Boston Medical Malpractice Lawyer
Have you been injured due to medical malpractice by a doctor or medical facility in Boston, MA? You may be entitled to compensation for your injuries through a medical malpractice claim.
When a physician you have trusted with your health has caused you injury instead, a Boston medical malpractice lawyer can help you hold them accountable.
Sweeney Merrigan Law, LLP takes pride in building trust and confidence through a personalized approach to every case we accept. Contact our law office at (617)-391-9001 to schedule a free consultation to discuss your case and how we can help you.
Table of Contents
How Sweeney Merrigan Law, LLP Can Help with Your Boston Medical Malpractice Case
When your trust in a medical provider has been misplaced and you are left harmed instead of helped, you may feel overwhelmed, angry, and unsure where to turn. Unfortunately, medical malpractice is a common problem and it can be an uphill battle to recover fair compensation for the harm you have suffered.
The insurance company will not be on your side and may minimize the severity of your injuries and offer you far less than your actual damages.
Sweeney Merrigan Law, LLP is committed to fighting for patients in Boston harmed by medical malpractice. Our Boston personal injury lawyers include a former Trial Judge of the Year and have been named one of the state’s Most Powerful attorneys by Massachusetts Lawyers Weekly.
We have recovered tens of millions in compensation for our clients. This includes $4 million for medical malpractice involving wrongful death and $2 million for failure to diagnose.
When you choose Sweeney Merrigan Law, LLP to represent you in your medical malpractice claim, you can trust us to:
- Offer legal advice with a relationship built on confidence and trust
- Perform an in-depth investigation into your case
- Gather evidence to establish causation and the extent of your damages
- Work with medical experts to establish the standard of care and how your provider deviated
- Fight back against claims that the provider was not negligent or you were not seriously injured
- Negotiate for a fair settlement on your behalf
- Present your case before a jury if a fair settlement offer cannot be reached
Our Top 40 Under 40 Trial Lawyers always prepare every case for trial. We are not afraid to take your case to court and will not pressure you to accept a low-ball settlement that does not fairly compensate you. Contact the Super Lawyers at Sweeney Merrigan Law, LLP today to schedule your free consultation to explore your legal options.
What Is Considered Medical Malpractice in Massachusetts?
While Boston may be known for its excellent health care system, sometimes medical professionals make mistakes.
When they do, patients can be left with serious complications and life-changing injuries. Medical malpractice refers to a medical provider who is negligent through omission or action and causes personal injury to a patient.
Malpractice can occur at any stage of medical care including diagnosis, treatment, follow-up care, and chronic illness management. It may be committed by any medical provider. This includes hospitals, primary care physicians, pharmacists, surgeons, nurses, anesthesiologists, paramedics, and technicians.
In Massachusetts, medical providers are held to a very high standard of care. A medical provider must provide the standard of care considered reasonable for someone in the same field in similar circumstances.
Medical negligence is not simply having a poor outcome for a treatment or procedure. To determine if a medical provider breached the standard of care, a personal injury lawyer will typically work with expert medical witnesses who can testify as to the care standard.
How Common is Medical Negligence?
Medical malpractice is a shockingly common problem. According to a major John Hopkins study, medical mistakes are the third leading cause of death in America. It is believed that up to 440,000 patients die every year as a result of mistakes by medical professionals. However, many more suffer injuries, sometimes catastrophic.
What Are Some Examples of Medical Malpractice?
Medical malpractice in Boston comes in many forms. The following are common examples of medical negligence.
Birth Injury
Birth injuries can occur when a medical provider fails to recognize signs of distress, does not provide the correct treatment to a pregnant woman, does not recognize a prenatal condition, or causes injury during the birth itself.
Common examples of birth injuries in Boston usually caused by medical negligence include cerebral palsy, shoulder dystocia, and brachial plexus injuries.
Misdiagnosis, Delayed Diagnosis & Failure to Treat
Medical malpractice can happen when a condition is diagnosed and treated.
Sometimes malpractice happens when a patient is incorrectly told there is nothing wrong with them. They may even be diagnosed with the wrong condition.
When the wrong condition is diagnosed, a patient is sent away believing there is nothing wrong, or the correct treatment is not provided, negligence can lead to serious harm.
A patient’s condition may worsen, potentially to the point where the treatment that could have saved them or cured them will no longer be effective. This is particularly true with conditions such as cancer or serious heart conditions.
Surgical Mistakes
It’s estimated that around 4,000 surgical errors occur every year across the country. These mistakes can happen pre-op, during surgery, or post-op. A surgical error can require revision surgery, worsen a patient’s condition, or cause serious complications or even death.
Examples of surgical errors include wrong-site surgery, leaving surgical equipment in a patient, perforating an organ, anesthesia mistakes, and nerve damage.
Prescription Errors
A prescribing physician or pharmacist may commit a prescription drug error. These mistakes happen when the wrong drug or dose is prescribed or administered. It may also happen when a medication interacts with a patient’s other prescriptions.
How Do I Prove Negligence in a Massachusetts Medical Malpractice Case?
Massachusetts has very strict laws regarding medical malpractice claims. Before your case can proceed, Massachusetts General Law Chapter 231 Section 60B requires that you go before a tribunal. However, a superior court ruling effective 2018 makes this tribunal necessary only if requested by the defendant.
This tribunal includes:
- One justice of the Massachusetts supreme court
- A Massachusetts licensed physician, and
- A Massachusetts licensed attorney.
The purpose of the tribunal is to determine whether your evidence is enough to raise a legitimate question about whether the medical provider was negligent.
When you file your lawsuit, you are required to file and serve an offer of proof in your case. The defendant then has 30 days to answer and specifically request a tribunal, if desired.
If the tribunal finds you have sufficient evidence, your case will proceed to court. Otherwise, your lawsuit can only go forward if you file a $6,000 bond with the clerk of court to cover the defendant’s court costs and legal fees if your case is unsuccessful.
Once your case proceeds to court, you will need to prove several elements in your case:
- A doctor-patient relationship existed
- The medical provider was negligent
- This negligence caused your injury, and
- The injury led to specific damages or harm.
This means it isn’t enough that a physician committed a medical error; it must rise to the level of negligence and it must have caused you harm.
What Damages Are Available for Medical Malpractice Victims in Boston?
When you are harmed by a medical provider’s negligence, you may recover compensation for the economic and non-economic damages you have suffered.
Our Boston personal injury attorneys will fight for the maximum compensation you deserve for:
- Medical bills, including the future expenses you will likely face related to your injuries
- Lost wages
- Lost future earning capacity or disability
- Pain and suffering
- Mental anguish
- Disfigurement
- Loss of enjoyment of life
- Wrongful death
Note that Massachusetts caps non-economic damages at $500,000 in medical malpractice claims. However, this cap is lifted in some circumstances including cases involving the impairment of bodily function or significant disfigurement. You may also qualify to have this cap lifted if you can show it deprives you of fair compensation for the injuries you sustained.
What’s the Statute of Limitations For Filing a Medical Malpractice Lawsuit in Suffolk County, MA?
You have a limited amount of time to file a Massachusetts medical malpractice lawsuit. Typically, the statute of limitations is just three years from the date of the malpractice under Massachusetts General Law Chapter 260 Section 4. However, you can bring a claim up to 7 years after the date of injury if the malpractice wasn’t known or reasonably knowable. For malpractice affecting children under six, the window is extended up to six years, but the case must be filed before the child turns 9.
It’s crucial to consult with a Boston medical malpractice lawyer as soon as possible to protect your claim. Three years may seem like a long time, but it’s vital that your case is investigated and evidence gathered quickly.
Schedule a Free Consultation with a Boston Medical Malpractice Lawyer
Have you suffered serious injury or complications caused by medical malpractice? Sweeney Merrigan Law, LLP will help you hold the responsible party accountable for the harm you have suffered. Contact our law office today to schedule a free case review with a compassionate Boston medical malpractice lawyer who will help you explore your legal options.