How Do I Know If I Qualify for a Fort Lauderdale Birth Injury Lawsuit?
For a medical malpractice birth injury claim to prevail, the following elements must be proven by the plaintiff:
- You had a doctor-patient relationship, so your doctor owed you a duty of care
- Your doctor breached his or her duty of care due to negligence, poor judgment, or lack of skill
- You or your child suffered injuries as a result of the doctor’s failure to provide the necessary care
- You have suffered losses that are compensable
What Evidence Will I Need for My Fort Lauderdale Birth Injury Lawsuit?
A Fort Lauderdale birth injury attorney will need the following information to help you with your case:
- The error or errors that led to your injuries
- Your state of health before the incident
- Details regarding the time and place of the medical care
- The details of any follow-up care you received
- Information about your patient/doctor relationship
Common Injuries Our Fort Lauderdale Birth Injury Attorneys Can Help You With
Childbirth moves fast, and when medical teams miss warning signs or use unsafe delivery methods, the effects can last a lifetime. Some birth injuries are visible right away. Others don’t show up until a child misses milestones or develops learning or movement problems. Our Fort Lauderdale birth injury attorneys handle cases involving a wide range of preventable injuries caused by mistakes before, during, or immediately after delivery.
Common birth injuries include:
- Cerebral Palsy: Approximately 3 out of every 1,000 children are born with this condition, which is characterized by a lack of motor skill development and weak muscles. In many cases, it results from brain damage during birth. Improper monitoring of the laboring mother, negligent birth techniques, and failure to address fetal distress can contribute to its development. While surgery may help the child, there is no cure, and a lifetime of therapy is often necessary. This condition can also lead to other health challenges, such as vision and hearing impairments, learning disabilities, and speech problems.
- Oxygen Deprivation (Hypoxia / Asphyxia): When a baby does not receive enough oxygen during birth, even for a short time, the brain can suffer permanent damage. Oxygen deprivation can lead to seizures, developmental delays, or conditions like cerebral palsy. This often happens when providers fail to respond to abnormal heart rates, prolonged labor, or umbilical cord issues.
- Hypoxic-Ischemic Encephalopathy (HIE): HIE occurs when oxygen loss is combined with reduced blood flow to the brain. This is a serious condition that can cause feeding problems, breathing difficulties, seizures, and long-term cognitive impairment. HIE is frequently linked to delayed intervention during labor or delivery emergencies.
- Brachial Plexus Injuries / Erb’s Palsy: These injuries affect the nerves that control the arm and hand. They commonly occur during difficult deliveries involving shoulder dystocia, when excessive force is used to free the baby’s shoulder. A child may have limited arm movement, weakness, or paralysis, which can be temporary or permanent.
- Neurological and Orthopedic Injuries: Excessive force, improper positioning, or misuse of delivery tools can damage nerves, the spinal cord, or joints. These injuries may lead to paralysis, loss of sensation, or long-term mobility issues.
- Brain Bleeds and Skull Injuries: Improper use of forceps or vacuum extractors can cause bleeding in or around the brain, skull fractures, or swelling. These injuries may not be immediately obvious but can result in seizures, developmental delays, or learning challenges later on.
- Bone Fractures: Broken bones, especially the collarbone, are a known risk when delivery is poorly managed. Fractures can also occur in the arms, legs, or skull and may signal that excessive force was used during birth.
- Facial Nerve Damage and Paralysis: Pressure on the baby’s face during delivery, particularly from forceps, can injure facial nerves. This may cause partial or full facial paralysis, affecting blinking, feeding, or facial movement. Some cases heal; others do not.
What Causes a Birth Injury?
Childbirth is not predictable, and not every birth injury means someone did something wrong. Some deliveries are complicated from the start, and certain medical or physical factors can increase the risk of injury even when care is appropriate.
That said, complications are exactly why trained medical professionals are there. When risks are known, or should have been recognized, doctors and delivery teams are expected to adjust their approach, monitor closely, and act quickly. A birth injury may point to medical malpractice when warning signs were missed, decisions were delayed, or proper procedures were not followed.
Certain conditions can make labor and delivery more challenging, including:
- Large babies, typically weighing more than 8 pounds, 13 ounces
- Premature birth, when babies are more fragile and vulnerable to injury
- Cephalopelvic disproportion, where the baby’s head or body cannot safely pass through the mother’s pelvis
- Dystocia, or unusually difficult labor
- Prolonged labor, often lasting more than 20 hours for first-time mothers or 14 hours for others
- Oxygen deprivation, which can occur if fetal distress is not addressed in time
- Abnormal birth positions, such as breech presentation
- Maternal obesity, which can increase delivery risks for both mother and child
None of these conditions automatically means malpractice occurred. However, when healthcare providers fail to plan for known risks, ignore signs of distress, delay a necessary C-section, or use unsafe delivery techniques, preventable injuries can happen.
A Fort Lauderdale birth injury attorney at Osborne, Francis & Pettis can help determine whether a birth injury was the result of unavoidable complications or a failure to provide proper medical care. Call our office at (561) 293-2600 to speak with our team or reach out through our online contact form to get started.
What Compensation Can a Fort Lauderdale Birth Injury Attorney Recover?
When a birth injury changes the course of a child’s life, the financial impact can follow a family for decades. Medical care doesn’t stop after the hospital stay, and many parents are forced to make hard choices about work, treatment, and long-term planning. A successful birth injury claim is about making sure those needs are accounted for; not just today, but well into the future.
At Osborne, Francis & Pettis, we have a proven record of handling high-stakes cases and delivering meaningful results. Our firm has secured record-setting settlements and verdicts, including a $4 million medical malpractice settlement for a child who suffered a brain injury during birth.
While every case is different, our Fort Lauderdale birth injury attorneys may pursue compensation for:
- Past and future medical expenses, including hospital care, surgeries, therapy, medication, and assistive devices.
- Specialized and long-term care that may not be covered by insurance.
- Pain, discomfort, and loss of quality of life experienced by the child.
- Lost income and reduced earning capacity for parents who must step away from work to provide care.
- Future financial planning needs, such as in-home care, educational support, and adaptive services.
- Protection of family assets, so the cost of care does not fall entirely on parents or siblings.
A study by Martindale-Nolo shows that families who hire a personal injury lawyer dramatically improve their chances of recovering financial damages. In fact, more than nine out of ten people with legal representation received a settlement or award, compared to only about half of those who handled claims on their own.
The difference isn’t just whether a case resolves; it’s how it resolves. On average, individuals represented by an attorney recovered over four times more than those who went without one. That gap can mean the difference between short-term relief and long-term stability for a child who needs ongoing care.
How Long Do I Have to Contact a Fort Lauderdale Birth Injury Attorney?
Florida law sets time limits on when a birth injury claim can be filed. These deadlines matter, but they aren’t always as straightforward as they sound, especially in cases involving infants, delayed diagnoses, or complex medical records.
Birth injuries can affect a child and their family for years to come. Knowing when to take legal action helps preserve your options and gives attorneys the ability to fully review what happened.
Florida’s Time Limits for Birth Injury Claims
In most cases, birth injury claims follow Florida’s medical malpractice statute of limitations. That generally means a lawsuit must be filed within two years from the date of the injury or from the date the injury should have been discovered with reasonable medical evaluation.
However, there are important exceptions.
The Discovery Rule
Some birth injuries are not obvious right away. Developmental delays, movement disorders, or neurological conditions may not appear until months or even years later. In these situations, the legal clock may start when the injury is discovered—or when it reasonably should have been discovered.
Statute of Repose
Florida also has an outside deadline, known as a statute of repose. In most medical malpractice cases, this limit is four years from the date of the medical error, regardless of when the injury is discovered.
For birth injuries involving minors, this deadline may be extended, often allowing claims to be filed up to the child’s eighth birthday, depending on the circumstances.
Wrongful Death Cases
If a birth injury results in the death of a child, Florida law generally requires a wrongful death claim to be filed within two years of the date of death.
Timing matters. Birth injury cases involve detailed medical records, expert review, and strict legal deadlines. As time passes, important evidence can become harder to access, and legal options may narrow.
The Fort Lauderdale birth injury attorneys at Osborne, Francis & Pettis can explain which deadlines apply to your situation during a free case review. Reach out to us today online or by calling (561) 293-2600. There’s no cost to have your case reviewed.
How Will a Fort Lauderdale Birth Injury Lawyer Prove My Case?
To prove your claim for a birth injury, you must show that the doctor, hospital, or other medical professional was negligent in order to successfully claim damages in a lawsuit. The elements of negligence are as follows:
- The doctor or medical professional had a duty to either act or not act in a specific way.
- The doctor or medical professional breached their duty.
- Breach of that duty was the cause of the plaintiff’s injury. Note that violating a standard of care alone is not malpractice. There must be an actual injury that was caused by the negligence of the medical professional. Also note that you cannot make a claim for medical malpractice if there’s negligence but no injury or if there’s an injury but no negligence. Both elements of negligence and injury must be proven.
- The injury resulted in actual damages, such as the cost of medical treatment, lost wages, pain and suffering, etc. In addition, you must prove significant damages.
Proving a birth injury case typically requires the expertise of medical and legal professionals, with years of experience analyzing medical records, consulting with experts, and presenting a compelling case in court. Important steps in proving a birth injury case in Florida include:
- Gathering Evidence: The first step is to collect all relevant medical records, including prenatal care, labor, delivery, and postnatal care records. These records will be crucial in evaluating the medical decisions made and identifying any potential instances of negligence.
- Consulting Medical Experts: Medical experts, including specialists such as obstetricians, neonatologists, and others, are often essential in birth injury cases. They will review the medical records and provide expert opinions on whether the standard of care was breached and if it directly caused the birth injury.
- Documenting Damages: Birth injuries can have a significant impact on the child’s life and the family’s emotional and financial well-being. Documenting the child’s current and anticipated future medical needs, therapy costs, and other related expenses is crucial in establishing the extent of damages suffered.
- Establishing the Standard of Care: Determining the appropriate standard of care based on the specific circumstances of the case is critical. This standard is not static and may vary depending on factors such as the mother’s health, the baby’s condition, and any known risks or complications.
- Negotiating or Litigating: Once the evidence has been gathered and a reasonable case has been established, the next step is to seek a resolution. Depending upon the case and the desires of the plaintiff, this can involve negotiating a settlement with the healthcare provider’s insurance company or, if necessary, pursuing litigation in court.
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