If a medical provider caused you harm or injury, you may be entitled to compensation for your damages. However, medical malpractice claims are subject to a statute of limitation deadline. Therefore, you must file a medical malpractice lawsuit before the statute of limitations expires, or the court can dismiss your lawsuit.
What Is the Georgia Statute of Limitations on Medical Malpractice?
Most medical malpractice lawsuits have a two-year statute of limitations for filing lawsuits. You can be barred from bringing your claim if you do not initiate a lawsuit within two years from the date of injury. However, there are exceptions.
Medical malpractice claims are complicated for many reasons. One reason is injuries caused by medical malpractice might not manifest themselves right away.
Therefore, there is a different timeframe if you are unaware of the medical negligence or the injury until later. The deadline would be two years from the date you discovered the injury or should have reasonably discovered the injury.
Georgia has a maximum deadline of five years from the date of the malpractice to file a medical malpractice lawsuit, known as a statute of repose. However, the rules for foreign objects left inside the body are different. In those cases, the patient has one year from the date they discover the object to file a lawsuit, regardless of how long it has been since the object was left inside their body.
There could be other exceptions to the Georgia medical malpractice statute of limitations based on the facts of your case. It is always in a person’s best interest to seek legal advice from an experienced Atlanta medical malpractice lawyer as soon as you suspect a medical provider caused your injury.
Is the Statute of Limitations Different if Someone Dies Because of Medical Malpractice?
The Georgia statute of limitations for wrongful death lawsuits is two years from the date of death. This deadline applies if your loved one dies because of medical negligence or malpractice.
What Is the Statute of Limitations for Medical Malpractice Lawsuits for Minors?
The statute of limitations rules differ slightly if a minor is injured because of medical malpractice. The statute of limitations does not expire before the child’s 7th birthday, even if more than two years have passed when the malpractice is discovered.
Also, the stature of repose (hard deadline) does not expire until the child is ten years old. Therefore, if a child is injured because of medical malpractice when they are a year old, their parents could still sue the doctor when they are seven years old.
Medical malpractice claims involving children have complicated statutes of limitations. Always talk with a lawyer as soon as possible to determine the deadline for filing a lawsuit on behalf of your child.
Types of Medical Malpractice Claims
Medical errors and adverse events in patient care are a leading cause of injury and death worldwide. A comprehensive definition of medical error is an act or omission that causes or could cause an unintended result. Medical negligence and errors can occur anywhere in the healthcare system and include all healthcare and medical providers.
Examples of medical negligence and errors that can cause patient harm include, but are not limited to:
- Surgical errors
- Anesthesia administration
- Birth injuries
- Labor and delivery trauma
- Failure to diagnose
- Hospital and clinic negligence
- Misdiagnosis of an illness or injury
- Delayed diagnosis
- Physician error
- Failing to refer a patient to a medical specialist
- Misinterpreting the results of lab work or diagnostic testing
- Pharmacy and medication errors
- Failing to order tests promptly or order the correct tests
If you prove your medical malpractice case, you can receive compensation for economic damages, including lost wages, reduced earning capacity, medical bills, long-term care, and out-of-pocket expenses.
You can also receive compensation for your non-economic damages, including emotional distress, permanent impairment or disfigurement, pain, and suffering.
Proving Medical Malpractice in Atlanta, GA
Proving medical malpractice in Georgia requires the assistance of an experienced Atlanta medical malpractice attorney. These cases are incredibly complex and require hiring medical experts to support your claim.
The legal elements of a medical malpractice case are:
Doctor-Patient Relationship
The medical provider must owe you a legal duty of care to be responsible for damages caused by medical negligence or errors. Therefore, the first step in proving your case is to prove you have a doctor-patient relationship with the provider. A doctor-patient relationship creates a duty of care for the medical professional to provide a specific level of care.
Breach of Duty
A doctor or other medical provider breaches the duty of care when they provide negligent care to a patient. Negligent care can be defined as actions or omissions that cause harm to a patient. However, the standard of care varies based on the circumstances involved in the case.
A medical expert defines the standard of care given the circumstances of your case based on what providers with similar experience and skill would have done under the same circumstances. The medical specialist must also explain how your medical provider’s conduct fell short of the medical standard of care.
Causation
You must link the breach of duty to your injuries to win a medical malpractice claim. There must be a causal relationship between the healthcare provider’s conduct and the reason for your injury.
In addition to medical experts, we use medical records to help prove the failure to meet the medical standard of care caused your injuries. Most medical malpractice cases rely heavily upon medical records and expert testimony.
Damages
Damages are the final element of a medical malpractice case. You must have suffered harm to recover compensation from a negligent medical provider. Damages include physical injuries, emotional distress, and financial losses.
Medical experts can also help in determining damages. Specialists testify about the extent of the injuries, including whether the injuries caused permanent impairments. For cases involving permanent injuries, vocational specialists, financial professionals, medical professionals, and other experts assist in determining the value of future damages.
Schedule a Free Consultation With Our Atlanta Medical Malpractice Lawyers
Deadlines to file medical malpractice claims can be challenging to calculate. Protect your right to pursue a claim in court by acting now. Contact Malone Law to schedule a free case evaluation with an experienced Atlanta medical malpractice attorney.