Victims of medical malpractice and negligence should bring a lawsuit as soon as possible because it is very likely that they are entitled to compensation. Medical malpractice attorneys explain that there are many types of potential damages that could be awarded to plaintiffs. Meritorious lawsuits could allow an individual to receive economic and non-economic damages as well as punitive damages, which are generally used to punish an especially egregious action by the defendant. Although people are often entitled to compensation, we worry that many claims fall by the wayside because of specific time limitations in different jurisdictions.
Compensating Plaintiffs for Negligence
Juries frequently award plaintiffs both economic and non-economic compensatory damages. Medical malpractice attorneys explain economic damages as monies awarded to cover financial losses such as medical expenses, care expenses, and lost wages. Economic damages are frequently used to cover both the past and the future. Individuals who, because of negligence, can no longer work are entitled money damages for the time that they have already missed as well as future absence from their job. Medical malpractice attorneys explain non-economic damages as money that has been assessed for the injury itself. The types of recovery for non-economic damages are somewhat endless. Examples of these damages include psychological and physical harm, loss of enjoyment of life, loss of consortium, emotional distress, and many others. Finally, punitive damages are used to “teach the defendant a lesson,” and they are generally utilized in the case of some sort of wanton or reckless conduct.
Avoiding the Statute of Limitations
Following a medical negligence incident, individuals are afforded only a limited time period in which they can bring a lawsuit. Each jurisdiction generally will have a limitations period specified by statute. These limitations periods may vary depending on the type of malpractice and the state in which the negligence took place. Medical malpractice attorneys urge victims to seek legal assistance as soon as possible in order to avoid being left out in the cold without a legal remedy.
Medical Malpractice Attorneys in New Jersey and Philadelphia
If you or a family member have recently undergone surgery and have been the victim of medical malpractice or negligence, it is possible that you would like to speak with a professional. Please contact the Mininno Law Office for a free case evaluation, or call for a free consultation at (856) 833-0600 in New Jersey, or (215) 567-2380 in Philadelphia.
During discovery, each party will conduct interrogatories, depositions, and file many requests for documents, in an effort to get to the bottom of the controversy. The plaintiff is required to prove each and every element of negligence (by a preponderance of evidence in civil court) in order to prevail in his or her medical malpractice claim. The first element is that the defendant (the physician, nurse, or hospital) owed a duty to the patient, such as caring for them or providing treatment. 
A Connecticut jury rendered what 
The lawsuit, filed by the estate of Ms. Farrell, charged the hospital and Dr. Shander with negligence, but a Superior Court jury found that neither was liable for any form of malpractice. Nearly three years later, the appellate court put a halt on the lower court’s ruling because the trial judge should have asked potential jurors if they had read a New York Times Article before the trial began. The article could have potentially swayed the emotions and prejudices of the jurors which could have led to an unfair influence on the verdict. 
The legal system uses money damages in many different ways. Compensatory damages are generally used to compensate the plaintiff for any harm that the defendant has caused. Punitive damages are used to set an example and punish a defendant for particularly egregious harm. One particular portion of the legislation in North Carolina that has medical malpractice attorneys “up at arms” is the $500,000 cap on non-economic money damages. This means that damages that go beyond mere lost wages and the cost of medical care that were caused by medical negligence would now be limited. This is a debatable position for the legislature to take because many cases involve specific circumstances in which pain, suffering, loss of consortium (spousal loss of companionship and affection), hedonic damages (loss of life’s pleasure), and many other non-economic losses will far eclipse the proposed cap.
Persaud, a sworn juror in a medical malpractice civil trial, contacted the plaintiff and said that he had some important information about the defendant that was crucial to the lawsuit. Through a telephone conversation, Persaud spoke to the mother of the plaintiff and arranged to meet the plaintiff’s father at a local hardware store to discuss the information. The father immediately recognized the juror, who made assurances that he could sway the jury in the plaintiff’s favor in return for a five percent cut of the damages awarded. The family contacted the plaintiff’s medical malpractice attorney soon after the phone call and the news was promptly brought to the judge on Monday. The judge, in turn, contacted the DA’s Office and after a short investigation, the juror was arrested when he returned to court on Tuesday. If Persaud is convicted of all the charges that have been brought against him, he could face up to seven years in prison. Due to this gross misconduct on the behalf of the juror, medical malpractice attorneys fear that the plaintiff’s pursuit of a fair and impartial trial will be substantially delayed.
Seventy-two year old Christine Williams went in to Naval Hospital Jacksonville to have a mass removed from one of her kidneys. The procedure was expected to keep Ms. Williams in the hospital for three days and then allow her to resume normal activities. Those three days turned into four months. Ms. Williams then contacted 
The worry among medical malpractice attorneys has been that the new rules limiting the ability of plaintiffs to bring lawsuits may place a significant obstacle in the way of patients finding justice. Medical malpractice has been a hot button issue in nearly every jurisdiction within the country, with many politicians concerned with stabilizing the costs of malpractice insurance. Medical malpractice attorneys’ chief concern is that rules that are over-expansive may keep meritorious cases from reaching a courtroom. On the other hand, many medical malpractice attorneys believe that these new rules in Pennsylvania may help those patients bringing strong negligence cases to court. Although the new standards on negligence have been put into place to limit frivolous lawsuits, those patients with strong cases will have more of the judicial resources at their disposal.
Ms. Renna originally found two masses in her breast in April of 2004. She visited her primary care physician but was soon referred to Dr. Mark Schadt. In the month following Renna’s discovery, Schadt conducted a fine-needle aspiration biopsy in an effort to determine whether cysts in the breast were cancerous. The initial results came back negative. The fine-needle aspiration biopsy is acceptable for some women in particular cases, but more extensive examinations such as a core-needle biopsy or an open biopsy are often necessary. 
The surgeon who performed the surgery, Dr. Shawn Goodman, said she “didn’t realize I had operated on the wrong eye until I was done operating on the eye”. The child’s mother reports that since the operation, there has been no improvement in the right eye and the left eye, which was unnecessarily operated on, now appears to be wandering also. The doctor did send out a nurse to inform the parents that they would be operating on both of the child’s eyes, but she provided no explanation and did not ask for the parent’s consent before she soon vanished.