If you or someone you love has been harmed by a plastic surgeon, you may be wondering how to get justice for your losses. Fortunately, New York provides various avenues for wronged patients to get recompense.
In every case, meeting with an experienced New York medical malpractice lawyer is among the first and most important steps in filing a suit against a surgeon. Here is what you need to know about filing a suit against a plastic surgeon in New York.
Lawsuits are permitted against plastic surgeons when they fail to provide treatment in a manner consistent with accepted, clear medical standards. For example, there are proven techniques for the procedures that patients seek, such as:
Deviating from the accepted methods and techniques used to perform these operations can significantly increase the risk of patient injury. In unfortunate cases where a patient is harmed, the patient can sue for medical malpractice.
Filing a suit against a plastic surgeon is more detailed than filing most other types of personal injury lawsuits. Seeking damages requires strict compliance with numerous legal rules and procedures, some of which are not required in other injury cases. Take a closer look at what this process involves.
The first step to filing a suit against a plastic surgeon is meeting with an attorney experienced in cases such as yours. Medical malpractice attorneys offer free consultations, which are helpful in gaining an understanding of your case and what comes next.
After reviewing your case and determining that a potential case of malpractice exists, your attorney will pursue a certificate of merit. This document is required in all medical malpractice cases.
A certificate of merit certifies that your attorney has consulted with at least one qualified, relevant medical professional who agrees that your claim may have merit. Before consulting with experts, your lawyer will do a bit of investigation into your case for evidence to provide to the expert with whom they consult.
The certificate of merit is in no way to be considered definitive proof that a plastic surgeon was negligent. It simply establishes that the claim has merit and is worth pursuing. This requirement is in place to prevent frivolous lawsuits from bogging down legitimate medical professionals.
Once the certificate of merit has been acquired, your attorney can begin seeking compensation from the insurance companies covering the professionals involved. In many cases, the parties reach a settlement that is satisfactory to everyone, which may occur before or after many deposition sessions.
In other cases, settlement proves difficult. The result is either mediation, arbitration, or trial. In most cases, medical malpractice claims are settled out of court. That said, more medical malpractice cases go to court than most other types of injury cases, such as car accidents and slip and fall cases.
Whatever the course, any patient in need of justice for substandard plastic surgery treatment needs an experienced medical malpractice lawyer to safeguard their right to compensation.
Doctors, nurses, and any other medical professional accused of malpractice put up a vigorous defense, as do the insurance companies that provide them with malpractice insurance. Patients need lawyers to ensure they pay what they owe.
In New York, there is a statute of limitations of two years and six months for medical malpractice cases. The clock starts on the date of the injury in many cases. In others, it begins ticking on the date that the patient discovers or should have discovered the harm caused by the malpractice.
For example, a patient whose damage does not become apparent for weeks or months after the surgery will not be subject to the statute of limitations until the harm becomes reasonably evident.
Regardless of how much time a patient may have to file a lawsuit, acting swiftly to pursue compensation is always recommended. The longer it takes you to hire an attorney to start the process, the weaker your case may become. Evidence issues often begin to arise as time passes.
If you have experienced medical malpractice at the hands of a plastic surgeon, you deserve justice. Silberstein, Awad & Miklos, P.C. can fight to get you the compensation owed to you by your plastic surgeon. Contact us for a free consultation to learn how a seasoned medical malpractice attorney can help with your case today.
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