Erb’s palsy is a type of brachial plexus injury where a collection of your child’s nerves that run from their spinal cord out to their shoulders, hands, and arms were torn, stretched, or damaged during birth. This results in permanent disability and your child may spend the rest of his or her life with a limp or paralyzed arm, a numb feeling, or lack of muscle control.
If negligence caused your child’s birth injury, you have the right to seek compensation for your child’s lifelong care. Our Delaware birth injury lawyers are dedicated to helping you recover and get your family adjusted to this new lifestyle.
Types of Erb’s Palsy
Every type of Erb’s palsy can be caused by an injury sustained at birth. Each are defined by the severity of the damage to the brachial plexus nerves:
- Avulsion: The nerve root has separated from the spinal cord
- Neuroma: The nerve fibers have been stretched or damaged and scar tissue has developed around the original injury, interfering with muscle movements
- Neurapraxia: The nerves have stretched but are not torn
- Rupture: The nerve itself has torn, but where it attaches to the spine has not been affected
Regardless of what type of Erb’s palsy your child has been diagnosed with, a Delaware birth injury lawyer can make sure they’re receiving the proper care and that your family is not suffering financially because of it.
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How Much Time Do I Have to File an Erb’s Palsy Lawsuit in Delaware?
Regarding the Delaware statute of limitations, Del. Code tit.18 §6856, any lawsuit for injury caused by malpractice of a physician, surgeon, hospital or other medical professional must be brought to the state’s civil courts no more than two years from when the injury was sustained or discovered.
If you attempt to file your claim more than three years from the date of your child’s injury, or when your family discovers the presence of negligence, you may be barred from filing a medical malpractice case in Delaware. Therefore, you need to contact our Erb’s palsy lawyers in Delaware as soon as possible.
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Financial Compensation for Birth Injury Claims
Children with Erb’s palsy require medical care and specialized services that can be costly. These expenses can continue throughout the child’s life. Any of the following expenses can be taken into consideration when totaling your damages and should be used a base for how much you should ask to be compensated for:
- Hospital visits, surgeries, and prescriptions
- Parent’s lost wages from taking off work
- Past and future medical care
- Ramps, lifts, and other home modifications
- Rehabilitation and other therapeutic services
In addition to economic, calculable costs, you can be awarded compensation for non-economic damages, referred to as pain and suffering. You can also collect punitive damages (set as a punishment to the defendant) in an Erb’s palsy birth injury lawsuit.
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What Factors Determine My Erb’s Palsy Case Value?
There are a number of factors that may affect the value of your Erb’s palsy case. This value can give you insight into how much financial compensation you may receive. Factors that may affect an Erb’s palsy case value include:
- Accurate medical documentation of your child’s birth injury
- Cost of previous and future treatment
- How severe the birth injury is
- If the lawsuit was filed within Delaware’s statute of limitations
The value of a case can change over time depending on how accessible the information is. Once your claim is filed and moves forward, your Erb’s palsy lawyer in Delaware will collect evidence of these factors and note how they may impact the case.
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How Much Does it Cost to File an Erb’s Palsy Lawsuit?
Our lawyers handle malpractice cases under a contingency fee agreement. This means, as a client, you do not pay your legal team any money unless they help you win financial compensation. After your case has been resolved, however, your attorney will collect their fees as a percentage of your total award.
Questions and concerns about legal fees and the additional costs you could face can be discussed during your free consultation. Settlement negotiations, for example, do not cost you extra money and time, while taking a case to trial could mean additional expenses.
What is Breach of Care in an Erb’s Palsy Case?
Medical professionals are held to a standard of care to act in the best interest of both the mother and newborn. Healthcare providers are responsible for their patient’s welfare and they may be forced to make difficult decisions during emergency situations.
To win your medical malpractice lawsuit, your Delaware Erb’s palsy attorney must prove that the medical professionals who cared for you and your child did not provide proper medical care. The connection between this breach of care and your child’s birth injury must be made.
Erb’s palsy can be caused by any of these breach of care examples:
- Failing to properly monitor the pregnancy and any abnormalities
- Not properly monitoring or diagnosing the newborn’s condition after delivery
- Failing to respond quick enough to fetal distress
- Waiting too long to perform a C-section
- Using too much force on the baby’s head, neck, and shoulders during delivery
Can I File an Erb’s Palsy Claim on My Own?
Under Delaware law, plaintiffs are required to file an affidavit of merit when they start a medical malpractice lawsuit. This form must be filled out by a medical expert who has given sworn testimony that you have a case.
These legal limitations to suing make it difficult for people to negotiate with malpractice insurers on their own. If you have received a settlement offer from a malpractice insurer and you have not consulted with a lawyer, odds are it’s far less than your case is worth.
This is a legal situation where you don’t want to face the insurers on your own. You need to have a qualified Delaware Erb’s palsy attorney on your side to help you with your claim. We will ensure your case complies with all legal requirements should it proceed to trial.
Are There Damage Caps on Erb’s Palsy Cases in Delaware?
Some states put damage caps on malpractice claims even in birth injury cases. In Delaware, this is not the case. There are no caps on malpractice damages, so you’re free to pursue as much as your case is worth without worrying about a legal limit.
That said, we have to back up any claims to compensation with sound evidence. By working with our attorneys, we will build the strongest case possible so you can get the most money possible for your child’s injuries.
Get Started Filing Your Erb’s Palsy Claim Today
At the Birth Injury Lawyers Group, our attorneys are qualified in fighting for family’s rights and securing the compensation they deserve. We understand that lifelong conditions such as Erb’s palsy can take an emotional and financial toll on families and we are here for you.
Connect with us today to speak with one of our Delaware Erb’s palsy lawyers for free. We are here to offer you the guidance that will help your family get through this challenging and unknown time. Check out our birth injury caregiver guide to learn more about available resources for families coping with birth injuries like Erb’s palsy.
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