Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)

A:The value of your case will depend on several factors such as the extent of physical and emotional damage you sustained as a result of medical negligence, and the amount of your past and future care. For instance, in cases where the damage led to catastrophic injury or illness, your compensation would generally exceed that of injuries of a more transitory nature. Damages in medical malpractice are generally intended to cover your physical, emotional, and financial costs, such as medical expenses, loss of income, the cost of future medical care, and out-of-pocket expenses related to the injury you sustained as well as your pain and suffering. Non-economic damages such as pain and suffering and mental anguish are more difficult to quantify which is why you should have an experienced attorney representing you. You should be extremely skeptical of attorneys who try to make early promises about the value of your case. Due to the complexity of properly valuing cases, such early promises are generally just attempts to lure you into becoming their client.

A:The standard of care in medical malpractice differs from that of personal injury because it deals with a profession. Health care providers are under an obligation to practice within the prevailing professionla standare of care. The prevailing professional standard of car for a given health care provider is that level of care, skill, and treatment which, in light of all relevant surrounding circumstances, is recognized as acceptable and appropriate by reasonably prudent similar health care providers. Certain practices in medical care are accepted as “standard,” meaning they are considered to be how you would treat the patient for best possible results. When these treatments are not done, it can be seen as a dereliction of duty. These standards must be shown to the court through expert testimony by other medical professionals in the same specialty area.

A:How long you have to file your claim is called a “statute of limitations.” In Florida the statute of limitations is 2 years. Generally speaking, the statute of limitations begins to run when you knew or should have known that you were the victim of medical malpractice. One should always view the statute as beginning to run at the earliest possible date, in that, if the 2-year period is permitted to run without proper legal action being taken, your claim would be barred. 

A:Any failure to act according to accepted medical standards that leaves you injured or your health compromised may lead to a claim. These can include failure to get patient information, failure to get consent, medication mistakes, surgical mistakes, birth injuries, failure to properly diagnose a compromised health condition or disease, failure to order or read proper tests, emergency room errors, anesthesia errors, and failure to properly treat your condition or disease.

A:Generally speaking, no. However, if the nursing home resident was receiving medical treatment in a doctor-patient relationship at the time of the injury/abuse, it may be medical malpractice. Most nursing home abuse cases are not based on this relationship but on relationships with lower level nursing home staff, administrative staff, or other residents in the facility.

A:It is impossible to predict which cases will or will not go to trial. There are many different issues that impact this question. However, medical malpractice cases are generally aggressively defended. Therefore, we evaluate and prepare every case with a plan to take it to trial, and always make strategic decisions during the case to maximize your recovery. 

A:If they are not resolved through a negotiated settlement between the parties, then they will go to court where the burden of proof will rest on you the plaintiff. The burden of proof standard in these cases is called a “preponderance of evidence.” This means that your evidence against the defendant must be more convincing or of greater quantity or quality than that of the opposing evidence.