(845) 802-0047According to the National Institutes of Health, about 28,000 babies are born with birth injuries annually in America. Fatal birth injuries are the cause of about two percent of infant deaths. Unfortunately, most of these fatalities and injuries occur due to the negligence of a physician.
More often than not, birth is a safe and joyous occasion. However, if avoidable and unexpected injuries occur during the birthing process, a Schenectady birth injury lawyer could stand up on your family’s behalf and help you seek justice. Reach out to a compassionate and capable malpractice attorney that could advocate for you.
What Constitutes a Birth Injury?
In general, a birth injury occurs when a newborn suffers harm to their well-being during the process of labor or birth. When an obstetrician fails to notice that a woman or her baby are in risk of harm, or they do not act quickly to mitigate that risk, birth injuries may occur. Common birth injuries include:
- Cerebral palsy
- Traumatic and non-traumatic intracranial hemorrhage (brain bleeding)
- Erb’s Palsy and Brachial Plexus injuries
- Clavicle fractures
- Bruising or forceps marks
- Paralysis
What Damages Are Recoverable in a Birth Injury Lawsuit?
According to the U.S. Department of Agriculture, about nine percent of the estimated $240,000 that it takes to raise a child goes towards medical care. When a child has a permanent injury or disability, parents may need to spend an average of $43,000 on medical care alone. Financial burdens can cause extreme stress to parents who simply want the best for their child who has suffered a birth injury.
Economic Damages
A knowledgeable Schenectady birth injury attorney may be able to help families impacted by a birth injury receive compensation for their financial burdens. Compensable economic damages include lost wages related to caring for the child, past and future medical bills, rehabilitation, and special devices.
Non-Economic Damages
The law also allows birth injury victims and their parents to seek compensation for non-economic damages. The value of these damages may be subjective, as they include intangible losses such as pain and suffering, mental anguish, and loss of companionship.
Are There Time Limits For Filing a Birth Injury Lawsuit in Schenectady?
While families do not have to rush to get a birth injury lawsuit filed, they should be aware of state-mandated time limits. Birth injury victims technically fall under the statute of limitations listed in New York Civil Practice Law & Rules § 214-a, which establishes their filing deadline as being two years and six months from the date the injury occurred. However, per this law, the statute can be tolled for as long as ten years if the victim was a newborn when they were injured.
The timing of a case filing is imperative to its success. Filing too soon can mean an incomplete or rushed case, but filing too late could cause the plaintiff to miss the deadline. Potential plaintiffs in a birth injury case should discuss when to file their lawsuit with a birth injury lawyer in Schenectady.
Speak with a Schenectady Birth Injury Attorney
If your newborn fell victim to a birth injury at the hands of a negligent medical provider, it is not unreasonable at all to feel devastated. The life you may have imagined with and for your baby can quickly dissipate in such a situation, replaced by constant worry and stress about what the future might bring.
An experienced Schenectady birth injury lawyer may be able to help you seek compensation for the damages you and your child are suffering—or will suffer in the future—in light of this injury. Call today for your case evaluation.