Birth Injury Settlements

What Is a Birth Injury Settlement?

Birth injury lawsuit settlements occur when the negligent health care providers that delivered the child (defendants) agree to pay a lump sum of compensation to the family of the injured child (plaintiff).

Birth injury settlements provide families with the financial aid needed to care for a child that suffered from a preventable birth injury. Some birth injury settlements have awarded millions of dollars to children and families in need.

Source: TDC Group study

Working with an experienced birth injury lawyer can help increase the chances of a successful payout from your birth injury claim. A specialized lawyer can strengthen your case and help you get the compensation to pay for the treatment your child needs.

Get a free case review today to see if you qualify to file a medical malpractice lawsuit.

Benefits of Birth Injury Lawsuit Settlements

Children with birth injuries such as a brain injury, cerebral palsy, and Erb’s palsy may require a variety of long-term medical treatments to manage their conditions. Settlements can provide the money needed to pay for the life-changing birth injury treatments your child needs to have the best quality of life.

Source: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)

Birth injury settlements can cover costs associated with:

• Adaptive equipment
• Assistive devices
• Lost wages if you had to quit your job to provide full-time care
• Medication
• Occupational therapy
• Pain and suffering
• Physical therapy
• Special education
• Surgery
• Speech therapy
• Transportation modifications
• Other associated costs

Settlements award families with compensation quicker than trial verdicts. Most lawyers will decide to pursue a settlement over a trial verdict since trials are costly, time-consuming, and risky. If the court does not rule in your favor, you may not win any compensation at all.

Birth injury lawsuit settlements also hold negligent doctors accountable for their actions. Although nothing can change what happened during your child’s birth, financial compensation from the parties responsible can give you a sense of justice.

How to Pursue a Birth Injury Settlement

To secure a birth injury settlement, you will first need to file a personal injury or wrongful death lawsuit with the help of a lawyer.

Birth injury lawyers can build a strong case on your behalf that explains how your health care provider did not uphold a high standard of care. They will also note why your family deserves compensation for the harm done.

A settlement is reached when both sides agree on a compensation amount that the defendants will pay to cover the costs associated with the birth injury. If a settlement cannot be reached, the case may move forward into the trial phase.

One factor that is often involved in a settlement is a non-disclosure agreement (NDA). This prevents the details of the settlement from becoming public. An NDA can be helpful if you want to keep the details of your child’s birth injury private. Doctors or hospitals may also want you to sign an NDA so the details of the incident do not affect their reputation.

However, not all cases will require an NDA to be signed. An experienced birth injury lawyer can give you more information about the benefits and drawbacks of NDAs.

The first step in pursuing a birth injury settlement is to contact a lawyer. If your child may have been harmed by medical negligence, get a free consultation — our advocates can help you start the process if you qualify.

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Notable Birth Injury Lawsuit Settlements & Verdicts

Although each case varies, it can be helpful to know what other families have won from a birth injury settlement or verdict.

• 
  

  $10.4 million

  for a Pennsylvania family

• 
  

  $9 million

  for an Alaska family

• 
  

  $8 million

  for a New York family

• 
  

  $7.8 million

  for a Florida family

• 
  

  $4.25 million

  for a California family

• 
  

  $950,000

  for a New Jersey family

There are many elements that can affect your birth injury settlement. Consult with an experienced birth injury lawyer to learn more about your potential case value.

Factors Affecting Birth Injury Settlement Amounts

Every birth injury case is different, so birth injury lawsuit settlements vary depending on the specifics of each case.

Learn more about key factors that affect settlement amounts below.

Medical Bills

If a preventable birth injury caused your child to develop a long-term disability, your settlement award should cover most or all of their medical expenses.

For example, children with severe birth injuries may require daily medications, several types of therapy, and more rigorous treatment such as surgery.

Your lawyer will determine your child’s estimated lifetime treatment costs to seek enough compensation to cover them.

Quality of Life

Birth injuries can greatly affect all aspects of a child’s life. Some patients require adaptive equipment to move independently. Homes may also need to be modified to fit a child’s needs. Without these changes, the child’s quality of life may suffer.

Additionally, one or both of the child’s parents may have to quit their jobs to provide care, leading to a loss of income. While this can help manage the child’s immediate health care needs, caregiving duties and less money can place a lot of stress on parents.

Birth injury settlements must account for these potential costs to ensure plaintiffs are compensated fairly.

Attorney’s Fees

The best personal injury attorneys at specialized law firms will work on a contingency fee basis, meaning you will not owe anything upfront.

Your birth injury attorney will only get paid if you win your lawsuit. They will take a small percentage of the compensation won.

Make sure you discuss these details with your attorney prior to filing your lawsuit.

Pursue Birth Injury Settlements Today

Doctors, nurses, and other health care professionals have a duty to safely deliver babies and navigate emergency birthing situations. Unfortunately, negligent actions in the delivery room can lead to birth injuries and lifelong disabilities.

You should not have to pay out of pocket for your child’s treatment – especially if it could have been prevented. Birth injury lawsuit settlements can award you with the compensation needed to give your child a comfortable life.

Get a free case review today to find out if you can file a lawsuit and secure a birth injury settlement. Our caring patient advocates are standing by to help you.