When Your Doctor Doesn’t Meet The Standard Of Care
Medical providers are held to a standard of care in the community in which they practice. When medical treatment does not meet this standard and the result is lasting harm or death, it can be grounds for a medical malpractice suit against the doctor or the facility.
At Gold, Albanese, Barletti & Locascio L.L.C., our attorneys have decades of legal experience representing clients across the State of New Jersey. We handle medical negligence cases involving:
- Anesthesia Errors
- Birth Injuries
- Cerebral Palsy
- Dental Malpractice
- Emergency Room Errors
- Medication Errors
- Medical Misdiagnosis
- Pharmaceutical Errors
- Radiology Errors
- Surgical Errors
- Wrong-Site Procedures or Surgery
- Wrongful Death
Medical malpractice can happen at hospitals, nursing homes, rehabilitation facilities or clinics, including free clinics. We have initiated lawsuits against primary care doctors, surgeons, OB/GYNs, radiologists, nurses, physical therapists, dentists and other medical professionals. We will do all we can to protect your rights and help you collect the financial recovery you deserve.
Medical Malpractice in New Jersey
Medical malpractice is any act of negligence or carelessness committed by a healthcare professional or institution that violates the standard of care for their field and thus causes harm to a patient. This does not mean that dissatisfaction with a course of treatment or the results of said treatment indicates medical malpractice occurred. However, you also cannot waive your right to sue for malpractice by signing a consent form. You cannot consent to substandard care.
In order to pursue a medical malpractice case, the patient must prove that negligence on the provider’s part caused the patient to suffer damages. This often requires expert witnesses and thorough investigation and thus can get very expensive in short order. This is why having an experienced NJ medical malpractice lawyer with the knowledge of what constitutes a valid malpractice case is important.
New Jersey Specific Aspects of Medical Malpractice Law
There are some important particulars in New Jersey medical malpractice law that anyone thinking of pursuing a claim should be aware of. These include:
- Statute of Limitations – Medical malpractice claims have an expiration date of two years after the date of when the suspected malpractice occurred. This is known as the statute of limitations. However, if the patient had no reasonable way of knowing they were actually injured, this time limit will only start once they had reason to become aware of their injury.
- Affidavit of Merit – It is required in New Jersey that 60 days after the defendant has filed a response to the lawsuit, they must be provided with an Affidavit of Merit by the plaintiff. This document must be written be an expert in the same field or subfield of medicine as the defendant. Within, the expert must declare that the way the defendant treated the patient did not meet the standard of care required of their field given the circumstances and, therefore, a valid basis exists for the medical malpractice claim.
- Tort Claims Notice – Any claim brought against a public entity requires that you provide said entity with a Tort Claims notice within 90 days of the incident. Otherwise you may lose any ability to bring a claim against the public entity.
The time sensitivity of some of these issues means you should aggressively pursue your claim and get in contact with a knowledgeable medical malpractice lawyer as soon as possible.
Choose A Medical Malpractice Law Firm With Real Trial Experience
Working with a law firm that has experience in medical negligence litigation is imperative to establishing liability and maximizing compensation for the harm you have suffered. Our skilled medical malpractice lawyers know what to look for and have a network of medical experts who will help us thoroughly explore the merit of a case. This is why we are one of only a few firms in the area that handle these complex and resource-intensive cases.