QUESTIONS RELATED TO MEDICAL MALPRACTICE IN CALIFORNIA

Q: Are there caps on damages in medical malpractice cases? A: In California, there is a cap on non-economic damages in all medical malpractice cases. Non-economic damages are the damages that don’t directly compensate the victim for medical bills, lost wages or lost earning capacity. The most common example of non-economic damages is “pain and suffering” damages. These non-economic damages are limited to a maximum of $250,000 in medical malpractice cases for injury or wrongful death.

Q: Why are expert witnesses required in medical malpractice cases? A: Medical malpractice cases are based on the theory that the doctor failed to use the amount of skill and professionalism expected of a reasonable doctor under the same circumstances. Because average jurors are not medically trained, they cannot form their own opinions on what would be reasonably expected of a doctor, and therefore our medical malpractice law firm must retain an expert to testify as to what would be reasonably expected of a doctor under the circumstances of the case.

Q: How long will my case take? A: The duration of a medical malpractice case can be affected by many different factors. If both parties are interested in settling the case and mutually agreeable settlement terms can be reached, the case may not take long at all, but only a couple of months. More commonly however, medical malpractice cases require a significant amount of investigation to determine what the strengths of each side’s case is, and law firms are retained to litigate the claims. If a case proceeds all the way through litigation, it can take anywhere from one to three years, and even longer if an appeal is filed by the losing party.

Contact Our San Francisco Bay Area Medical Malpractice Lawyers for More Information

If you have additional questions related to medical malpractice claims, feel free to contact The Law Offices of O’Donnell & Smith to get more information. Our attorneys can accommodate your needs, and will speak with you whenever and wherever is most convenient to answer all of your questions. We can advise you on your case and provide you with the peace of mind that your claim will be pursued by only the most experienced attorneys to get you the maximum relief you are entitled to.