South Bend
Birth Injury
ATTORNEY

DELVENTHAL LAW

Birth injuries often leave new parents stunned. What should be a joyous time is instead full of worry and doubt as parents try to process what happened. Many parents are unsure of what happened or whether the medical mishap that injured the mother or child was preventable.

Contact a law firm for assistance. Delventhal Law Office is an established firm that can analyze whether your medical team committed malpractice and caused an avoidable injury. We can help with cases involving injuries to either the mother or the children. Contact us to speak with a South Bend birth injury lawyer in a private consultation.

When is Your Medical Team Responsible for a Birth Injury?

Not all births go seamlessly. Sometimes problems arise that your OBGYN should be prepared for, such as breech birth. Unfortunately, your medical team could fail to respond appropriately, or they could actively make a problem worse.

Examples of negligence in labor and delivery include:

• Failing to diagnose or respond adequately to fetal distress;
• Delaying a C-section;
• Using forceps or vacuums incorrectly;
• Overlooking signs of hemorrhage;
• Delivering anesthesia inappropriately;
• Breaking bones unnecessarily.

Both mothers and babies can suffer significant injuries in the delivery room. A mother might experience seizures, shock, internal bleeding, or other problems. A baby can be injured when delivery is too vigorous, or their umbilical cord becomes prolapsed or wrapped around their neck. Call our office for help determining if you have a claim.

Proving a Birth Injury

To bring a claim, we need to prove professional negligence, which has four elements:

1.       Your medical team owed you a duty of care.

2.       The defendant breached their duty of care.

3.       The breach caused injury to the mother or the child.

4.       Our clients suffered damages.

The most contested issue is usually breach, which means whether the OBGYN followed the accepted standard of care. Our firm often works with experts to review the choices made by doctors and nurses, including whether you were discharged from the hospital too soon. Our experts can testify whether your team followed or deviated from the correct standard of care.

Some parents are unsure whether their child is injured. Because babies cannot talk, parents are usually left guessing whether developmental delays or paralysis are temporary or a signal of a deeper problem. Your pediatrician might be unsure, as well. This is a reason to call a law firm. We can help connect parents with medical experts to determine if your child is injured.

Avoid any delay in contacting our firm. The statute of limitations applies to birth injury cases, as it does to other personal injury claims. Typically, you have only two years to file a lawsuit, with children under age six given until age eight to file. (Indiana Code § 34-18-7-1.) We need time to interview medical staff, request records, and reconstruct what happened during delivery.

Compensation for a Birth Injury

Birth injuries can cause lifelong disabilities. For example, a child with a brain injury can need ongoing medical care for the remainder of their life or specialized schooling. A mother with significant injuries might be unable to have children again. Compensation should be fair to make up for your injuries.

Our firm can also handle a wrongful death claim. Tragically, thousands of mothers around the country die during delivery. Vulnerable children can also perish even after being rushed to the NICU unit. Delventhal Law Office can handle a claim for wrongful death.

Each case is unique. The damages you request will depend on the severity of injuries, including whether our client will need future care. Contact our office if you have questions about how we calculate the value of a case.

Why Delventhal Law?

Our firm stands ready to help concerned parents with a birth injury claim. We bring decades of experience in malpractice to every case we accept. Our firm can:

• Build up the evidentiary basis of a claim by reviewing records and speaking to medical staff
• Rely on a deep network of experts to determine what care you should have received
• Calculate fair compensation for significant, long-lasting birth injuries
• Negotiate with malpractice insurers for a settlement
• Protect our clients’ rights by filing a lawsuit before the expiration of the statutory deadline
• Litigate effectively, including performing background research on the defense’s expert witnesses

Our firm has an impressive track record, which is a testament to our dedication to our clients and their families.

Speak with Our South Bend Birth Injury Lawyer

Delventhal Law Office provides guidance and legal support to families who have suffered a birth injury. Contact our office to schedule a free consultation. Our objective is to fully investigate what happened in the delivery room and fight for compensation for our clients.