We all like to think we’re safe when we entrust ourselves to the care of doctors and other healthcare professionals. Unfortunately, that’s not always the case; statistics show that medical malpractice is the third-biggest cause of death in the United States every year. As shocking as this statistic is, it doesn’t stop there. Medical malpractice causes thousands of more minor issues every year as well. If you’ve suffered any kind of health setback due to negligence on the part of a healthcare professional, you need to get in contact with a medical malpractice attorney as soon as you can.
Read on to learn the five things you need to ask a medical malpractice attorney before you undertake a case.
1. Do I Have a Case?
This is the first thing you should ask any lawyer, regardless of what the issue at hand is. If you don’t have any chance of success in your action, you should abandon it immediately.
Even if you’re convinced that your case is rock solid, there might be a reason why it won’t hold up in court or a mediation hearing. Such a reason might be a lack of objective evidence or a failure on your part to disclose a relevant piece of information.
Say, for example, a doctor prescribes you a medication that interferes with something you’re already taking for another condition. Normally, the doctor who prescribed you the medication would be liable for malpractice.
However, if you failed to tell them about the original medication, the fault is yours. In this situation, any action you take is unlikely to succeed.
It can be difficult to make the decision to step back from a case, especially where your condition is a serious one. However, taking a doctor to court when you have no chance of winning will simply add to the costs you’ve already incurred.
2. Was My Doctor at Fault?
This question is the same one a judge will ask themselves when deciding whether or not to grant you compensation. Unfortunately, it’s an extremely difficult one to answer.
If a doctor tries to achieve something through treatment and fails, you might think that they are clearly in the wrong. However, there are a number of complicating factors.
Firstly, a judge will consider how difficult the procedure was and whether the average practitioner should have been able to carry it out without incident. If the procedure was particularly risky or difficult, a court might be more lenient on the doctor.
Your consent is highly relevant here. If you agreed to treatment in the knowledge that your health was at risk in a certain way, a court is unlikely to find in your favor if that issue arises.
3. What Kind of Compensation Will I Be Entitled To?
Medical malpractice lawsuits can produce huge settlements. Where the plaintiff has suffered injuries for life, compensation sums of several million dollars are possible.
While this might seem incredible, these sums are carefully calculated. The amount you receive will be based on your medical expenses, as well as any earnings you lose while sick or injured.
A good lawyer will ensure that the settlement you get reflects your needs. While a certain amount might sound generous, it needs to be sufficient to cover all the expenses you will incur.
4. Should I Settle Out of Court?
This is a pivotal question in any lawsuit, whether it’s related to medical malpractice or something else entirely.
Some people think that a lawyer’s work takes place in a courtroom and nowhere else. This is a mistaken idea.
The truth is that many settlements are reached in private, with no judge or jury present. Reaching an agreement outside of court saves both parties a lot of time and money, and is therefore the best option in many cases.
However, it is only possible where there is some degree of agreement between the parties. If the plaintiff and defendant are both unwilling to compromise on their position, the matter at hand will likely have to go to court in order to reach a conclusion.
5. What Can You Do to Protect My Interests?
Before you hire any lawyer, you need to know why they deserve your business.
The best medical malpractice lawyers will have a wealth of experience of dealing with these kinds of cases. In order to get the best possible results for clients, an attorney needs to have a lot of exposure to the area the case is in, preferably even with the specific health issue at hand.
This is especially true when an insurance company is involved in the case. These outfits typically have well-resourced legal teams that are experts at uncovering technical issues which can devalue claims.
Your lawyer should know the approach their opponent is likely to adopt. The last thing you want is someone without experience, as they are far more likely to lose your case on a technical point of law.
Hiring the Medical Malpractice Attorney That Will Put You in the Best Position to Secure Justice
No one wants to end up in a position where they have to consider hiring a medical malpractice attorney. However, if you have been the recipient of improper medical care, you need to take the right steps to protect your interests.
If you live in Nashville or elsewhere in Tennessee and you feel that you have a medical malpractice case on your hands, don’t delay. Contact us today to discuss the particulars of your case and work out a plan of action going forward.
Posted in: Medical Malpractice