast to other types of negligence cases medical malpractice claims usually require the existence of a relationship between doctor and patient. This could be established through documents like a doctor's records and phone consultations. Generally, physicians who treat patients must follow the standards that are accepted in their profession and practice.

However, doctors could be held accountable for the negligence of their employees, such as interns or assistants. They may also be held responsible for the actions of emergency personnel under their supervision.

The plaintiff then has to establish that the defendant's conduct did not conform to the standard of care in the circumstances. This can be established with expert testimony about acceptable medical procedures and the defendant's failure to adhere to these guidelines. The second aspect of malpractice is that the breach directly harmed the patient. To prove that you have committed a crime, your lawyer will need to show that the defendant's breach of duty directly caused your injury or the death of your loved one. This is known as proximate reason. If, for instance the alleged negligent treatment did not have any negative impact on your health, irrespective of whether or not it was done or not, you aren't able to win damages for any injuries or death that was believed to be caused by the doctor's actions.

Breach of Duty

A doctor who fails to perform their duty of professional care to a patient may be held accountable for negligence. To succeed in a medical negligence lawsuit, the injured person must prove four legal elements: a duty of professional care was breached and the doctor violated this duty; the breach caused injuries; and the damage caused damages. The first part of a medical malpractice case centers around the standard of care that is determined by expert testimony. The standard of care is what an "reasonably cautious" doctor would do under similar or similar circumstances.

A physician violates this duty when he or she deviates from the normal care of the patient. If a doctor fractures the arm of a patient the doctor may fail to cast the arm correctly. A doctor's error can cause the broken arm to heal in a wrong way. This can result in an incomplete or total loss of use, as well as financial damages.

Medical malpractice cases are filed in state trial courts, however under certain circumstances federal courts are also able to take on these cases. The 94 federal district courts across the United States each have a jury panel with a judge who hears these cases. Most states have state courts that specialize in the cases, although they have different rules of court procedure than federal district courts.

Causation

Physicians take an oath to avoid harm, and if they fail in their duty to uphold the oath and cause injury the patient could be legally entitled to compensation for their losses. A lake city medical malpractice lawsuit malpractice claim may also arise when a doctor is performing a procedure that has known risks, and the patient would not have agreed to the procedure had they been fully informed.

In a medical malpractice case the plaintiff must demonstrate that the doctor's actions were not in accordance with accepted standards of practice. The failure to follow the standard of care must have been the direct cause of any illness or injury that the patient suffered, and the injury would not have occurred if not due to the negligence of the doctor. This burden of proof is referred to as the "preponderance of evidence" standard that is less stringent than the "beyond a reasonable doubt" standard that is required to convict criminal defendants.

Legal actions claiming medical malpractice typically involve expert witnesses and lengthy pretrial discovery proceedings. If the case is settled or goes to trial, the attorneys from both sides spend significant time and resources preparing for the trial. This is why malpractice lawsuits can be so expensive for both the physician and the plaintiff involved. It is one of the primary reasons that doctors and health organizations are in favor of efforts to change tort laws in the United States.

Damages

In the event of medical negligence, victims can seek compensatory or punitive damages. Compensation damages compensate the victim for the financial losses or expenses resulting from the negligence of the doctor. This includes loss of income and future medical expenses. Non-economic damages could include reimbursement for physical and mental anxiety.

Medical malpractice lawsuits are filed in state trial courts. There are instances when an action can be filed in federal courts. It's usually the case when the doctor is employed by a federally funded clinic such as the Veteran's Administration, or when the doctor is a resident of another country but is practicing in the United States as part of a treaty with extraterritorial authority.

Medical malpractice lawsuits are adversarial and require extensive legal discovery. This includes written interrogatories, depositions, and requests for the production of documents. The victims of alleged medical negligence may also have to go through a jury trial, and face the possibility of their claim being rejected by a court or dismissed by a juror.

You must prove that medical negligence or error was the cause of the injury you suffered to win a case for medical negligence. The harm must be serious enough that a financial award would substantially make up for your financial losses as well as emotional pain. New York medical malpractice law also has damages caps, as well as other limits on the amount patients can be awarded when they are successful in bringing an appeal.