Are you struggling with serious health issues because an optometrist in Atlanta, Georgia was negligent? Whether they failed to diagnose a medical condition, misinterpreted test results, or made an error during ophthalmic surgery, it’s important to hold them accountable.
The experienced Atlanta optometrist malpractice lawyers at Malone Law can help you assert your rights and fight for the financial award you need and deserve.
Since 1965, victims of medical errors and optometrist negligence have turned to Malone Law for help during the most challenging times of their lives. As leaders in medical malpractice litigation in Georgia with 50+ years of combined experience, our award-winning litigators have been able to make a positive impact in the lives of thousands of clients.
Our law firm has won hundreds of millions of dollars in settlements and jury awards. Today, we’re here to help you achieve the best results in your optometrist negligence action. Contact our Atlanta, GA, law office today and schedule a free consultation.
How Malone Law Can Help If You’ve Been Injured By an Optometrist in Atlanta, GA
Even though vision isn’t usually covered by traditional health insurance plans, it’s still important to have a working relationship with a local optometrist in Atlanta, GA. Annual testing can help to ensure that our vision is working properly and that we’re not exhibiting any underlying signs of illness or disease.
Unfortunately, optometrists can – and do – make mistakes when treating patients. These mistakes can fundamentally change the course of a patient’s life forever – potentially leading to vision impairment, blindness, enucleation, and, in some cases, death.
When an optometrist makes a mistake, it’s critical to hold them accountable. After all, they’re practicing medical professionals whom we’ve entrusted to keep us safe and help us navigate critical health issues.
That’s where our Atlanta medical malpractice lawyers can help.
At Malone Law, we’ve built our careers on helping victims of medical negligence stand up to powerful hospitals, healthcare providers, and insurance companies in Atlanta. We offer our clients the tools and resources needed to make a statement and obtain meaningful, life-changing results in complex medical malpractice disputes.
When you turn to us for help, you’ll be able to rely on us to:
- Carefully investigate the circumstances of your optometrist malpractice case
- Identify the mistake(s) made by your optometrist or ophthalmologist during the course of treatment
- Gather medical records, provider notes and charts, lab tests and reports, witness statements, photographs, and other evidence needed to build a compelling legal claim
- Bring in experts in optometry and ophthalmology to provide guidance on the more detailed and technical aspects of your case
- Assess the extent of your damages and determine what your optometrist malpractice case is worth
- Represent your best interests during negotiations with the negligent healthcare provider, medical center, and/or their insurance company
- Aggressively pursue a top-dollar verdict at trial in Fulton County, GA if you don’t receive a meaningful settlement offer
No matter the injury you’ve suffered, the consequences of optometrist malpractice can be catastrophic. You might be grappling with unbearable pain and trying to navigate a life with limited vision. You may also be unable to work, which can put a serious strain on your ability to provide for your family and make ends meet.
Our law firm is here to help you get back on your feet without adding to the stress you’re under. We work on contingency. You pay nothing for our help unless our optometrist malpractice attorneys in Atlanta win your case.
Contact our Atlanta, GA law office today to get started. Members of our team are always standing by to help.
What is Optometrist Malpractice?
An optometrist is a healthcare provider that specializes in taking care of your eyes. They deal with everything from correcting your vision as it declines to evaluating your eyes for signs of illness, deterioration, and disease.
Just like other doctors in Georgia, optometrists are held to incredibly high standards. We expect them to exercise a “reasonable degree of care and skill” when treating patients. Ultimately, optometrists are trusted to use the level of care, skill, and knowledge they’ve obtained over their seven to eight years of schooling.
When an optometrist gets careless, makes a mistake, or simply fails to exercise an appropriate level of care in treating a patient, they can be considered negligent. This negligence is the basis for an optometrist malpractice lawsuit if a patient gets hurt.
Examples of Optometrist Malpractice
Every year, hundreds of optometrists are sued for malpractice.
Some of the most common reasons for these optometrist malpractice lawsuits include:
- Failure to diagnose
- Failure to dilate the pupil
- Delayed diagnosis
- Misdiagnosis
- Improper diagnosis
- Failure to diagnose cancer
- Improper management of illness
- Ordering improper tests or labs
- Misinterpreting lab results
- Failure to refer
- Failure to perform surgery
- Surgical errors
The eyes are an incredibly delicate organ, and even minor missteps can cause permanent damage. If you suspect that your optometrist or ophthalmologist made a mistake during treatment, it’s important to reach out to an experienced medical malpractice near you in Atlanta.
Malone Law will be here to listen to your side of the story, consider your legal options, and help you figure out the best path forward.
What Do I Have to Prove to Win an Optometrist Malpractice Lawsuit in Georgia?
Optometry malpractice refers to an eye doctor’s failure to provide an appropriate level of care, which, in turn, causes an injury or death.
When you file an ophthalmic malpractice lawsuit in Atlanta, you will have the burden of proving:
- Duty: You must establish that the optometrist owed you a duty of care. This exists when there is a legitimate doctor-patient relationship.
- Breach: There must be evidence that the optometrist breached the duty of care owed to you. You can establish this by pointing out specific errors made during treatment that another optometrist would not have made.
- Causation: The optometrist’s mistake must have been the actual and proximate cause of your injury or family member’s death. Your injury cannot have been a reasonably foreseeable risk of treatment.
- Damages: You’ll need to point out damages you’ve suffered because of your injury, such as medical bills or lost wages.
Our optometrist malpractice attorneys in Atlanta have decades of experience navigating these complex legal matters. We understand that each case is unique and must benefit from its own independent investigation and unique litigation strategy.
Trust that we’ll put the full force and resources of our medical malpractice law firm behind your optometrist negligence case. We’ll do everything in our power to not only win but recover a maximum financial award on your behalf.
What Types of Damages Can I Get in an Optometrist Malpractice Lawsuit in Atlanta, Georgia?
Whether you’ve been forced to lose part of your eye, suffered full or partial blindness, or have to deal with excruciating eye pain for the rest of your life, you deserve to be compensated for your optometrist’s mistakes.
Fortunately, Georgia law gives you the opportunity to take legal action and pursue compensatory damages for your costs and suffering.
Compensatory damages include economic and non-economic damages.
Economic damages help to counter the financial costs and losses associated with your injuries, such as:
- Hospitalization
- Surgery
- Follow-up medical care
- Rehabilitation
- Medical equipment and devices
- Future medical expenses
- Travel for medical care
- Lost wages and income
- Disability
- Diminished earning capacity
- Out-of-pocket expenses
Non-economic damages help to compensate for the trauma and life changes you experience as a victim of optometry malpractice, such as:
- Pain and suffering
- Chronic physical pain
- Post-traumatic stress disorder
- Loss of enjoyment of life
- Loss of consortium
- Embarrassment
- Disfigurement and scarring
- Mental anguish
Don’t be surprised if the optometrist (or their insurance company) tries to downplay the seriousness of your injury. Their goal is simple – to limit how much money you can secure in a lawsuit. Our optometrist malpractice lawyers in Atlanta won’t let their tactics work.
We’ll dive into your case and work to build a strong, compelling legal claim that’s backed by strong facts and evidence. When it’s time to negotiate, we’ll be ready to force meaningful conversations and fight to get you the financial award you truly deserve.
How Long Will I Have to File a Georgia Optometrist Malpractice Claim?
As with other types of medical malpractice cases, optometrist negligence actions are subject to a two-year statute of limitations in the state of Georgia.
This gives you two years from the date of your optometrist’s mistake or the date your injury was discovered to file a lawsuit for damages.
If you’ve lost a family member because of an optometrist’s negligence, you’ll have two years from their wrongful death to file a claim.
While the statute of limitations can be tolled in some situations – like when there’s a reasonable delay in discovering an injury – you won’t have unlimited time to take legal action. Georgia has a five-year statute of repose that applies to these medical malpractice actions.
This gives you, at most, five years from the date of the optometrist’s negligence to file a lawsuit.
Schedule a Free Consultation With an Experienced Atlanta Optometrist Malpractice Lawyer
Call Malone Law if you or a loved one has been injured because an optometrist in Atlanta, Georgia made an error during treatment. Like other types of healthcare providers, optometrists and ophthalmologists can be held legally responsible when their sub-par care causes a patient’s injury or death.
Our Atlanta optometrist malpractice attorneys are here to help you make the most of your fight for compensation.
When you choose our law firm, you benefit from a top-rated team of litigators with over 50 years of combined experience. We’ve won millions in life-changing awards for our clients, and now we’re ready to help you achieve the best results in your optometrist malpractice case, too.
Contact our law office in Atlanta to set up a free consultation today.