How to Prove Your Birth Injury Case

According to March of Dimes, there were over 130,000 babies born in the state of Pennsylvania in 2022. The majority of births in the state proceed without major incident; sadly, though, a substantial minority result in injuries to mothers and babies because of negligence by doctors, midwives, or healthcare facilities.

If you’ve been involved in a case like this, it’s important that you know how to prove your birth injury case so you can seek the monetary compensation you need to get your life back on track. You shouldn’t have to foot the bill for someone else’s negligence.

In this blog post, we go into detail on proving birth injury cases.

Common Birth Injuries and Their Causes

At The Cochran Firm in Philadelphia, we’ve worked with clients who have dealt with almost every type of birth injury. However, there are a few that we see particularly often, such as:

• Brachial plexus injuries: Injuries to the brachial plexus (such as Erb’s palsy) happen when the baby's neck is stretched to the side during a difficult delivery, damaging the network of nerves that control arm and hand movement. Careless handling by doctors and midwives can increase the risk of this happening.
• Cerebral palsy: This most often results from oxygen deprivation during birth or head trauma caused by improper use of delivery tools like forceps or vacuum extractors.
• Fractures: Fractures, particularly to the clavicle (collarbone), frequently occur during deliveries of large babies and breech births.
• Facial nerve damage: This can occur if pressure is applied incorrectly during forceps delivery.

Understanding the specific nature and cause of the injury is essential to determine whether it resulted from negligence.

What Constitutes Medical Negligence in a Birth Injury Case?

In a birth injury case (as in every other type of personal injury dispute), there are four key elements to negligence. They are:

• Duty of care: Healthcare providers have a legal obligation to provide care that meets the accepted medical standard. This means a given doctor or midwife must provide treatment comparable with what a reasonably competent and skilled professional, with similar training and experience, would provide under similar circumstances.
• Breach of duty: The healthcare provider must have failed to meet this standard of care, either through action or inaction.
• Causation: This breach of duty must have directly caused injury or harm; in other words, an injury must have occurred that would not have occurred if the healthcare provider had adhered to the relevant standard of care.
• Damages: The plaintiff must have suffered actual harm or losses, such as medical expenses, pain and suffering, or long-term care needs, as a result of the injury caused by the breach of duty.

How to Prove Your Birth Injury Case

Medical malpractice cases can get highly technical. Your attorney will likely need to use independent medical experts during the case-building process. These consultants provide insight on the reasons for medical conditions in given cases and will help your lawyer to build the strongest possible case in your favor.

Your attorney will use available medical records to identify deviations from standard procedures (such as inadequate monitoring of fetal distress). Expert medical consultants can then interpret these records to establish a link between the negligence and the resulting injuries.  

In some cases, you may also be able to rely on testimony from the medical professionals involved in your child’s birth. However, this is unlikely if the testimony would require the individuals to expose themselves to liability.

Because proving negligence is often complex and requires clear, convincing evidence, it is crucial to have experienced legal representation to navigate these challenges.

Damages in Birth Injury Cases

Compensation can be categorized into economic and non-economic damages. Economic damages include tangible costs like medical expenses, rehabilitation, and special educational needs. These costs can quickly escalate in cases involving severe, lifelong conditions like cerebral palsy or brachial plexus injuries.

Noneconomic damages, on the other hand, compensate for intangible losses, such as pain and suffering, emotional distress, and the loss of enjoyment of life. It’s important to note that there are no caps on noneconomic damages in birth injury cases here; unlike other states, Pennsylvania will allow you to sue a healthcare provider for the full extent of your noneconomic losses.

There is also a third category of compensation, known as punitive damages. These are awarded in cases involving extremely reckless or intentionally wrongful acts by defendants; however, these are relatively rare in birth injury cases.

Choosing the Right Birth Injury Attorney

The right attorney will have experience handling similar cases and a track record of securing substantial settlements or verdicts for their clients. At The Cochran Firm in Philadelphia, our attorneys focus on personal injury cases like yours; we fight for justice for victims of negligence every day, and we know exactly what’s required to secure big settlements.

Of course, the job of a birth injury attorney involves more than negotiating and fighting courtroom battles. You should look for a lawyer who has a compassionate approach, particularly in an emotionally fraught case involving a birth injury.

As noted above, independent medical experts often have crucial roles to play in birth injury cases. Hiring a firm (like ours) with access to a broad and deep network of medical experts is generally a good idea.

Finally, your lawyer should also be upfront about their fee structure, and they should ideally work on a contingency basis, meaning they only get paid if you win your case. At The Cochran Firm in Philadelphia, we don’t charge our personal injury clients a dime unless they emerge with a verdict or settlement. We also offer free, no-obligation consultations, so you don’t need to worry about spending money just to learn whether you have a viable case.

Working With a Birth Injury Lawyer Who Will Fight for Your Rights

The first days of a child’s life should be filled with happiness and excitement for the future, not the shock and confusion that comes with a birth injury. If medical negligence has put you in this unenviable position, it’s important that you take the right steps to protect your rights.

Contact The Cochran Firm in Philadelphia today to schedule a free initial consultation and start the process of pursuing compensation. You can reach us by filling out our online contact form, or by calling 800-969-4400. Don’t delay; the sooner you initiate this process, the better your chances will be of recovering the compensation you deserve.