One medical mistake from a doctor or nurse can turn what’s supposed to be one of the most joyous experiences of your life into one of the most traumatic. Birth injuries can affect your family’s whole life, but you have the right to hold those individuals responsible for their carelessness. At Birth Injury Lawyers Group, we offer compassionate legal support.
Our experienced and compassionate birth injury lawyers in Arizona can help you collect compensation for these medical errors. While this can’t reverse your baby’s injuries, the award can alleviate your family’s financial and emotional stress due to medical negligence. Call us to discuss your legal options.
For a free legal consultation, call 1-800-222-9529
A Birth Injury Lawyer in Arizona Can Help
As you focus on your child’s condition and rehabilitation, an Arizona birth injury attorney will handle the legal side. This includes:
- Filing your claim
- Negotiating with insurance companies
- Offering legal advice
- Completing all paperwork and communications
- Assigning a monetary value to your damages
- Hiring a medical malpractice expert to investigate the causes of your baby’s injury
Many Arizona birth injury lawyers work on a contingency fee basis, meaning you do not pay unless you are awarded compensation. You can expect attorney’s fees to be about 33% of your total settlement or court award.
Arizona Birth Injury Lawyer Near Me 1-800-222-9529
The Difference Between a Birth Injury and a Birth Defect
While the two terms are sometimes used interchangeably, they refer to two different types of conditions that can occur during childbirth. Understanding the differences between these two types of conditions is important for parents and healthcare professionals alike.
Birth Injuries
This is a physical injury that occurs during labor and delivery. One key difference between the two terms is that birth injuries are often preventable, whereas birth defects are typically not.
Birth injuries can occur due to medical errors, and healthcare providers are responsible for taking appropriate preventative measures. For example, if a doctor fails to recognize signs of fetal distress and doesn’t order a timely C-section, the resulting brain damage to the baby could be considered a birth injury.
Common causes of birth injuries include:
- Difficult or prolonged labor
- The use of instruments such as forceps or vacuum extractors
- Medical errors or negligence
Birth Defects
A birth defect is a physical or genetic condition that develops before birth. This can be caused by various factors, including genetics, environmental exposures, and maternal health factors. Common examples include heart problems and Down syndrome.
While insurance companies will heavily promote the narrative that birth defects cannot be prevented, that is not always the case. For example, these conditions can also develop as a side effect of medication taken by the mother during pregnancy.
If a doctor prescribes the wrong medication for a pregnant mother, they can be liable for the child’s injuries. The physician should be aware of dangerous drugs and closely monitor the mother and infant before, during, and after birth.
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Compensation You May Be Eligible to Receive
You can hold careless medical professionals responsible for their actions and possibly prevent them from harming another child. There are several damages you may be eligible to receive.
According to Arizona Constitution Art. II § 31, there is no limit on how much you can recover, including compensatory damages and, in rare cases, punitive damages.
The goal of compensatory damages is to restore the plaintiff to their position if the harm had not occurred. These further divide into economic and non-economic damages to address how the birth injury impacted your family’s life.
Economic Damages
These damages compensate the plaintiff for financial losses that they have suffered due to the defendant’s actions. Economic damages are tangible losses like:
- All medical expenses
- Ongoing healthcare costs
- Any necessary medical equipment
- Physical therapy and counseling
- Lost wages
The amount of economic damages awarded depends on the specific circumstances of the case and the extent of the harm suffered by the plaintiff. To prove the extent of your losses, gather documents detailing your expenses.
Non-Economic Damages
These damages compensate the plaintiff for intangible losses they have suffered as a result of the defendant’s actions, such as:
- Loss of enjoyment of life
- Pain and suffering
- Emotional distress
- Disfigurement and scarring
These subjective forms of harm are more difficult to prove. However, our legal team will rely on a wide range of evidence to show the psychological impact of the birth injury.
Wrongful Death Damages
If your child passed away due to medical negligence, family members could collect additional compensation for damages such as funeral and burial costs and non-economic damages like loss of companionship.
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Types of Birth Injuries for Which You Can File a Claim
Birth injuries can be extremely severe, or they may not. Some are as simple as a small scratch on the skin that will heal quickly, while others can lead to lifelong debilitation.
A few conditions that are caused by birth injuries that you may want to file a lawsuit over include:
- Cerebral palsy
- Erb’s palsy
- Asphyxia
- Cephalohematoma
- Shoulder dystocia
- Broken bones
- Cranial and spinal cord damage
Our law firm was founded in 2003, and we have represented many cases since then. We worked closely with parents and offered support during one of the most difficult periods in their lives. Even if your child was diagnosed with a different condition, contact us, as we could still help.
How Birth Injuries Can Affect Your Child
No parent can fully understand how a birth injury will impact their child and what long-term effects they can expect until they live that experience. Children who are diagnosed with a condition as a result of a birth injury may:
- Be required to attend numerous doctor appointments per year and endure many procedures, especially in early adolescence.
- Need to receive treatment and therapy from several specialists.
- Require special accommodations regarding transportation, education, and other parts of their daily life.
- Require the assistance of a caregiver.
- Face the challenges of their condition for the rest of their life.
Ensuring that your child has access to necessary resources is an easy decision for parents. This may mean bringing a lawsuit against those responsible for your child’s injury.
Arizona Statute of Limitations
According to Arizona Revised Statute §12-542, you have two years from when you knew (or should have known with reasonable diligence) that your baby’s injuries were caused by medical negligence.
Each state has different conditions that could affect this deadline. In Arizona, the statute of limitations for medical malpractice is adjusted if the plaintiff is under the age of 18, the plaintiff doesn’t have the mental capacity to file the lawsuit, or the defendant health care provider is outside of Arizona.
Contact Our Birth Injury Attorneys in Arizona
At Birth Injury Lawyers Group, we know the financial struggles of caring for a child with special needs. As experienced birth injury lawyers, we aim to fight for the maximum compensation you need to care for your child now and in the future.
We work to ensure that families are compensated for the harm and a lifetime of special needs and hardships. To begin the process and hold the negligent parties responsible, contact one of our birth injury lawyers in Arizona for a free case review.
Call or text 1-800-222-9529
or complete a Free Case Evaluation form