Medical Malpractice Attorneys in New York, NY

As medical malpractice attorneys, we can help you understand your legal options and fight for the compensation you deserve. We have practiced medical malpractice law for almost two decades, consistently achieving superior results. If you or a loved one has been injured due to medical negligence in New York, you may have a case for medical malpractice.

What We Do as Medical Malpractice Attorneys

We take on a variety of responsibilities to build a strong case on behalf of our injured clients. Our key duties include:

• Investigating claims of medical negligence and malpractice. We conduct in-depth reviews of your medical records, provider notes, and all other evidence to determine if malpractice occurred.
• Gathering evidence such as medical records and expert testimony. Medical experts are often needed to establish the proper standards of care that were violated. We can retain qualified experts.
• Determining if legal standards of care were breached. By comparing your treatment to recognized medical standards, we can establish if provider negligence occurred.
• Filing lawsuits against negligent healthcare providers. Once sufficient evidence is gathered, we can file a medical malpractice lawsuit on your behalf.
• Negotiating settlements with insurance companies. Most cases settle out of court. We can aggressively negotiate to maximize your compensation.
• Representing clients in court throughout the litigation process. If a fair settlement isn't reached, we will zealously represent you throughout the litigation and trial process.

Type of Medical Malpractice Cases We Handle

We have extensive experience handling a wide range of cases, including:

• Birth injuries like cerebral palsy due to doctor errors during labor and delivery.
• Surgical mistakes and complications, such as operating on the wrong site or leaving surgical tools inside a patient.
• Misdiagnosis or delayed diagnosis of serious health conditions like cancer or meningitis.
• Medication errors and pharmacy mistakes that cause patient harm.
• Nursing home abuse and negligence resulting in bedsores, falls or other injuries.

The effects of medical negligence can be expensive and catastrophic. We are familiar with the complex legal and medical issues involved in proving these cases.

Our Fees

Most medical malpractice attorneys like us work on a contingency fee basis, meaning legal fees are only paid if compensation is recovered in your case. The fee is typically 30% to 40% of the final settlement amount. You may be responsible for certain out of pocket costs like expert witness fees and filing fees. But if no recovery is obtained, you will owe nothing in legal fees.

Benefits of Hiring Us as Your Medical Malpractice Attorney

Hiring a medical malpractice attorney is highly recommended due to the many benefits they provide:

• Knowledge in medical negligence law. We know the medical and legal intricacies these complex cases require.
• Objective claim evaluation. We can provide an honest assessment of your potential claim's merits.
• Burden relief. We can carry the burden of gathering evidence, negotiating, and litigating your case.
• Access to medical experts. We can retain highly qualified experts to support your claim.
• Aggressive litigation. We can litigate if a fair settlement isn't offered.
• Maximize compensation. We can achieve higher settlements and jury awards than individuals representing themselves.

The Elements of a Medical Malpractice Case

A medical malpractice case in New York requires the plaintiff to establish four elements:

• Duty. A doctor-patient relationship existed, creating a duty of care.
• Breach. The provider's care fell below the accepted standard of care in the medical community.
• Causation. The breach was the proximate cause of the injury — meaning the injury would not have happened, or would have been less severe, had proper care been provided.
• Damages. The patient suffered compensable harm.

All four elements must be supported by evidence, and the standard of care and causation elements must be supported by qualified expert medical testimony. A case without strong expert support is not viable, no matter how sympathetic the underlying story.

Statute of Limitations

New York's medical malpractice statute of limitations is 2 years and 6 months from the date of the malpractice or the end of continuous treatment for the underlying condition. For foreign objects left inside a patient during surgery, the statute is 1 year from discovery or the date the patient reasonably should have discovered the object. For minors, the statute is tolled until the child reaches age 18, but in no case can a claim be brought more than 10 years after the malpractice.

Lavern's Law, enacted in 2018, created a special "discovery rule" for cancer misdiagnosis cases. Where a cancer diagnosis is missed or delayed, the statute begins to run when the patient knew or should have known of the missed diagnosis, not when the original act of negligence occurred. The discovery rule is limited to negligent failure to diagnose cancer or malignant tumors.

Notice of Claim Against Public Hospitals

Claims against the New York City Health and Hospitals Corporation, county hospitals, state hospitals, or other government healthcare providers require additional procedural steps. A notice of claim must be filed within 90 days of the malpractice. A 50-H hearing may be required before the lawsuit is filed. The statute of limitations against public providers is shorter — typically 1 year and 90 days from the malpractice. Missing any of these deadlines can permanently bar an otherwise valid case.

Certificate of Merit

New York CPLR Section 3012-a requires that any complaint for medical malpractice be accompanied by a certificate of merit from the plaintiff's attorney, certifying that they have consulted with a qualified medical expert and that the expert believes there is a reasonable basis for the action. The certificate of merit requirement is designed to weed out frivolous cases, and a complaint filed without one can be dismissed.

Common Categories of Malpractice Cases

The substantive categories of medical malpractice cases we handle include:

• Surgical errors. Wrong-site surgery, retained surgical instruments, anesthesia errors, post-operative infections, and inadequate informed consent.
• Birth injuries. Cerebral palsy from oxygen deprivation, brachial plexus injuries (Erb's palsy), failure to recognize fetal distress, delayed C-section, and improper use of vacuum or forceps.
• Missed or delayed cancer diagnosis. Failure to order appropriate tests, failure to follow up on abnormal results, misreading of biopsies or imaging studies, and delays in referral to specialists.
• Heart attack and stroke misdiagnosis. Failure to recognize symptoms, delayed treatment, inappropriate discharge from the emergency room.
• Medication errors. Wrong drug, wrong dose, wrong route of administration, dangerous drug interactions, and failure to check the patient's allergy history.
• Hospital-acquired infections. MRSA, C. diff, sepsis, and other infections from inadequate sterile technique.
• Nursing home neglect. Bedsores, falls, malnutrition, dehydration, and elopement injuries.
• Failure to obtain informed consent. Performing procedures without adequate disclosure of risks, benefits, and alternatives.

Damages in Medical Malpractice Cases

A successful medical malpractice case can recover:

• Medical expenses. Past medical bills and future medical care reasonably expected to result from the injury.
• Lost earnings. Wages lost from work missed during treatment and recovery.
• Lost earning capacity. Long-term reduction in ability to work because of the injury.
• Pain and suffering. Past and future physical pain and emotional distress.
• Loss of enjoyment of life. Inability to engage in activities the patient previously enjoyed.
• Loss of consortium. A spouse's claim for impact on the marital relationship.
• Wrongful death damages. Funeral expenses, conscious pain and suffering before death, and pecuniary loss to surviving family members.

New York does not impose a statutory cap on non-economic damages in most medical malpractice cases, though jury verdicts are subject to post-trial review for excessiveness.

Expert Witnesses

Medical experts are the backbone of every medical malpractice case. The plaintiff needs:

• A standard-of-care expert in the same specialty as the defendant to opine on what proper care would have been.
• A causation expert (often the same expert or a related specialist) to opine that the deviation from the standard of care caused or contributed to the injury.
• Treating doctors to describe the injury, the treatment provided, the prognosis, and the future care needed.
• A life-care planner for catastrophic injury cases to project future care costs.
• An economist to translate medical projections into present value damages.

Securing qualified experts who will testify against a defendant doctor is one of the most difficult aspects of medical malpractice practice. Many physicians are reluctant to testify against colleagues. We have established working relationships with experts in nearly every specialty.

How These Cases Are Defended

Hospital and physician defendants are typically defended by experienced malpractice defense firms, funded by major medical malpractice insurance carriers. Common defenses include:

• The care provided met the standard of care for the specialty.
• The injury was an unavoidable complication, not the result of negligence.
• Pre-existing conditions, not the alleged negligence, caused the injury.
• The patient's own behavior — non-compliance with medical advice, delayed reporting of symptoms, dishonesty about history — contributed to the outcome.
• The statute of limitations has run.
• The plaintiff cannot establish causation through expert testimony.

Anticipating these defenses and preparing for them is part of our case development from the start.

Why You Need a Medical Malpractice Attorney

Medical mistakes can cause permanent injuries, financial strain, and tremendous stress. An experienced New York medical malpractice attorney can level the playing field against healthcare providers and insurance companies. If you need legal representation, we at the Law Offices of Albert Goodwin are here for you. We are located in Midtown Manhattan in New York, NY. You can call us at 212-233-1233 or send us an email at [email protected].