All too often, the inattention, carelessness, or mistakes of a doctor or nurse can lead to birth injuries, which can result in permanent impairments.
A Chicago birth injury lawyer with Ben Crump Law, PLLC, can help you hold medical professionals accountable for their negligence. You may be able to collect compensation for the injuries to your child by filing a medical malpractice claim or lawsuit against the responsible professionals.
How do You Know what Kind of Compensation You Can Get?
Your child and both parents may be eligible to collect compensation that arises from a birth injury. Some types of compensation result from concrete expenses related to the injury, like medical bills. Other types of compensation are less tangible but still represent serious losses related to the injury.
Some common components of an award in a birth injury case might include:
- Physical pain and suffering
- Permanent impairment or quality of life
- Hospitalization, surgical, diagnostic, and rehabilitation expenses
- Home health care costs
- Bills for medical assistive devices, special educational needs, and modifications to homes and vehicles to accommodate disabilities
- Lost wages if a parent must become a full-time caregiver for the child
The total amount of compensation that you are eligible to receive in a birth injury case varies from one case to another. The permanency and severity of the birth injury, in particular, have a significant impact on the eventual award in each case.
For instance, a minor injury that will resolve over time, such as a broken collarbone, can result in different damages than a major injury that causes a child a permanent disability.
For a free legal consultation with a birth injury lawyer serving Chicago, call (844) 998-2554
How do You Prove That Negligence Occurred in Your Birth Injury Case?
You and your lawyer must prove that the action – or inaction – of the doctor, nurse, or other medical professional fell below a reasonable standard of care during or shortly after the birthing process. Childbirth is not without risk, and some birth injuries occur despite the best efforts of medical personnel.
As a result, we must provide evidence of the following for a successful birth injury case:
- The appropriate standard of care, based on the type of skill and care that a similarly educated doctor would provide under the same circumstances
- A failure to follow the appropriate standard of care during labor and delivery
- That the child suffered a birth injury as a result of the failure to follow the appropriate standard of care
- That the child suffered an injury and related losses
Essentially, you must prove that if the medical professional had not made an error, then your child would not have suffered an injury. Our lawyers can review medical records and take expert testimony to demonstrate the link between you or your child’s injury and your healthcare provider’s malpractice.
Chicago Birth Injury Lawyer Near Me (844) 998-2554
How Will Our Law Firm Assist Me After My Child has Suffered a Birth Injury?
Maintaining a successful birth injury case requires familiarity with the medical field. More specifically, a birth injury case demands:
- In-depth knowledge of medical terminology and proper medical procedures
- A thorough understanding of common birth injuries, their causes, and their consequences
- Experience investigating birth injuries and the medical care that led to them
As your legal team, we can guide you through the process of filing a medical malpractice case in the aftermath of a birth injury to your child. We know that you likely will be preoccupied with the shock of the injuries, the need to seek immediate and ongoing medical treatment, and medical bills and related expenses. We can handle your legal needs while you focus on these other concerns.
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How Will You Pay for Our Services?
We start out by giving everyone a free consultation. We want to thoroughly discuss and evaluate your case. You should understand your full range of legal options before you make any decisions about moving forward.
If we agree to take the next step together, you need not worry about paying us for any work up front, by the hour, or out of pocket. We know that times like these can be financially challenging. As a result, you pay no fees unless and until you receive an award in your case.
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How Long do You Have to Get Compensation After a Birth Injury?
All types of lawsuits have deadlines for filing paperwork in court. Most victims of medical malpractice have two years to file their cases in court. However, Illinois law makes a special exception for children under 18 who suffer birth injuries or other forms of medical malpractice.
Under 735 ILCS 5/13-212(a), minor injury victims, or victims under the age of 18 at the time that the malpractice occurs, generally have eight years to file their cases in court. For a birth injury, then, the parents or guardians of the child have essentially until the child turns eight years old to file suit in court.
As a practical matter, however, waiting eight years to pursue medical malpractice is not advisable in most cases. It may be far more challenging to find evidence after eight years have passed. Witnesses also may be difficult to find or may not remember the incident, which can create additional problems for your case.
Work Toward an Award in Your Birth Injury Case with Ben Crump Law, PLLC
If your or your child’s birth injury was preventable, you have the right to seek legal recourse for the injuries. A lawyer with our firm can investigate your situation and determine whether you have a legal claim against the various Chicago medical professionals who treated your child during the labor and delivery process.
Connect with Ben Crump Law, PLLC, at (844) 998-2554 today to get your free case consultation. We can listen to your story and help you explore the legal options that may be available to you. Together, we can decide the best path for you and your child moving forward.
Call or text (844) 998-2554 or complete a Free Case Evaluation form
