If your child experienced a birth injury due to medical malpractice, you may be entitled to compensation. A Scottsdale umbilical cord birth injury lawyer from the Birth Injury Lawyers Group can help guide you through the process of filing a lawsuit as well as perform necessary communications and negotiations.
You and your family have been through enough—let us perform the legal work in your case so that you can focus on healing. Call the Birth Injury Lawyers Group today at (800) 222-9529 for a free consultation.
For a free legal consultation, call 1-800-222-9529
How We Can Help Your Family
A Scottsdale umbilical cord birth injury lawyer from our firm can help you and your family when your child has experienced a birth injury due to medical malpractice. Birth injuries can be devastating events for parents and may cause permanent injury to their child.
A birth injury lawyer from our firm can provide you with the following services:
- Handling communications with insurance companies, healthcare providers, and other parties
- Negotiating with insurance companies for a fair settlement
- Filing your lawsuit in a timely manner
- Producing evidence to strengthen your case
We are dedicated to helping those who have been victims of medical malpractice or medical errors during the birthing process.
Scottsdale Umbilical Cord Birth Injury Lawyer Near Me 1-800-222-9529
How Umbilical Cord Birth Injuries Can Occur
The umbilical cord is essential for the survival of a fetus while in-utero. It provides nutrients and oxygen directly from the mother. It also directs waste into the placenta. However, although the umbilical cord is the baby’s lifeline, there can be complications that can pose a threat to the baby’s health.
Examples of umbilical cord birth injuries are when a physician fails to recognize certain conditions affecting the umbilical cord. Examples of these conditions include:
- Umbilical cord prolapse – When the umbilical cord arrives before the fetus
- Nuchal cord – When the umbilical cord wraps around the neck of the fetus
- Single umbilical artery – Fetuses are at greater risk for congenital anomalies
- Umbilical knots – Can cut off circulation to the fetus and result in death
- Umbilical cysts – Associated with an increased risk for miscarriage
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Establishing Liability
If a physician fails to diagnose or treat these conditions in an expectant mother, they can be held liable for medical malpractice. In order to establish the liability of a healthcare provider, there are four elements that must be proven:
- Duty of Care – All healthcare personnel owe a duty of care to their patients and must provide treatment that meets certain professional standards.
- Breach of Duty – The duty of care was breached by a failure to act with care for the patient.
- Causation – The error or malpractice committed by the healthcare provider either directly or indirectly caused harm to the patient.
- Damages – The patient and patient’s family experienced economic and/or non-economic damages.
Birth injury lawsuits are technically medical malpractice lawsuits, so the liable parties can be medical professionals or healthcare facilities. Facilities such as hospitals and birthing centers can be held liable as a whole. Individual employees such as doctors, nurses, midwives, anesthesiologists, and other types of healthcare workers can also be held responsible.
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Recoverable Damages in a Medical Malpractice Case
If your family fell victim to medical malpractice or negligence, there are two categories of damages that we can pursue: economic and non-economic.
Economic Losses
These are damages that can be easily defined in terms of money. Examples of damages that you may incur due to an umbilical cord birth injury include medical bills and lost wages. Medical treatment for infants can be incredibly expensive and can result in thousands of dollars for procedures and NICU (neonatal intensive care unit) stays.
Parents may also miss work, understandably wanting to be with their child while they are in recovery. The child may also require life-long care depending on the extent and severity of their injures, which can also be covered.
Non-Economic Losses
Experiencing a birth injury can be traumatic, and you are able to pursue compensation for more abstract damages such as pain and suffering, mental anguish, and loss of enjoyment of life.
The Process of Filing a Birth Injury Lawsuit
The process of filing a birth injury lawsuit can be complicated and somewhat daunting, but that is why we provide our services to help you navigate the legal process. Each case is different, but there are definitive steps that must be taken in order to file a lawsuit:
- Identify the individual or individuals that caused the birth injury due to their negligence
- Draft the required documents for the court
- File these documents with the court
- Serve the negligent party, who are now referred to as defendants
These are only the basic, initial steps to filing a lawsuit. In the state of Arizona, if a plaintiff files a medical malpractice lawsuit that requires expert testimony, their lawyer must submit a written statement by a qualified expert witness that validates the plaintiff’s claim. This is intended to verify the basis for the plaintiff’s claim.
The Statute of Limitations for Medical Malpractice
Another factor to keep in mind when filing a medical malpractice lawsuit in Arizona is the statute of limitations. According to Arizona Statute §12-542, the statute of limitations for filing a personal injury lawsuit in Arizona is two years. However, when the victim of medical malpractice is a minor below the age of 18, Arizona Revised Statutes § 12-502 gives them until their 20th birthday to submit their lawsuit.
We recommend that you get started on your case as soon as possible. Call the Birth Injury Lawyers Group today at (800) 222-9529 for a free consultation with a member of our team.
Call Today for Your Free Consultation
A Scottsdale umbilical cord birth injury lawyer from the Birth Injury Lawyers Group can stand by your side and help your family fight for fair compensation.
Call the Birth Injury Lawyers Group today for a free consultation at (800) 222-9529.
Call or text 1-800-222-9529
or complete a Free Case Evaluation form