Birth injuries can be financially and emotionally devastating for families in Maryland. If your child was injured because of negligence at birth, you can file a lawsuit for compensatory damages.
Settlements for birth injury claims in Maryland can vary dramatically from case to case. Generally, a good settlement will fully compensate a family or victim for all financial losses incurred because of a negligent hospital or doctor’s negligence. Because birth injuries can cause significant pain and suffering, non-economic damages should also be included in a settlement. If a settlement is insufficient do not accept it. Doing so will bar you from recovering additional compensation in court. Instead, you can take your case to trial where you may be eligible to recover punitive damages as well as economic and non-economic damages in Maryland. After successfully proving a defendant’s fault, you will recover your compensation through a lump sum or structured settlement.
To discuss your case for free with our Maryland birth injury lawyers, call Rice, Murtha & Psoras now at (410) 694-7291.
Compensation Included in an Average Birth Injury Settlement in Maryland
Settling your birth injury case out of court can result in significant damages, albeit possibly less compensation than if you took your claim to trial. Generally, a birth injury settlement will include compensation for a victim’s economic damages.
Settling a claim out of court might be done for various reasons. Suppose there is considerable evidence of a doctor or hospital’s negligence in causing your child’s birth injury. In that case, they might be more inclined to settle at a higher amount and include compensation for damages outside of your financial losses alone.
In general, most birth injury settlements will cover economic damages. Birth injuries like cerebral palsy, brachial palsy, and other brain injuries can alter a baby’s life before it has truly begun. These injuries might require extensive physical therapy, prescription medications, and in-house care, which can become exceedingly expensive for parents. A good settlement should compensate you for all of these financial losses, including ones you have yet to incur but likely will because of your child’s birth injuries in Maryland.
Pain and suffering are almost unavoidable when a child is injured at birth because of a negligent hospital or doctor. Any settlement that does not at least attempt to compensate you for the non-economic damages your family has incurred because of such negligence is unacceptable. Our Baltimore birth injury lawyers can leverage the evidence we have of a defendant’s negligence to enable you to recover compensation for pain and suffering in a settlement, as well as other compensatory damages.
What if Your Settlement for a Birth Injury is Insufficient in Maryland?
Suppose a negligent hospital or doctor refuses to accept responsibility for their actions in causing your child’s birth injury and will not settle at an appropriate amount. In that case, you can go to trial in Maryland.
Sometimes, even the prospect of going to trial is enough to convince a negligent party to increase their settlement offer. During the course of a court case, you might be approached regarding a higher settlement. Our lawyers can help you review the terms of any settlement offer to ensure it properly compensates you and your family for your child’s birth injury.
Going to court might allow victims to claim greater damages in some cases. For example, when negligent hospitals or doctors are unlikely to include compensation for pain and suffering in a settlement, a judge or jury can award such damages to a victim in court. Furthermore, punitive damages are often available in birth injury cases, especially those that name hospitals as defendants. Recovering such damages is a possibility if a defendant exhibited gross negligence in causing a child’s birth injuries. There is no cap on punitive damages for medical malpractice and birth injury claims in Maryland.
Under no circumstances should birth injury victims or their families accept settlements without conferring with our attorneys. If you accept a settlement that does not properly compensate you for your damages, you will be unable to pursue additional compensation via a lawsuit. Often, negligent hospitals and doctors will present victims with low-ball settlement offers in the hopes that they will be accepted. This indicates that you deserve greater damages, which you can recover through negotiations or a trial.
How Will You Receive Your Birth Injury Settlement in Maryland?
Once your birth injury case has concluded, whether through an out-of-court settlement or a successful judgement at trial, you will receive your compensation. The way in which victims recover damages can vary from case to case.
The most common method of recovery for birth injury victims and their families is a structured settlement. Through this type of settlement, payments will be parceled out, usually through monthly payments, over a pre-determined period of time. As parent of a birth injury victim, this might be ideal, as you will be able to put settlement payments directly toward your child’s medical costs as they arise over the course of their life.
There are also lump sum settlements. With this type of settlement, plaintiffs will receive one large payment for their damages. This kind of settlement is rarer and might only be available in cases against institutions with the necessary financial ability, such as hospitals.
The particulars of your settlement will be handled during negotiations if you settle out of court. If your birth injury case goes to trial, the judge will determine how the damages awarded to you must be paid. Whether you get a lump sum or structured settlement, you will ultimately receive the compensation you and your family deserve for your child’s birth injury in Maryland.
Call Our Maryland Lawyers About Your Birth Injury Case
To have the Laurel, MD birth injury lawyers at Rice, Murtha & Psoras assess your case for free, call us today at (410) 694-7291.