As patients, we place great faith in the professionals who provide medical care for our loved ones and ourselves. It is unfortunate and highly frustrating when they are negligent and forgetful of their duties. It is tragic when such negligence results in serious injury or death. Fortunately for you and your loved ones, there are recourse options available. Medical malpractice insurance exists for a reason. If a caregiver harms you or your loved one, you are entitled to seek compensation and justice. The expert Boston medical malpractice attorneys and Boston wrongful death lawyers at the Law Offices of Gilbert R. Hoy, Jr. and Affiliates have extensive experience representing clients on many issues including, but not limited to:
What to do if you have been injured by a Massachusetts medical professional:
Obtain your medical records.
Your medical records are a crucial factor in evaluating and going forward with your Massachusetts medical malpractice claim. When you retain the services of our expert Boston, MA medical mistake law firm, our Boston medical malpractice attorneys will first obtain all of your medical records for you. We will then undertake a full and comprehensive review of your medical records in order to completely understand the nature and extent of your injuries.
Contacting an expert Boston, MA medical malpractice lawyer early on in your case may be the most important thing that you do. Retaining our experienced and nationally known and respected team of Massachusetts medical error attorneys may be crucial to your recovering the full and fair monetary damages for your Massachusetts medical malpractice injuries. Typically, the statute of limitations for Massachusetts medical malpractice claims, namely the deadline for filing a lawsuit, is three years after the injured Massachusetts medical malpractice victim knows or should have known that he or she has been injured. However, in some cases, such as when the wrongdoer is a public entity, legal action must be taken sooner or you will lose all of your rights. You need to speak with one of our expert Boston medical malpractice attorneys at your earliest opportunity in order to prevent your claim from being time barred, and in order to maximize your damages in obtaining a just monetary recovery.
When you expect medical progress and assistance and you end up worse off due to negligence or mistakes, our Boston medical malpractice lawyers will help you pursue your medical malpractice claim so you can get the compensation you deserve. Given the extensive experience of our Boston, MA based team of Boston medical malpractice attorneys and Boston wrongful death lawyers, we will clearly and completely explain the legal aspects of your case and guide you through the process. We also work with a network of physicians to provide expert testimony for your case, and we know how to negotiate just settlements to compensate you for the pain that you have experienced. If a case cannot be settled outside of court, our Boston medical malpractice attorneys have vast experience in successfully trying cases.
Medical Malpractice in Massachusetts:
In part because of the high concentration of medical professionals in Massachusetts, Massachusetts medical malpractice laws tend to be complex. Because of the various nuances and technicalities involved with Massachusetts medical malpractice law and Massachusetts medical malpractice cases, it is critically important to have the expertise of one of our seasoned Boston medical malpractice attorneys or Boston wrongful death lawyers available to you. Our Boston, MA medical malpractice lawyer specialists have the skills and experience necessary to handle your case effectively.
Massachusetts Medical Malpractice Tribunal
Before a Massachusetts medical malpractice case can proceed to trial, the case must first be presented to a Massachusetts medical malpractice tribunal, consisting of a Massachusetts judge, a Massachusetts-licensed physician and a Massachusetts-licensed attorney. These three professionals will determine whether the evidence presented for your case, if properly sustained, is sufficient to raise a legitimate question of liability appropriate for judicial inquiry or whether your injuries are merely an unfortunate medical result and not caused by Massachusetts medical malpractice. The Massachusetts medical malpractice tribunal is required to perform such an analysis under Massachusetts law. The tribunal’s findings are admissible in court. Additionally, in the event that the tribunal finds against the Massachusetts injured victim, he or she is required to post a $6,000 bond in order to cover the defendant’s expenses if the defendant prevails at trial. Our Boston medical mistake law firm is very experienced and has achieved great success in presenting cases to the tribunal.
Massachusetts Joint and Several Liability and Right of Contribution
In Massachusetts, where medical malpractice is the result of the negligent conduct of more than one individual or entity, all of the parties responsible for the injuries are known as “joint tortfeasors.” Joint tortfeasors are each liable, under Massachusetts law, for the full extent of the injured party’s monetary damages. Under Massachusetts law, each negligent party is thus “jointly and severally liable” for their negligence, meaning that an injured Massachusetts medical malpractice victim may pursue a medical malpractice action against any separate negligent party (a “tortfeasor”) and recover the entire amount of his or her monetary damages from that tortfeasor. The tortfeasor may then seek money damages from other culpable parties in order to share in the expense of the judgment. In Massachusetts, a tortfeasor’s degree of fault is not considered when determining their share of liability; instead, liability for the judgment is divided equally among all culpable parties.
Massachusetts Vicarious Liability
A Massachusetts hospital may be held liable for the negligence of its physicians if the physician was acting as an agent of the hospital at the time that the negligent act occurred. Whether or not a hospital is liable hinges on whether the hospital had the right to control the physician’s actions at the time of the wrongdoing.
Massachusetts Limitations on Damages
Massachusetts limits the amount of money that an injured Massachusetts medical malpractice victim can recover for non-economic damages to $500,000. Non-economic damages include pain and suffering, disfigurement and other Massachusetts damages that do not have an exact monetary amount. For example, medical bills and lost wages are not non-economic damages because they have an exact dollar amount. There is an exception to this limitation when there is evidence of substantial bodily loss or impairment that warrants a finding that the limitation would deprive the injured party of just compensation. Furthermore, liability against public entities is limited to $100,000. Public entities are also exempt from punitive damages and pre-judgment interest.
Massachusetts Contributory Negligence
Massachusetts follows the doctrine of modified comparative negligence, which means that an injured party’s own negligence action is barred if his or her negligence exceeds that of the remaining culpable parties. In other words, if the fault of the injured Massachusetts victim is greater than 50%, then he or she will be barred from any monetary recovery. Furthermore, the amount an injured Massachusetts victim can recover will be reduced in proportion to his or her own negligence, so long as that negligence does not exceed more than half of the total negligence. For example, if a Massachusetts medical malpractice victim is found to be 30% responsible for his or her injuries, then the amount of money damages that are recovered will be reduced by 30%.
We will meet with you at your convenience at our office for an initial free consultation to discuss your options or, if it is more convenient for you, at the hospital or in the privacy of your home.
Our Massachusetts medical malpractice personal injury lawyers are proud to represent Massachusetts medical malpractice personal injury clients from throughout the Commonwealth.
First, our Boston, MA medical malpractice lawyer experts work incredibly hard to provide outstanding legal representation for every one of our Massachusetts medical malpractice clients. As a result of our Boston medical malpractice attorneys’ extensive legal knowledge, tenacity, determination and wide range of expertise and skill regarding Massachusetts medical malpractice claims, our Massachusetts medical malpractice attorneys have an outstanding track record of success and accomplishment for our personal injury clients. Our medical malpractice attorneys will simply not settle for second best.
Second, our expert Boston medical malpractice legal advocates and Boston, MA wrongful death lawyer experts always provide our clients with exceptional client service. This is as important to us as the outcome of your medical malpractice case. Our Boston medical malpractice law office keeps every client fully informed of the progress of his or her medical malpractice case. As part of this commitment, all of our medical malpractice clients are copied on all correspondence from us, and we make it a priority to promptly respond to all phone calls and other inquiries from our clients. Our level of client service and client dedication truly distinguishes us from other Massachusetts medical malpractice law firms. The medical malpractice attorneys at our medical malpractice law office never act on behalf of a client without first thoroughly discussing the matter at hand with our client and jointly coming to a decision beforehand. Our medical malpractice law office endeavors to represent each of our clients in such a manner that ensures that our clients receive the individualized, detailed attention that their unique medical malpractice case deserves.
Our driving motivations of superior client relations and exceptional legal counsel make us a law firm you can trust.
