Medical Malpractice Lawyer

Though federal officials have commented on medical malpractice laws, it remains the purveyance of the states, and a lawyer needs to know which specific statutes apply in the state where he practices. California, for example, limits the amount of damage which can be recovered in a medical malpractice suit. It also sets a statute of limitations on the time an attorney can file a medical malpractice claim: three years after the act itself or one year after discovery of the act. The doctor must be informed by a lawyer of impending suits at least 90 days in advance, and out-of-court settlements are usually binding. CA has enacted these laws in an effort to cut down on frivolous suits and protect good doctors. Yet medical malpractice still occurs, whether deliberately or by accident, and lawyers must be able to weave through the laws to attain fair settlements for their clients.

Medical Malpractice Lawyers Need to Prove Negligence

California law, like the laws in most other states, hinges on negligence as the grounds for medical malpractice suit. Medicine is not an exact science and not every proposed cure will work. A good attorney knows that medical malpractice extends beyond that. It must involve genuine harm (medical errors which do not harm the patient may not be addressed through damages) and there must be a direct doctor-patient relationship involved. The doctor's negligence must constitute an act which no reasonable doctor would have undertaken, whether it was an accident or not. David Allen & Associates Law has medical malpractice lawyers on staff in Stockton, Los Angeles, and elsewhere in CA.