New York Birth Injury Lawyers

How to Ensure That You Receive FULL Compensation for Your Child’s Birth Injury

An injury to your child is an unthinkable tragedy, and the pain is compounded when the injury could have been prevented. Birth injuries are completely devastating for families, and the attorneys at Parker Waichman LLP work to hold the responsible parties accountable. When your child has been injured because of physician negligence, you have the right to seek compensation.

Parker Waichman LLP Represents the Parent(s) of Children Injured During Labor Throughout the State of New York

Birth injuries can occur at different points, during prenatal care, during labor or delivery, or right after a baby is born. Our birth injury attorneys in New York can investigate your case to find out what happened and what went wrong and help you seek the relief you need.

Prenatal Injuries

Some birth injuries can happen during pregnancy. Doctors and staff need to monitor critical signs of fetal development and take appropriate action if it appears the baby is not thriving or is under any kind of stress. If your obstetrician-gynecologist(OB-GYN) or nurses fail to understand that something is abnormal during your pregnancy and your baby is injured, you may have the right to seek compensation.

Labor Injuries

When labor begins, your nurses and doctors need to pay attention to information generated on the fetal heart monitor strips and make sure the baby is not in distress at any point. Any delay in action if the baby begins to struggle can lead to very serious injuries. If your baby is exhibiting signs of distress and your labor team fails to pick up on it or fails to take corrective measures to protect the baby, you and your family may be able to pursue legal action in the form of a lawsuit against the health care providers.

Delivery Injuries

In addition to the above, birth injuries can occur during delivery. If the OB-GYN is not present for delivery, or if doctors or staff make mistakes during the delivery process, the baby is in jeopardy of suffering severe complications. Even if the delivery is an emergency situation, doctors need to take all appropriate measures to make sure that the baby is safe. If your baby sustained an injury during the delivery process, you may be able to file a claim for damages on behalf of your baby and your family.

Types of Birth Injuries

When mistakes are made during prenatal care, labor, or delivery, babies can experience serious injuries. Our attorneys represent families dealing with the effects of physician negligence, and we understand how significant an injury to your baby has changed your life. During our practice helping parents and children, we have advocated for babies who have suffered the following types of injuries:

• Bone fractures and breaks – If doctors are too rough during the delivery process or drop the baby after delivery, they can break or fracture the baby’s bones. This includes breaks or fractures to the arms, shoulders, collarbone, and ribs.
• Cerebral palsy – Cerebral palsy is a disorder of body movement and muscle tone caused by damage to the infant’s brain. This damage can occur because of a severe infection, brain bleed, or lack of oxygen at any point during the pregnancy or delivery.
• Hypoxic ischemic encephalopathy (HIE) – HIE is fetal or infant brain damage caused by oxygen deprivation prior to, during, or right after delivery. This disorder can cause cognitive and motor impairment, as well as death.
• Erb’s palsy/Brachial plexus injury – If doctors pull on a baby’s head during delivery, they can cause nerve damage in the shoulders and arms of the baby, known as brachial plexus injury. This type of injury can cause paralysis in the baby’s arms or cause a loss of function.
• Forceps injury – When physicians use forceps during delivery, they can injure the baby’s head, face, and neck. This can result in lacerations, bruising, nerve damage, and bone fractures.
• Brain injury – If doctors do not adequately monitor a pregnant woman and baby, the baby can be affected by infections, bleeds, cord compression, or other complications that deprive a baby of oxygen or damage the brain. Brain injuries can result in severe and permanent impairment.

If your child sustained a birth injury, you deserve answers and compassionate legal counsel to help you through the process of seeking the just results you and your family need. The experienced birth injury lawyers at Parker Waichman LLP will thoroughly investigate your case and pursue compensation for the ways you and your child have been harmed.

Statute of Limitations on New York Birth Injury Cases

Statutes of limitations are time restrictions set by state law on filing lawsuits. If you don’t file your case in court within the time limit set by New York law, you will never be able to file it, regardless of the merits of your case.

Part of the reason states implement these time limits is the preservation of evidence that will be used during the course of litigation and trial. When people file cases quickly after an event occurs, their witnesses will undoubtedly have stronger memories, and records will be readily accessible. However, if people delay years in filing their claims, witnesses will not have fresh memories of the events, and documents can become misplaced or discarded.

Each state in the United States sets its own statutes of limitations, and they vary based on the type of claim and damages sought. New York’s statute of limitations on physician negligence causes actions is generally 2 1/2 years. This means you need to file your claim within 2 1/2 years of the injury. Birth injury cases can be tolled until the child reaches the age of majority, giving families more time to file. However, if the case involves a municipal hospital, different, shorter time restrictions may apply.  It is best to consult with an experienced birth injury lawyer sooner, rather than later, if you suspect negligence during the birthing process. I. It can be difficult to initially understand what has happened to your baby and when the act or acts of negligence took place. Because of all the factors at play, it can be very hard to determine when the clock on your deadline to file starts running and how much time you have. This is why it is imperative to work with a skilled birth injury attorney who can help you calculate the correct statute of limitations on your own individual case.

After you hire Parker Waichman LLP for your birth injury case, our lawyers will quickly obtain the information we need to calculate the correct statute of limitations in your case. We are diligent about this step in our case intake process because we understand how costly a mistake can be for our clients. Parker Waichman’s attorneys understand New York law and will make sure you have enough time to file your claim in court. Contact our birth injury law firm today to discuss how we can start taking steps to protect your legal rights.

Birth Injury Claims Process

We know when you are dealing with a traumatic injury to your child, you don’t have the energy to worry about a stressful, complicated legal process. We take the worry of litigation away from you by using a simple case intake process and keeping you informed throughout every step of your case. When you call our firm, you will discuss your case details with a compassionate member of our staff and have the opportunity to follow up with one of our skilled birth injury attorneys. By signing up with our firm, our lawyers will help you receive a fair result by carrying out all of the following tasks on your behalf:

• Gathering all the details of what happened from you and your family members;
• Ordering medical records that document your prenatal care, labor and delivery, and the treatment you and your baby received following delivery;
• Hiring experts to review your case and make determinations about liability and causation;
• Calculating the statute of limitations (deadline to file) applicable to your case;
• Determining the best venue for filing your case;
• Drafting a summons and complaint, filing it on your behalf and serving it on the defendant doctors, hospitals, and/or nurses;
• Performing written discovery to gain evidence for your case;
• Conducting depositions of witnesses ;
• Participating in mediation and/or settlement negotiations with the defense.
• Conducting a jury trial in court.

You can be sure that your Parker Waichman attorneys will prepare you for every aspect of your litigation, and if your case moves to trial, you will feel confident you are represented by seasoned trial lawyers who know how to achieve a successful result. Contact our firm today to talk to one of our dedicated attorneys about your case and start the process of reviewing your legal options.

Birth Injury Damages

While it is important to keep in mind that settlements and jury awards are never guaranteed, we can assure you we will fight zealously for your right to receive adequate compensation for how you and your family have suffered. When we file a claim in court on your behalf, we will seek damages for every way your life has been affected. This includes:

• Pain and suffering, permanent disability and loss of quality of life of the infant child from the time of the substandard care to the end of the infant’s life
• Cost of medical care and treatment for the past and into the indefinite future
• Cost of life care for the injured infant including disability, accommodations to the infant’s home and transportation
• Cost of diminished future earning capacity of the injured infant
  (no idea what this item is. When we refer to loss of consortium, we mean a husband or wife’s derivative claim.  There is an item of damage for the “lost services of the child”, but that is rarely a value driver.)
• Physical and mental pain, suffering, and loss of quality of life on the part of your child
  (this is so rare in New York, it is not worth mentioning)

As your legal advocates, we will be sure we have captured the full extent of your damages to seek the maximum compensation possible. Call our New York office today to talk to our lawyers about your potential recovery.

Frequently Asked Questions About Birth Injury Cases

Clients who contact us about birth injury cases often have questions about the cases and claims process. Below our law firm has compiled a list of the questions we hear most frequently, along with our answers to those questions.

Our attorneys in New York represent families dealing with the effects of physician negligence, and we understand how significant an injury to your baby has changed your life.

Can I recover all of the expenses I need for my child?

In pursuing your claim for damages, we will seek all the compensation you need to care for your child. This will include hiring a life care planner to determine what kind of care and expenses will be required throughout your child’s life. Birth injuries are often not confined to an acute event that subsides with time. They frequently cause damage to a child that will require lifelong care and medical attention. In these circumstances, parents and children deserve compensation appropriate to pay for the care and attention they need. Our attorneys will help you pursue the level of compensation that is vital to your child’s life and well-being.

Why Choose Parker Waichman LLP for Your New York Birth Injury

Our firm has extensive experience helping families affected by these tragedies, and we have earned a reputation for achieving tremendous results. Our colleagues and former clients have bestowed us with numerous accolades and honors because of our commitment to advocating for victims’ rights.

Some of these awards and accolades include:

• 8 (out of a perfect 10) Rating by AVVO (a service that rates every attorney in the United States)
• “Preeminent Lawyers” AV Peer Review Rating (Martindale-Hubbell® – a company that, for more than 100 years, has rated attorneys across the United States and the world based on feedback from judges and their peers)
• Highest Ranking of “5 Dragons,” based on peer review by Lawdragon
• Listing in Best Lawyers Publication, determined by Extensive Peer Review

Our attorneys understand how difficult your child’s injuries have been for you and your family, and we want to help you obtain the justice you need to move forward. If your child was injured in utero or during labor or delivery, contact our firm today to discuss your options for legal recourse.

FREE CONSULTATION WITH ONE OF OUR NEW YORK BIRTH INJURY LAWYERS TODAY

The attorneys at Parker Waichman LLP offer free, confidential consultations for families affected by birth injuries to their children. We know you are struggling under the weight of costly medical bills to care for your child, and you have likely taken time off work because of your child’s injuries, as well. With all of this on your shoulders, you do not need to worry about how you can afford a lawyer to seek the justice you deserve. That is why we provide case consultations at no cost and contract birth injury cases on a contingency fee basis. Contingency fee contracts make our own recovery contingent upon yours. If you do not receive a settlement award or verdict, we will not receive a fee or reimbursement for our expenses.

We understand the toll your child’s suffering has taken on you and your family, and we want to take away from your stress, not add to it. You never have to worry about putting money down on your claim or receiving a bill in the mail from us. We will act as your guide through this legal process and do everything we can to ease the burden that has been wrongfully placed on your family.

While birth injury claims can be complicated, our attorneys have the experience and skills you need to reach an outcome that will make a significant difference in your life. We are in this business because we care about people, and we believe in the judicial system’s ability to hold parties accountable and create safer environments for families down the road. When you hire Parker Waichman LLP to represent you, you are working with superior litigators who want the best for you. Contact our New York office today to find out more about our contingency fee contracts and about how we can begin restoring stability to your life during this extremely difficult time.

Contact Parker Waichman LLP for Your Free Case Review

When your child has been injured, you feel like your world is in chaos.  Let our skilled and knowledgeable New York birth injury law firm to ease some of your sufferings by pursuing the legal justice you fully deserve. If your child has been affected by a birth injury, contact Parker Waichman LLP for a free consultation today. You can fill out our online form on our website or reach our New York office by calling 1-800-YOURLAWYER (1-800-968-7529).

How Do I Get My Police Report in Manhattan?

Immediately after an arrest or accident has taken place, the Manhattan office investigating the incident will write up a report. Upon completion of this report, a public portion will immediately become available. However, until the ongoing case is closed, much of the crucial information will be hidden from the public portion. When the case is indeed closed, either you or your attorney can contact a local Manhattan police department to request a copy of the intact report. There is often a waiting period that goes along with getting a period of the report and the methods of obtaining it will vary, such as in person, electronically, or through the mail.

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