Often people go to see healthcare providers when they are sick, hurt, or in pain – essentially, when they are in a vulnerable state. You expect your provider to help you, or at least not make things worse. Unfortunately, sometimes healthcare providers make mistakes, and these mistakes can lead to days, weeks, months, or even years of pain and suffering for the patient. One error in an operation, for example, can leave a patient in chronic pain or permanently disabled. If you believe you’ve been the victim of medical malpractice, you need the advice of an experienced Atlanta medical malpractice lawyer to help you navigate Georgia’s complex laws for filing a claim.
Ali Awad, the founder and managing attorney at the CEO Lawyer Personal Injury Law Firm, has the knowledge to take on medical malpractice claims for his clients. Known as the “CEO Lawyer,” Mr. Awad started a small law practice from the trunk of his car and grew it to an 8-figure firm in three short years. In fact, CEO Lawyer Personal Injury Law Firm was voted the fastest-growing law firm in the United States, beating out 499 others in 2021. With more than a million followers on social media, The CEO Lawyer is revered for sound and timely legal advice.
If you or a loved one has been injured due to a negligent healthcare provider, please call Ali Awad right away for a no-obligation consultation of your case. The CEO lawyer and his injury and accident attorneys work for you on a contingency basis – that means they don’t earn any compensation unless you do. There is nothing to lose by contacting us online or calling (404) 777-8800 to discover your options for dealing with medical malpractice.
Georgia’s Medical Malpractice Laws
There are several significant statutes to understand when considering a medical malpractice claim. First, Georgia’s typical statute of limitations on medical malpractice claims is two years “after the date on which an injury or death arising from a negligent or wrongful act or omission occurred.”
However, the law goes on to say that a claim can’t be brought more than five years after the negligent or wrongful act occurred. This allows some limited leeway for situations where the injury doesn’t become obvious right away, or the error leads to harm or death several years later. For example, if your doctor made a mistake that led to you experiencing a medical emergency a year later, the clock would start ticking when that medical emergency occurred. However, after five years have passed you cannot pursue a claim, so if you’ve been thinking about pursuing legal action, you should speak with a medical malpractice attorney in Atlanta as soon as possible.
There are some exceptions to the statute of limitations – when a foreign body, such as a surgical sponge or instrument, is left in the patient’s body, for example. In this case, a claim must be filed within one year of the mistake being discovered. This recognizes the fact that sometimes it can take years for a patient to learn a foreign object was left in their body after a procedure, even if they’ve been having pain for years from the object. (Getting a diagnosis can be difficult because healthcare providers don’t expect foreign objects to be left in patients.) In some circumstances, there may also be other exceptions for patients who are minors or who have been found “legally incompetent.”
The “Affidavit of Expert” Requirement for Medical Malpractice Suits in Georgia
Typically any personal injury lawsuit begins when the attorney for the plaintiff (the injured party seeking compensation) files a complaint in the appropriate court. For medical malpractice suits, Georgia law requires that in addition to the initial complaint, the plaintiff must also file an “affidavit of expert.” This is an affidavit written and signed by a qualified medical expert, offering a sworn opinion on at least one negligent act committed by the provider being sued. The expert should include their factual basis for this opinion as well.
In most cases, filing without the “affidavit of expert” will mean your case being quickly dismissed. However, in some situations, you might be able to get an additional 45 days to file an affidavit if the statute of limitations date is coming up soon, and you only recently secured legal representation.
If you’re unsure how to find an appropriate medical expert, your attorney can advise you on this process.
What About the Medical Malpractice Damages Cap in Georgia?
We hear a lot of questions about this. Sometimes clients with large amounts of medical bills and other expenses are worried the cap will prevent them from recovering all their damages. Fortunately, this isn’t usually the case.
The first thing to understand is that the damage cap was found to be unconstitutional in 2010 and is no longer in effect. When it was, it applied only to non-economic damages like pain and suffering. There was no cap on how much you could get for economic damages like your medical bills or lost wages if you missed work due to malpractice.
You can still receive compensation for non-economic damages like pain and suffering, mental anguish, anxiety, depression, PTSD, loss of enjoyment, lost companionship (if a loved one died due to medical malpractice), scarring or disfigurement, etc. These damages are no longer capped at $350,000. However, there is a $250,000 cap on punitive damages – these are additional damages designed to punish the defendant more than to help the plaintiff and do not apply in every case anyway.
What Do You Need to Prove in a Medical Malpractice Case?
Like other personal injury cases, medical malpractice claims rest on proving four things:
- The defendant (in this case, the healthcare provider or facility) owed you a duty of care.
- The defendant breached this duty of care in some way.
- Their actions caused your injury.
- You suffered damages as the result of this injury (more medical bills, more time lost at work, pain and suffering, disability, etc.).
Your Atlanta medical malpractice attorney will go over the details of your case and the strategy they recommend. In many cases, healthcare providers and facilities have malpractice insurance, so your attorney may start by making a claim with the insurance carrier. The carrier may reject the claim on a variety of grounds, or they may make an offer that isn’t enough to cover all your costs. Your Atlanta personal injury lawyer will negotiate with the insurance carrier in an effort to get you the compensation you deserve.
However, insurance policies usually have limits, and there may simply not be enough coverage for all your costs. In this situation, it may also be necessary to sue the provider or facility responsible for your injuries. Sometimes you may have claims against multiple providers or facilities.
Will You Have to Go to Court?
Many malpractice suits settle out of court, which is often a good thing. If you can receive adequate compensation without the stress of a lengthy trial, you should absolutely do so. But in some cases, it is necessary to go to court. If this happens, your attorney will explain the steps of the process. You may talk about various pieces of evidence your lawyer wants to introduce. They will likely need your medical records and may need to interview or “depose” witnesses. It may also be necessary to bring in multiple medical experts to testify at the trial. While only one medical expert is required to file a claim, having additional experts may be beneficial if and when your case goes to court.
Will You Have to Testify?
You don’t have to, but your attorney may recommend you do so. Sometimes the best way for the jury to understand all the pain and suffering you’ve been through is to hear it directly from you. If you decide to testify, your lawyer will prepare you by going over the questions the defendant’s attorneys are likely to ask.
What Kinds of Situations Qualify As Medical Malpractice?
There are many situations that can lead to a medical malpractice claim. If you aren’t sure if you’ve been a victim of malpractice, it’s best to consult a qualified medical malpractice attorney in Atlanta who offers free consultations. They can quickly review your case and explain your options.
Some common errors that lead to malpractice claims include:
- Errors with anesthesia
- Mistakes during labor and delivery leading to birth injuries
- Cancer misdiagnosis
- Mistakes relating to tests – either the provider failing to order a necessary test or an error in conducting the test itself
- Failing to diagnose a condition
- Failure of medical equipment
- Emergency room mistakes
- A provider’s failure to review medical records prior to beginning a course of treatment
- Errors involving medication, such as being given the wrong drug or the wrong dose
- Serious infections
- Radiological mistakes
- Failing to obtain a patient’s informed consent, such as when the patient is not sufficiently informed of the risk of a procedure before they consent
- A wide variety of surgical mistakes
What Kind of Compensation Can You Receive in a Medical Malpractice Claim?
Medical malpractice can cause numerous problems and upend your life. You may find yourself drowning in a pile of bills from multiple healthcare providers, for expensive prescriptions that didn’t work, and for other costs of recovering from a provider’s error. If you file a claim, you can ask for damages for the following:
- The cost of getting a diagnosis – if you had to go to many different doctors and have multiple tests, this can be quite high
- The cost of more medical treatment to correct the error or the issues it caused
- Personal care or in-home health services
- Loss of previous and/or future income
- Pain and suffering, both physical and mental
- Permanent disability, disfigurement, scarring, or any other permanent impairment
- Diminished quality of life or losing your enjoyment of life
Atlanta attorney Ali Awad has millions of followers on social media because he delivers legal power to the people. He also knows what factors to focus on in a claim to produce results. With the CEO Lawyer in your corner, you can take on big insurance companies and healthcare facilities whose errors have deeply impacted your life. Get in touch with the CEO Lawyer Personal Injury Law Firm online today, or call us at (404) 777-8800.
