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Birth Injury Attorneys
West Palm Beach Birth Injury Lawyers

West Palm Beach Birth Injury Lawyers

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Infant Injury Attorneys in West Palm Beach, FL Helping You Find Justice in Palm Beach County and Throughout Florida

It’s unthinkable that a newborn baby should suffer injury due to the negligence of a health professional, but it does happen. If you have been affected by a preventable birth injury due to the negligence of healthcare professionals, let our West Palm Beach birth injury lawyers help you find justice.

It’s sad that 1.9 per 1000 births result in infant injury, most of which are preventable. In a county like Florida which had 223,847 babies in 2022, 425 babies could have suffered preventable birth trauma. Maternal injuries can also occur during birth, especially if the mother doesn’t receive the required standard of care before, during, and after birth.

If you suspect that a birth injury to the infant or mother was caused by negligence, talk to infant injury attorneys in West Palm Beach, FL, today and start your journey of finding truth and justice.

Causes of Birth Injuries in Palm Beach County and Throughout Florida

Birth injuries can amount to medical malpractice if it’s determined they were caused by negligence or carelessness. They can occur before, during, and after delivery and could cause temporary to life-long consequences

Birth injuries can occur to a wide range of factors. Some of the most common include the following:

  • Pregnancy and infant-related factors, such as premature birth (before the 37th week of pregnancy), abnormal fetal position, and excessive infant weight (over 8 pounds 13 ounces)
  • Maternal factors, such as diabetes, obesity, prolonged labor, first-time birth, and an abnormally shaped pelvis
  • External factors such as excessive use of force or improper use of instruments like forceps and vacuum extractors

Birth injuries can also occur when doctors prescribe the wrong medication or fail to give proper care to the mother and the baby. For example, failure to recognize and deal with fetal distress can cause the infant to suffer from hypoxia, which results from insufficient oxygen to the brain.

Birth trauma is a leading cause of serious problems like nerve damage, cerebral palsy, fractures, spinal cord injuries, brain damage, and excessive bleeding.

When Does Birth Injury Amount to Medical Malpractice?

While some factors leading to birth injuries are difficult to control, sometimes the injury could have been prevented through proper care. It can be difficult to determine exactly what happened to cause the injury. It often requires the knowledge and skill of experienced medical professionals to determine if there was any negligence during the delivery process.

However, there are signs that could indicate something unusual happened during birth. For example, you may have grounds for suspicion if:

  • The delivery team failed to use all instruments and resources at their disposal to monitor vital signs of the fetus and mother during birth
  • The doctors and nurses doing the delivery were distracted and failed to pay attention to the mother and baby
  • Something felt off during the delivery, even though you may not know what
  • The baby was declared healthy throughout pregnancy, only to be born with an injury or congenital condition

If you suspect malpractice was involved in your case, let’s help you. We work with highly experienced medical professionals such as obstetricians and delivery nurses to determine the truth and fight for justice.

What to Do About Birth Injury Caused by Negligence in Palm Beach County and Throughout Florida

One of the most important things you can do when you’ve suffered birth-related infant injuries is to talk to West Palm Beach birth injury lawyers with expertise in Florida law. Florida is unique because it has a special insurance fund for serious birth injuries called the NICA fund.

Short for Florida Birth-Related Neurological Injury Compensation Association, NICA was created in the late 1980s as a no-fault insurance that covers ongoing treatment and rehabilitation costs for children who suffer birth injuries due to negligence.

This means that some birth injury cases don’t follow the regular legal route. NICA has special rules for eligibility and how the claim should be filed. Talk to infant injury attorneys in West Palm Beach, FL, for more information about NICA compensation and what to do to get it.

How to Win a Birth Injury Malpractice Lawsuit

For less serious infant birth injuries that don’t qualify for NICA compensation, you can file a claim or lawsuit against the physicians, nurses, or hospital responsible. First, you must get a qualified health professional to review the evidence and sign an affidavit showing that your claim is justified and should proceed.

You must also find sufficient evidence to support your claim. A strong case should satisfy three main elements:

  • Negligence: show that a medical professional failed to provide a reasonable standard of care and was thus negligent
  • Causation: show that the injury suffered was a direct result of the negligence of a healthcare professional
  • Damages: provide proof of the economic and non-economic losses suffered as a result, such as medical bills, lost income, and mental anguish

Proving negligence can be difficult and requires evidence such as health records for the mother and child, doctor’s notes, doctor’s qualifications and certificates, and camera footage. The witness statements of attending nurses and doctors are also invaluable evidence in the case.

Collecting all this evidence requires legal expertise and connections with the medical world. That’s why working with experienced West Palm Beach birth injury lawyers could be the key to winning a birth injury medical malpractice lawsuit.

Talk to Specialized Infant Injury Attorneys in Palm Beach County and Throughout FL

Malpractice cases related to birth injuries can be challenging to litigate. Even when the evidence has been tabled and negligence proved, negotiating a good settlement requires a high level of skills and experience. Your child might require a lifetime of treatment and care, which means its imperative to fight for the maximum amount of damages possible.

The legal partners of Domnick, Cunningham & Yaffa are highly specialized West Palm Beach birth injury lawyers. Having litigated numerous over the years cases collectively worth over $100 million, we have gained the experience and skills needed to fight successfully for you.

Talk to us today to start your journey towards getting justice for birth injury caused by malpractice in West Palm Beach.


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