Virginia Medical Malpractice Legal Questions

That is a pretty egregious act of gross negligence.  But in any negligence case you are generally only going to receive compensation for your actual damages.  In this instance your actual damages would have been if you had an unintended pregnancy.  But it sounds like you did not actually get pregnant, so basically you suffered no actual harm from the first doctor's negligence.  You may also have a claim for fraud, but again no injury means no damages.  Because of this you would be unlikely to find a lawyer to take it on, because there is a low likelihood of getting any money out of it.  I would recommend that you report what you found out to the state licensing board. ... Read Answer

It sounds pretty negligent to me, but only a medical professional can verify whether it was a violation of the normal standard of care in these situations.  If you can find another doctor to say that what they did was negligent then you've got a case.  A lawyer cannot make that determination.  You will need a medical expert's verification before any lawsuit could be served in Virginia.  However, what most lawyers are looking for in order to consider taking such a case on contingency is what your long-term injury is and/or what the total medical expenses were that were caused by the negligence.  If it did not cost that much and you are all better now then a lawyer will probably not be interested, as your case may not be worth much.  But if you have significant bills and/or long-term damage then a lawyer could probably help you bring a lawsuit, if you have the expert verification of negligence.... Read Answer

While any surgery contains risks, the only way to know for sure if these injuries were caused by negligence is to have another doctor who is an expert in this field evaluate your daughter and give you their opinion.  An expert opinion is the first thing that is needed in any medical malpractice case, so if you have not already done so that's a good place to start.  Once you do that then attorneys will be much more interested in talking with you about the case.... Read Answer

In general, the statute of limitations will bar any claim unless suit has been filed before the two year date, unless limited tolling provisions apply to the case. You should schedule a consultation with an attorney to review the case and see whether it is still possible to pursue a recovery.... Read Answer

This would be a very difficult case to prove on both liability and damages. Why would the psychiatrist need to take blood work if you were tolerating the Lithium without a problem? Weren't you having your blood tested annually by your family physician? Failure to test your blood did not cause the kidney disease and it would be problematic to prove when an earlier diagnosis might have made any difference. If you contributed to the kidney disease in any way yourself, you could not recover.... Read Answer

There is not sufficient information to determine if you have a claim for malpractice until your records can be reviewed by a qualified expert. Perhaps you have already sought an opinion from another dentist or oral surgeon. If not, a malpractice attorney can assist you but the first step is to collect all of your dental records for the expert to review. Keep in mind that the statute of limitations will run on your claim after two years from the date of injury and you will be unable to pursue a recovery after that.... Read Answer

This could be a valid claim but a medical review will be necessary to confirm that there was malpractice. Consult with an attorney after obtaining your medical records. If the records are voluminous and expensive, there is a process for requesting that they be produced electronically onto a disc at a reasonable cost and the attorney can assist you with this.... Read Answer

Your time for having the case reviewed is limited and will expire two years from the date of his death. Only a review of the records by a medical expert can determine if there is a case. The issue will be whether there were symptoms present at the time of an examination that should have alerted a reasonable physician to refer him to a specialist. If so, the next issue will be whether there was treatment available at that point that would probably have prevented the cancer from becoming terminal. His age, physical condition, health habits (smoker v. non-smoker, regular physicals, etc.) will all be factors that will affect the viability of the case. There are also cost issues involved in pursuing the claim due to the necessity of expert testimony. Cancer cases are difficult because certain types of cancer are more aggressive and spread faster than others. The doctor is not responsible for causing the cancer; only for reasonable treatment of it (if any). I am deeply sorry for your loss and hope that you can find some closure. However, a lawsuit is not always the best option.... Read Answer

From the facts you stated, it does not appear that the first doctor did anything to cause any physical harm. Unless you notified him that the wound did not heal and he failed to treat it, he has not caused the condition to worsen. Feel free to discuss the issue further with the specialist to see if he is of the opinion that the physician who drained the cyst breached the standard of care. If so, then consult an attorney to see if a claim is worth pursuing from a cost standpoint.... Read Answer

I am sorry for the troubles your husband has had. The question in a long term carre or nursing home case is whether the standard of care has been followed by the facility and care providers. If the bad result should have been avoided by the regular procedures that any home should have followed then they may be held liable. The best way to know is to get the records and bring them to an attorney who handles these cases. They will be able to tell you if the case is likely worth pursuing.... Read Answer

You certainly have a case. You were both misdiagnosised and given the wrong medication, which triggered your condition. We handle many such cases as yours nationwide.   I have responded to your inquiry according to the laws of Massachusetts, where my firm is located. Laws can vary significantly from state to state and cases tend will I get in trouble if I take my exes visitation rights away because he does not have transportation to be rather fact-specific, so you are best served by consulting with a knowledgeable attorney in weighing your options. Email messages/Online Correspondence are akin to conversations and do not reflect the level of analysis applied to formal legal opinions. Email/Online responses do not form an attorney-client relationship.    Joseph F. Botelho, Esq. BOTELHO LAW GROUP Attorneys At Law 901 Eastern Ave.  Unit 2 Fall River, MA 02723  Office:  888-269-0688 http://massachusettslawyeronline.com... Read Answer

To win a malpractice case you must prove through another doctor that the first one violated the standard of care in the field and caused you an injury. These cases are costly. If you want to find out if an experienced attorney can help you then you should call one and see if they are interested. Usually I am looking for a catastrophic injury before I can take on a medical malpractice case. Sometimes, there may be an error and poor care that the legal system is just not able to fully and fairly address. This is not to minimize you situation which sounds terrible for you. I am sorry to hear of your difficulty with this chiro and also suggest you can make a complaint with the VA Board of Medicine.... Read Answer

That sounds very serious and you may have a negligence claim against the doctor, but to be sure you will need another qualified doctor who can verify that what he did was a breach of the standard of care. This answer is given in accordance with the laws of Virginia and may not be applicable in any other state.  It should not be construed as legal advice, as that would require a more thorough analysis of all of the facts involved in a specific case.  If you need further information or assistance, please feel free to contact my office for a consultation. Case results depend upon a variety of factors unique to each case. Case results do not guarantee or predict a similar result in any future case.... Read Answer

You would need a medical expert to verify that she was given the wrong medication and that it was the cause of her injuries.  It is also not clear whether this was just a temporary problem or whether it caused any lasting damage.  But you may have a good claim, depending on the answers to these questions. This answer is given in accordance with the laws of Virginia and may not be applicable in any other state.  It should not be construed as legal advice, as that would require a more thorough analysis of all of the facts involved in a specific case.  If you need further information or assistance, please feel free to contact my office for a consultation. Case results depend upon a variety of factors unique to each case. Case results do not guarantee or predict a similar result in any future case.    ... Read Answer

Answered by New Jersey Medical Malpractice Attorney John Ratkowitz.  The problem with plastic surgery cases in general is that nearly all doctors require patients to sign extensive informed consent paperwork that explains that the results from the surgery are not guaranteed. Under the circumstances, it is difficult to prevail in these cases. The debate usually centers on whether the results from surgery were within the range of reasonable rather than whether the defendant doctor was negligent. Also, while jurors deny it, they give plastic surgeons the benefit of the doubt in these cases because jurors often conclude the plaintiff brought the problems on himself because of vanity. It is not necessarily a fair conclusion, but it is a big obstacle in these cases. If you do want to investigate pursuing the case, you should contact a local medical malpractice attorney (one in your state).  They take these cases on a contingency basis which means you only have to pay if you succeed.  Additionally, initial consultations are usually free. You can use the "Find a Lawyer" service through this website to research medical malpractice attorneys.  Then, visit each attorney's website and look for a firm that has a record of successful verdicts.  If you are unable to find a lawyer who meets these qualifications within your state, sometimes you may contact an out of state lawyer who can refer you to a qualified attorney in your state while providing support related to the issues of medicine. Below are some articles you may find helpful.  They are written for a New Jersey audience (where I practice) but the ideas discussed in these articles usually apply in most other jurisdictions as well. Click here for an article that discusses the three main questions I ask when deciding whether to investigate a potential medical malpractice case. This discusses the issue of financial viability. Click here for an article that explains what you can and should expect when pursuing a medical malpractice case. Click here, here  and here for more information about me. Click here for summaries of some of the cases that I have litigated. Click here to review articles that I have published. Since I am a lawyer, I need to advise you of the following when I communicate with you: Please note that by attempting to answer your question, I am not acting as your attorney. I will do nothing further to protect or preserve your interests in the absence of any additional discussion with you about this matter. John Ratkowitz, Esq. Starr, Gern, Davison & Rubin, P.C. 105 Eisenhower Parkway Roseland, NJ 07068 Office: (973) 830-8441 Cell: (732) 616-6278 Fax: (973) 226-0031 Email: jratkowitz@starrgern.com  Click here for my website. ... Read Answer

It would be fair too complicated for me to explain how to properly prepare a Complaint for a medical malpractice claim yourself.  But that said, I will say that the standards are much lower for people representing themselves without a lawyer and most things can be fixed later by filing an amended complaint.  One thing that cannot be fixed is missing the statute of limitations deadline, so filing anything is better than filing nothing.  But you will need to have an expert who can verify the validity of your claim before you can serve it on the other party.  You have one year after filing to perfect service. This answer is given in accordance with the laws of Virginia and may not be applicable in any other state.  It should not be construed as legal advice, as that would require a more thorough analysis of all of the facts involved in a specific case.  If you need further information or assistance, please feel free to contact my office for a consultation. Case results depend upon a variety of factors unique to each case. Case results do not guarantee or predict a similar result in any future case.... Read Answer

I'm not sure what you are saying the doctor lied about, but for any medical malpractice case you will need a medical expert who can verify that the health care professionals did not meet the standard of care.  It sounds like their delay in diagnosing you could have caused additional problems, but we don't know for sure what the reasonable thing for them to have done would be without an expert. This answer is given in accordance with the laws of Virginia and may not be applicable in any other state.  It should not be construed as legal advice, as that would require a more thorough analysis of all of the facts involved in a specific case.  If you need further information or assistance, please feel free to contact my office for a consultation. Case results depend upon a variety of factors unique to each case. Case results do not guarantee or predict a similar result in any future case.  ... Read Answer