Medical malpractice is one of the most destructive causes of personal injury cases, not only leading to patients being harmed but also eroding public confidence in the healthcare system.
Fortunately, victims can get justice through compensation with a medical malpractice lawsuit or claim for compensation, but they must have a lawyer representing them in a medical malpractice suit if they are interested in proper compensation for their losses. In fact, with most personal injury cases, hiring a lawyer is paramount for maximum compensation.
Strict Procedure
Medical malpractice cases involve detailed, strict, and unforgiving procedures, and the failure to follow them can result in various adverse results for a lawsuit or claim for compensation, such as:
Case dismissal
Case delays
Loss of compensation
With an attorney, victims will never have to worry about adhering to legal procedures, deadlines, and other requirements, as their lawyer will take care of everything, from filing their claims to communicating with the parties involved in a timely manner.
One of the first procedures an attorney must handle is filing a Notice of Intent to File Suit along with an affidavit from a medical professional. The affidavit must allege at least one act of medical malpractice, along with facts that back up the claim. Without these documents completed, the lawsuit or compensation claim will be dead in the water.
Investigations and Discovery
In order to collect damages for a medical malpractice case, the victim must demonstrate that the injuries were caused by a healthcare professional, and doing so requires detailed evidence.
Without a lawyer, it will not only be difficult to stay true to legal procedures but to find the right kind of evidence needed to win as well. Unless the victim is a medical malpractice lawyer themselves, they will likely not know where to begin an investigation, and they will likely have problems identifying the evidence needed to win their case.
Thankfully, a dependable lawyer will know exactly where to start and how to proceed, expertly navigating the evidence-gathering process and consulting with medical experts to help build their client’s case.
Negotiations
Often, medical malpractice lawsuits begin as claims for compensation. The victim’s attorney will file a claim with the defendant’s medical malpractice insurance coverage provider, detailing the evidence against its policyholder and the losses they have caused.
If an attorney is not involved, however, the insurance company will likely get away with paying far less than it should. In fact, research into the issue of personal injury victims without legal representation repeatedly demonstrates that those with attorneys receive far more in compensation, up to ten times more in some cases.
Pre-Trial Mediation
In South Carolina, the parties involved in a medical malpractice case are required to go through a pre-trial mediation process that can potentially help them settle the issue before a trial is required. During the session, a mediator will work with the attorneys to come to a resolution that is acceptable to both parties and the court.
Pre-trial mediation is an extra step not found in many other jurisdictions around the country, but it is a final mandated effort in the state meant to keep these issues out of court.
Trial
Although most personal injury cases are settled prior to proceeding to trial, medical malpractice cases, in particular, have a higher percentage of cases that go to court than others, and trials are notoriously complex proceedings that require countless hours of preparation and a requisite level of experience and skill in the relevant matters.
High-quality witness testimony and complex examinations of those witnesses and the evidence provided are two aspects of medical malpractice trials that put them far beyond the ability of lone malpractice victims and even lawyers from other fields.
As such, it is essential that a victim have an experienced medical malpractice attorney on their side, as they will not only know how to work within the medical malpractice trial process but also feel comfortable and confident when doing so.
Damages
Damages refer to the forms of compensation victims may be awarded following a medical malpractice case. An experienced lawyer will understand which damages are available in a certain case and go on to fight for every possible penny. Of course, a victim without an attorney risks leaving much of that payment on the table.
West Law LLC Helps Medical Malpractice Victims Get Justice
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