Understanding a Georgia Medical Malpractice Lawsuit
What Is Medical Malpractice?
Medical malpractice is a type of personal injury lawsuit. The legal definition of medical malpractice varies from jurisdiction to jurisdiction. However, the generally accepted definition is any act or omission by a doctor or other medical professional that deviates from the accepted standard of care in the medical community that causes injury or death to a patient.
What Is the Difference Between Personal Injury and Medical Malpractice?
Medical malpractice is a type of personal injury action. In other words, they both deal with claims arising out of injury because of the carelessness of another. However, medical malpractice cases are generally much more complicated than most personal injury cases. In fact, all medical malpractice attorneys can handle serious personal injury cases but not all personal injury attorneys have the knowledge and experience to handle medical malpractice cases. At Henry Spiegel Milling LLP, our highly qualified Georgia medical malpractice attorneys can help when you or a loved suffers injury or wrongful death through medical malpractice.
What Are the Steps Involved in Filing a Georgia Malpractice Lawsuit?
-
Collect pertinent information: Gather medical reports, bills, and any information about costs related to the suspected medical malpractice in Georgia, including lost wages.
-
Record key events: Jot down appointment dates, names of doctors who treated you, referrals to other doctors, lab work and tests ordered, and surgeries.
-
Speak with a Georgia medical malpractice attorney: Choose a lawyer who is knowledgeable about Georgia medical malpractice law. Make copies of all the information you gathered to date and present them to your lawyer.
-
Establish the injury: You and your Georgia malpractice lawyer need to establish the injury or damages that occurred. From this, the lawyer will be able to calculate the amount of money that you can seek.
-
Prove medical negligence: Your attorney must prove that the doctor’s medical negligence directly caused the injury and that the injury could have been avoided if the doctor had not performed negligently.
-
File the lawsuit: Once the case has been shown to be meritorious, your lawyer files the Georgia medical malpractice claim.
-
Negotiate a settlement: Once the doctor or hospital has been notified of the lawsuit, the insurance company examines the case and tries to negotiate a settlement.
- Go to court: If a mutually acceptable settlement cannot be reached, then the case will go to trial.
Contact the Experienced Attorneys of Henry Spiegel Milling LLP Today
When you are injured due to medical carelessness or incompetence, the attorneys at the Atlanta malpractice law firm of Henry Spiegel Milling LLP can help. They have a thorough understanding of Georgia malpractice law and will work hard to get you everything you deserve.