Birth Injury
DC, Maryland, & Virginia Birth Injury Attorneys
Birth injuries Washington DC unfortunately sees so often may require a lawyer to help. A “birth injury” is defined as any damage done to the tissues and organs of a child as the result of the complications during childbirth. These birth injuries can also be the result of a poor decision made by a doctor or other health care provider during delivery. Some of these poor decision include:
- Failing to detect an umbilical cord wrapped around the baby’s neck
- Unreasonable delay in performing an emergency Caesarean section
- Misdiagnosis of specific conditions during pregnancy
- Misuse use of medical tools
- Failing to monitor oxygen
Often injuries during birth cause life long disabilities, both mental and physical, that can have profound impacts on the families who have to care for the child. A birth injury lawyer or the personal injury lawyers Washington DC trusts may be able to help in these cases, fighting alongside families that have suffered from the consequences of a birth injury.
Birth injury is a form of medical malpractice, so doctor negligence needs to be proved in order to make a claim. Doctors make tough judgement calls every day and, unfortunately, a doctor does not hold liability for every bad outcome that occurs on his or her watch. This is one of the reasons that birth injury cases, like all medical malpractice cases can be so difficult. These cases require proof that the doctor made a mistake that another doctor in the same situation would not have made. A birth injury lawyer can help in evaluating if you have a case against a doctor. Figuring out if you have a case alone can be a challenge, especially because in most birth injury cases the hospital will do anything they can to prove that the mistake that caused a birth injury is excusable.
It is not uncommon for a birth injury to result in a life-long disability for the child. These disabilities often mean increased medical expenses for rehabilitation, special care and special equipment for the child, and caring for a child with a disability can be mentally taxing for family members as well. There is where a birth injury lawyer may be able to help in finding the facts to see that you receive adequate compensation for something that will permanently affect the life of the child and the family.
Out of every 1,000 births, between six and eight in result in birth injuries. According to the 2019 Birth Injury Guide. That results in 75 birth injuries every day.
If your child had a birth injury, especially one that resulted in death, hospitals and physicians or nurses may not be forthcoming with information or they may even attempt to cover up the negligence, birth injury or death. That is why it is so important to contact expert attorneys, and investigators who work to secure justice for you.
One major birth injury in Washington, D.C., Maryland, and Virginia is fetal death, which is defined as death prior to the complete extraction of the fetus from its mother, regardless of length of pregnancy. Legally, there is no distinction between a “miscarriage” and “stillborn birth” in Washington, D.C., Maryland, and Virginia . Some states do make a legal distinction between miscarriage and stillborn deaths, however, Washington, D.C., Maryland, and Virginia don’t make that distinction.
Fetal death means that after the abstraction a fetus does not show any signs of life, meaning there is no heartbeat, no pulsation of the umbilical cord, or no movement of voluntary muscles. To be clear, Washington, D.C. and Maryland’s legal definition of fetal death does not include induced terminations of pregnancy/abortions.
Dealing with birth injuries is difficult just by the nature of what it is, but the issue can be compounded by the different jurisdictions in the Washington DC area. It’s important to act quickly if you or a loved one has had a birth injury in the Washington DC area.
In Maryland, the general statute of limitations for medical malpractice lawsuits, codified at §5-109 of Md. Code, Cts.&Jud. Proc. Article, is three years. Of course, if the injury is not detected until later, the victim have three years from the date from when the injury is first recognized to file suit. You may want to contact a top birth injury lawyer as a lawsuit must be filed within five years absent unusual circumstances. It is best to contact a birth injury lawyer Washington DC as soon as a birth injury is observed.
An example of particular circumstance is a claim for a minor. Once the minor turns 18 (and is no longer considered a minor) that victim has five years to file a lawsuit, regardless of how old they were at the time of the injury.
Depending on the state, If the injury resulted in fatality, you may only have a year to file a wrongful death claim, which is why you may want to contact a birth injury lawyer to help you discuss the specifics of your case and figure out if the injury falls within the statute of limitations. Especially because hospitals and the medical community have powerful attorneys protecting the interests of their employees while discrediting your birth injury claim.
Results matter when it comes to injured children, especially if the injury is a result of a birth injury caused by medical malpractice.
Depending on the details of your specific case, a top birth injury lawyer may be able to get you compensation for medical expenses, home modifications, life adjustments, lost wages or income, emotional suffering and physical suffering.
If your child has suffered from an injury caused at birth, the experienced attorneys at Cohen & Cohen are here to help you. Our team of caring lawyers have decades of experience litigating birth injury and other medical malpractice cases. We know that these large, complex, and often difficult cases are built on facts — facts that prove a doctor or other health care provider has violated the standard of care. If your child has suffered an injury during birth that has caused any temporary or permanent damage, do not hesitate to reach out to contact us and we will set you up with a dedicated birth injury lawyer on our team who who will be able to take on the tough fights against insurance companies, hospitals, and negligent treatment providers to help you get the resources you need to cover the years of special treatment for your injured child.
