What is Required to File a Medical Malpractice Suit in Laredo?

If you have suffered from medical malpractice in Laredo, Texas, you are likely wondering how best to begin your recovery process. In addition to your physical health, medical negligence can hurt your finances, resulting in more medical expenses and, possibly, lost wages. Carabin Shaw is here to help. If you are interested in pursuing a malpractice lawsuit, contact our Laredo office to discuss the intricacies of such a case.

What is required to file a medical malpractice suit in Laredo? Before retaining an attorney and moving forward with a medical malpractice lawsuit, you must consider both the validity of your case and Texas’ statute of limitations.

For an error in medical care to be considered malpractice, it must broadly meet two conditions:

1. The mistake was avoidable, and a competent, attentive professional would not have made it.
2. The error was detrimental to your health.

If you incurred injuries that regularly result from the type of treatment you received—e.g., severe nausea from chemotherapy—no one is liable. For an injury to constitute malpractice, it must be beyond what one can reasonably expect from an operation or course of treatment. It needs to be a mistake that could only be the result of negligence on the part of the professionals administering that treatment.

Similarly, if doctor incompetence led to an error but did not cause you significant harm, you likely do not have a malpractice case. Your finances would not be impacted, and you would not have experienced any pain and suffering. For instance, a surgical error that was quickly and adequately mended by the surgeon and did not result in lasting damage is not negligent and does not constitute malpractice. If you are unsure as to whether your treatment met both of these conditions, look into Laredo medical malpractice lawyers to help you decide based on the details of your case.

Before hiring an attorney, make sure that your case falls within the statute of limitations. Texas considers a few factors when setting a statute of limitations for medical malpractice lawsuits. By default, you can only file a lawsuit for medical malpractice for two years after the negligent act occurred. But what if you can't name the specific instance at which the negligent act occurred? If this is the case, the timeline extends to two years after your course of treatment completed.

That statute also extends if the patient went a long time without discovering the injury. In that case, you have ten years after the instance of malpractice to file a lawsuit, but only two years after the discovery of the injury. For this reason, you should look for Laredo hospital negligence attorneys as soon as you are aware of an injury to avoid missing your chance at a lawsuit.

If a medical provider is found guilty of malpractice, Texas courts will require them to pay the full amount of economic damages. "Economic damages" include medical expenses and lost wages. They will also be held responsible for pain and suffering. However, that amount is capped at $250,000 if your lawsuit is against one party and $500,000 if your suit involves multiple parties. A lawyer specializing in malpractice can help you determine how much you might deserve.

Carabin Shaw retains several personal injury lawyers with decades of combined experience in malpractice cases. If you call our Laredo office at 956-333-3333 for a free consultation, you can know as soon as today whether you have a malpractice lawsuit and how best to pursue it. You can also reach us toll-free at 1-800-860-1260.