Birth should be a happy time for families, but the negligence of just one provider can leave your baby injured and your family reeling. Understandably, parents want justice and compensation for their family’s heartache and expenses.
While there is no established average payout for birth injuries in Florida, a Florida birth injury lawyer can help you seek the full extent of your child’s losses. Your attorney should know how to navigate the complex and nuanced state laws while also being familiar with the medical issues surrounding pregnancy, birth, and postpartum care.
They will consider the severity of your child’s injuries, economic and non-economic losses, and other important elements when seeking compensation. A viable birth injury settlement in Florida can range from hundreds of thousands of dollars or even many millions of dollars, depending on the specific facts of your case.
What Influences Birth Injury Payouts in Florida?
When it comes to medical malpractice cases and birth injuries specifically, no two cases are exactly alike. Even children with the same type of injury can have extremely different prognoses and needs, resulting in completely different settlements. There are multiple factors that influence payouts for birth injuries, and your Florida medical malpractice lawyer will weigh all these elements when assessing your child’s case.
The Severity of Your Child’s Birth Injuries
Birth injuries are on a wide spectrum. Some injuries are temporary and easier to treat, and babies can make full recoveries from their injuries. Some injuries, however, leave children permanently and profoundly disabled. In some cases, the birth injuries are fatal.
Your Florida medical malpractice lawyer must demonstrate both your child’s injuries and their long-term impact on your family. For example, your child’s disabilities may prevent them from working and supporting themselves in the future, thus harming their earning potential.
Lawyers should be able to draw on various experts who can report on the severity of your baby’s injuries and the long-term harm associated with said injuries.
Your Child’s Medical Needs
Medical expenses are typically a significant part of birth injury payouts. Not only does your family have current medical bills to pay, but your child may need future medical care in the weeks, months, or years to come. For example, your child may need multiple surgeries to correct an issue, and the associated costs can quickly balloon.
When looking for the best medical malpractice attorney, you want a firm that will be able to account for these potential losses when seeking a payout. Firms should communicate with your child’s care team and the firm’s professional resources who can weigh in on predicted needs.
Sometimes, insurance companies may make offers that seem generous but do not account for long-term needs. Your attorney can let you know if the offer is fair and keep fighting when necessary.
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The Extent of Emotional Harm
Birth injuries can cause immense stress for parents, especially when they result in significant, catastrophic injuries or death. This emotional pain is not something to ignore, and a lawyer should make sure the average payout for a birth injury in Florida
addresses all emotional and mental harm suffered by your family. While these intangible losses have no direct value, the payout is a way to acknowledge this distress.
Additional Financial Expenses and Losses
Birth injury payouts in Florida can also address various financial losses and expenses your family may now be dealing with. Maybe you are in a rural part of Florida, and you must travel a few hours away to get the right care for your child. This can generate many costs for your family, and your team will fight to get compensation for such expenses.
You may need in-home assistance to care for your baby, or you may need to make renovations to your home to accommodate your child’s needs. Your child may even need specialized schooling when they get older.
Whatever losses your family is dealing with, you deserve full and fair compensation. However, legal and procedural factors also play a crucial role in determining the value of your case.
What Else Can Affect the Payout for Birth Injuries in Florida?
Some other factors that are important to consider when discussing the value of a birth injury case include:
- Contingency Fees: Birth injury lawyers know that the costs of filing a medical malpractice claim can be intimidating. This is why they take cases on a contingency fee basis. This means that clients do not have to pay any upfront costs for fees—instead, lawyers receive a portion of the payout if they are successful. Your lawyer will discuss the percentage and other questions about payment with you.
- Statute of Limitations: Florida Statutes § 95.11 limits how long victims have to seek damages. Waiting too long to take action could mean your claim is time-barred and you do not receive a payout for birth injuries. The statute of limitations for Florida birth injury cases is complex, so it is best to reach out to an experienced medical malpractice firm to discuss this deadline.
- Strength of Evidence: No matter how clear negligence may seem to you, proving it is another matter. The stronger the evidence is, the stronger your case will be. Stronger evidence can help support your claims for higher settlements or verdicts, and a lawyer will work to gather this evidence to help secure your family’s future.
With so many factors affecting the outcome of a birth injury case, choosing the right firm is crucial. A top Florida birth injury lawyer with the right knowledge, experience, and resources will work hard to deliver the results.
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Not Every Firm Is Equipped to Fight for Birth Injury Cases—Choose One That Is
Medical malpractice is not a simple area of law. Many personal injury firms claim they can handle these cases, but they may not get patients and families the results they need.
While there are many factors to consider and questions to ask before hiring a medical malpractice lawyer, looking at case results can help you get an idea of the firm’s areas of focus and its ability to take on birth injury cases. For instance, our team has birth injury results that include:
- A $38 million verdict for two twin boys who became blind after birth due to a doctor’s failure to screen and diagnose them for retinopathy of prematurity.
- A $7.75 million settlement for a young child who suffered a brain injury at birth due to negligent medical care.
While past results don’t guarantee future outcomes, they can indicate whether a firm has the experience to handle a case like yours. If your child has suffered due to medical negligence, acting quickly is essential to securing the compensation your family deserves.
Discuss a Potential Payout for Birth Injuries in Florida With Our Team Today
No parent is ever prepared for harm to come to their child, especially as they enter the world. When medical negligence causes injuries to your newborn, your family deserves justice.
Don’t wait to seek the justice and compensation your child deserves. At Freidin Brown, P.A., we have the experience and resources to fight for families affected by birth injuries. Contact us today for a free consultation, and let’s start building your case.
