The birth of a child is often an incredibly exciting time for parents. Sadly, this excitement can quickly turn to tragedy when mistakes made during the labor and delivery process result in a devastating birth injury. Traumatic birth injuries are often caused by careless actions committed by medical professionals, such as failing to pay close attention to fetal monitoring strips during labor or neglecting to promptly perform an emergency C-section when a baby is not receiving sufficient oxygen.
These types of medical mistakes can lead to birth injuries that result in conditions such as cerebral palsy, hypoxic-ischemic encephalopathy, or even permanent brain damage, leaving the child with lifelong disabilities that can impose significant financial burdens on families. The cost of medical treatments, therapies, assistive devices, and specialized education can quickly add up, and the emotional toll on parents navigating the complexities of providing the best possible care for their child can be tremendous.
Our compassionate and skilled birth injury attorneys at Miller Weisbrod Olesky understand the physical, mental, and financial challenges that birth injuries place on families. Fortunately, our team of birth injury lawyers, registered nurses, and nurse-attorneys have access to vital resources and extensive experience helping families pursue compensation for the severe and often lifelong complications associated with birth injuries resulting from medical negligence.
Atlanta Area Locations
If you have a child who has suffered a birth injury that you believe resulted from careless mistakes committed by a doctor, hospital, or other medical professional, you deserve justice. Our birth injury lawyers in the Atlanta area can investigate the facts of your case and determine if medical malpractice may be to blame for your child's injury.
Our Atlanta Birth Injury Lawyers are available to meet you in your home or the hospital.
Atlanta | Smyrna | Decatur | Marietta | Stone Mountain | Douglasville | Norcross | Roswell | Kennesaw | John's Creek - Alpharetta
Registered Nurses and Nurse-Attorneys Are a Vital Part of Our Birth Injury Team … and Yours
Most national birth injury law firms will employ one or two nurses to assist in reviewing cases and medical research. But Miller Weisbrod Olesky offers an unmatched number of nurses and nurse-attorney employees who provide support to both the birth injury attorneys and our clients.
Our team of registered nursing staff and nurse-attorneys bring a deep level of medical and personal insight to every client's case. Working closely with the rest of the team, they investigate the reasons behind a birth injury and how medical professionals breached their standard of care...But they do much more.
For our clients, our nurses and nurse-attorneys provide valuable support with medical questions and finding healthcare providers.
While Miller Weisbrod Olesky's birth injury attorneys in Atlanta aggressively prepare each legal case, another department goes into action to help the families of children we represent. Led by a nurse-attorney, this department acts as a medical case manager for our birth injury clients by:
Regularly monitoring the child’s medical treatment status,
Helping facilitate medical treatment and therapy, and
Arranging transportation and services.
Where necessary, we also help families locate local medical providers specializing in the care and treatment of children who have suffered a birth injury. With Miller Weisbrod Olesky, you're not just a 'case.' And that's important when you're looking for a lawyer who can help you cope with your child's needs today.
Medical Mistakes that Result in Birth Injuries
Healthcare professionals are trained to keep mothers and their babies safe even in the most complex situations that arise during and/or shortly after birth. When doctors and other medical providers miss critical warning signs of fetal distress or fail to respond quickly, it can lead to a devastating birth injury. Families of children who suffered a birth injury may be entitled to compensation to cover the often very significant cost of caring for a child with birth injuries.
The following are some examples of medical negligence that lead to birth injuries:
The mismanagement of any of these conditions can lead to a serious birth injury that necessitates a lifetime of special treatment and care. The Atlanta birth injury lawyers at Miller Weisbrod Olesky can help file a claim against the negligent party or parties responsible for your child's birth injury and evaluate the potential damages in your case to determine how much you may be eligible to recover.
Recent Birth Injury Settlement:
Birth Injury settlement against a hospital in which nurses and physicians failed to properly monitor the mother's blood pressure during delivery causing an HIE event resulting in neonatal seizures and cerebral palsy at birth. Our national birth injury lawyers recovered $13,750,000 for the family to help with future medical expenses and developmental therapy.
With the recovery that Miller Weisbrod made for our son, I feel like our voice was heard in a sense of what can possibly go wrong in a delivery and finding us answers. I feel with our settlement, we are now in a comfortable position to provide for our son. Things are different because he's able to be in his own space. He's developing well. He is starting to speak a little bit more and live a bit more independently. He is also in school full-time and he gets help from his nurse aid that helps him with all his appointments, all his therapy. Pretty much, I feel like it kind of helped us in a good way. I feel like they care about your personal needs and how to make you comfortable in any situation.
Lyric, C.
Mother of Miller Weisbrod Olesky Client
Common Birth Injuries Caused by Medical Negligence
Medical negligence can cause a variety of different birth injuries in babies. Depending on the severity of the birth injury, a child may suffer from a permanent disability that lasts throughout their lifetime. If your baby has suffered birth injuries, you should be aware of how these injuries can develop and what legal steps you can take to recover compensation for the cost of your child's care and other losses.
Here are some of the most common types of injuries a baby can suffer due to medical malpractice.
Hypoxic and Ischemic Injuries
Trauma to an infant's brain caused by negligent care before, during, or after birth can cause a baby to become deprived of oxygen (hypoxia or asphyxia) or lead to reduced blood flow (ischemia) to the fetus. Oxygen and blood flow decreases can result in a baby developing hypoxic-ischemic encephalopathy (HIE).
HIE is a severe brain disorder that may be caused by:
A complication of pregnancy known as preeclampsia is characterized by high blood pressure and protein in the urine. When a doctor fails to detect and adequately treat preeclampsia, the baby may experience reduced blood flow and develop HIE.
According to a study published by the National Library of Medicine (NLM), approximately 60% of infants affected by HIE will have severe disabilities, including epilepsy, cerebral palsy, developmental delays, and cognitive impairments. Medical professionals should closely monitor a mother and her baby during pregnancy and adequately manage any pregnancy-related complications that arise to help prevent hypoxic-ischemic encephalopathy (HIE).
Fetal heart rate monitoring allows healthcare providers to measure a baby's heart rate and rhythm. If the fetal heart rate signals that the baby is in fetal distress, doctors and other healthcare providers must intervene immediately to prevent oxygen deprivation and reduced blood flow to the baby's brain.
Monitoring a baby during labor and delivery with electronic fetal monitoring equipment is also critical to detect whether or not bradycardia is occurring. The medical term for an abnormally low heart rate is fetal bradycardia.
A slow and irregular heart rhythm is the most common indicator that the baby is suffering from fetal distress. If a medical provider fails to notice abnormalities in heart rate and/or delays treatment when fetal distress is detected, it may lead to serious long-term effects, including brain damage, paralysis, hypoxia or anoxia, and cerebral palsy.
Misuse of Pitocin
Pitocin is administered to either strengthen or induce contractions during the labor and childbirth process. For example, a medical professional may decide to induce labor with Pitocin when a mother has maternal diabetes, preeclampsia, or failure to progress.
If Pitocin is improperly administered, a pregnant mother may begin having contractions that are too strong and/or close together. Excessive uterine activity (uterine tachysystole) can deprive a fetus of oxygen and lead to emergency complications like uterine rupture, which may be life-threatening and result in long-term outcomes for the baby, including hypoxic-ischemic encephalopathy, Cerebral Palsy, and seizure disorders. Medical professionals should immediately lower the dosage of labor-enhancing drugs or stop administration entirely when a woman shows signs of tachysystole to prevent fetal oxygen deprivation.
Prolonged or Arrested Labor
Allowing labor to continue for too long can be dangerous for a mother and her baby. Prolonged labor refers to labor that lasts over 20 hours for first-time mothers and over 14 hours for mothers who have previously given birth. Arrested labor, also known as failure to progress, occurs when the delivery process stops completely.
When a medical professional fails to diagnose or respond to labor that progresses too slowly or stops altogether, the baby can suffer an intracranial hemorrhage, fetal distress due to oxygen deprivation, and be at risk for developing long-term injuries such as cerebral palsy, HIE, and seizure disorders.
Some examples of birth complications that may arise from mistakes shortly after birth are an anoxic or hypoxic, brain injury, cerebral palsy, Erb's palsy, and HIE. After birth, medical professionals are responsible for monitoring and responding to any complications that may arise to prevent harm to a mother and her infant.
Head Injuries
Bruises and swelling can happen when too much pressure is put on the baby's scalp, typically during a prolonged or difficult delivery. Swelling can also occur when a doctor or other medical professional improperly or negligently uses a vacuum extractor or forceps to assist with difficult vaginal delivery.
When a physician misuses instruments like forceps or vacuum extractors, it can leave scratches on an infant's scalp. Minor bruising and scratches usually heal on their own unless they become infected. Serious injuries caused by brain swelling and brain bleeds, like cephalhematoma, intracranial hemorrhage, and subgaleal hemorrhage, are commonly caused by trauma to the head resulting from improper use of birth-aiding tools (forceps, vacuum extractors).
How Can Birth Injuries Be Prevented?
While it is not always possible to prevent every birth complication that may arise, doctors and other healthcare professionals can reduce the risks of pregnancy-related complications by closely monitoring the mother and baby for warning signs and responding immediately with proper treatment.
Some of the most important aspects of birth injury prevention include:
In treating a birth injury, time is of the essence, and the sooner a child receives treatment and therapy, the better their chances of being able to adapt to the world around them comfortably. Each birth injury is unique, and the recommended treatments and therapies will depend on the type of injury sustained as well as the severity. A team of knowledgeable physicians like neonatologists and therapists can advise you on which treatments may be best for your child and build a personalized care plan.
Long-Term Treatment & Therapy Options for a Birth Injury
Standard treatment options used for birth injuries include
Adaptive Equipment: Children with hypoxic-ischemic encephalopathy (HIE), brachial plexus injury, cerebral palsy, and spinal cord injuries can benefit from adaptive equipment like crutches, braces, wheelchairs, and catheters. Hearing aids, automated speech generators, and communication boards can help a child with cerebral palsy express their needs and feelings.
Medications: Children with cerebral palsy can significantly benefit from medications that reduces spasms and seizures. Additionally, muscle relaxers can make a child with a brachial plexus injury more comfortable and relaxed during physical therapy. Children with mild to moderate spastic cerebral palsy, muscle relaxant injection treatments can reduce muscle tightness.
Occupational Therapy: Children with shoulder dystocia, Erb's palsy, sensory processing disorders, and traumatic injuries to the brain and spinal cord can practice their fine motor skills and be better able to perform daily activities with the help of occupational therapy. An occupational therapist can teach your child to perform basic tasks such as brushing their teeth and establishing daily routines that promote independence.
Physical Therapy: Children with Erb's palsy can build muscle strength and increase their range of motion with physical therapy. Physical therapy can also help improve mobility and minimize pain for children with cerebral palsy and other physical issues caused by a birth injury.
Speech-Language Therapy: Children with cerebral palsy and other feeding and communication issues resulting from birth injuries may benefit from working with a speech-language pathologist. A speech therapist can help your child express their emotions, improve their communication skills and feeding, and strengthen the muscles involved in speech and oral motor skills. Augmentative/alternative communication devices can also help children develop their ability to share their thoughts with other people.
Surgery: Children suffering from severe nerve damage or fractures may require surgical intervention. A doctor may recommend surgery to reverse the effects of brachial plexus injuries caused by negligent care during labor and delivery. Hip muscle release surgery can alleviate pain and prevent dislocation in children with cerebral palsy who develop hip subluxation. A surgeon may also recommend a selective dorsal rhizotomy (SDR) for children who are affected by spasticity.
When you think of healthcare professionals that could be held liable in a medical malpractice lawsuit, you might automatically think of doctors and nurses. In addition to doctors, defendants in a medical negligence lawsuit can be any healthcare provider or medical facility that causes harm or injury to a patient. A skilled birth injury lawyer can investigate the facts of your case and determine who may be responsible for your child's birth injury.
In Georgia, infant mortality is mainly caused by birth defects (18.7%), preterm births (19.4%), and low birth weights (18.7%). A "birth defect" refers to any health condition that affects at least one part of an infant's body at birth. The number of infants dying from birth defects in Georgia is approximately 1 in 6. Hypertension, diabetes, and exposure to certain medications are common risks for birth defects.
Within the first 28 days after birth, children are most likely to suffer fatal birth injuries. According to a state summary published by the March of Dimes for Georgia, 769 infants died before their first birthday in 2020. Most infants who die within the first 28 days after birth suffer from conditions or diseases associated with inadequate treatment and care. 7% of all infant deaths in 2021 were caused by unintentional injuries and 6% by maternal complications.
While most births go according to plan, medical errors still cause the majority of accidental deaths in the United States. According to a study conducted by the Healthcare Cost and Utilization Project, almost 157,700 injuries to mothers and newborns could have been prevented. Around 80% of all birth injuries result from scalp injuries. In fact, 40% of obstetric claims are attributed to labor management negligence, according to OB claims data.
Injuries caused by assistive delivery tools (such as forceps or vacuum extractors) were most common among women between the ages of 25 and 34. Mothers aged 15-17 are most likely to suffer birth injuries during vaginal deliveries without the use of assistive delivery tools. The most common neonatal complication in vacuum-assisted deliveries was a subgaleal hematoma (a potentially life-threatening brain bleed). Birth asphyxia, preterm birth, and maternal infections are among the leading causes of neonatal death.
Premature Birth Statistics Leading to Birth Injuries
Premature birth statistics regarding severe birth injuries include:
Cerebral Palsy (CP): Birth injuries are a leading cause of cerebral palsy. This condition is characterized by muscle spasms, weak muscles, and problems with motor development. Each year, 8,000-10,000 babies and children are diagnosed with cerebral palsy in the United States. Cerebral palsy can develop in utero but can also develop after delivery. 10%-20% of cerebral palsy cases are thought to be caused by birth injuries. In approximately 800 to 2,000 children, cerebral palsy is the result of a birth injury. Asphyxia caused by problems or complications during labor is believed to be a leading cause of cerebral palsy. Over the course of a child with cerebral palsy's lifetime, CP care is estimated to cost $921,000.
Hypoxic-Ischemic Encephalopathy (HIE): When hypoxic-ischemic events occur during pregnancy, delivery, or immediately after birth, oxygenated blood is unable to reach the infant's brain. Even though childbirth management has improved significantly, HIE rates in developed countries have increased from 1.5 to 2.5 per 1000 live births.
Premature Birth: A premature birth is defined as a birth that occurs prior to 37 weeks of pregnancy. Children born before the 37th week of pregnancy are more likely to sustain birth injuries since their brains, muscles, and nervous systems are not fully developed. According to March of Dimes, 1 out of 10 babies in the United States is born prematurely, resulting in lifelong complications. The premature birth rate in Georgia in 2022 was 11.9%. In Atlanta, the preterm birth rate worsened from last year (11.9%), earning the city an overall "F" on March of Dimes' annual report card. Additionally, preterm babies born with low birth weights are at an increased risk of complications during delivery. In Georgia, 1 in 10 babies (10.6% of live births) had low birth weights in 2022. Between 2012 and 2022, the rate of babies born at low birthweights increased by 14% in the state. The rate of babies born with low birth weights in Georgia was 2.6% higher than the national average (8%).
Maternal Infections: Infections during pregnancy may cause birth injuries, resulting in long-term brain damage and possibly cerebral palsy. A study of 6 million births over 11 years found that infection rates are twice as high among mothers of children with cerebral palsy (13.7% vs. 5.5%).
Birth Asphyxia: One of the leading causes of infant death and illness worldwide is birth asphyxia. 2 out of every 1,000 births in developed countries are caused by asphyxia during birth, but it is ten times more common in developing nations with limited access to maternal and neonatal care. It is estimated that 15-20% of those affected will die during delivery, and 25% will suffer permanent neurological damage. The most common birth injury caused by birth asphyxia is brain damage. While not all of these deaths could have been prevented, some could have been if medical staff had responded differently.
Prolonged/Arrested Labor: A prolonged labor poses significant risks to a mother and her child, including oxygen deprivation, permanent injuries, hemorrhaging, and infection. A C-section delivery must be performed if initial interventions fail to prevent harm to the mother and infant from prolonged labor. Approximately 8% of all women giving birth experience prolonged labor, with first-time mothers being three times more likely to suffer from it.
Fetal Macrosomia: Around 10% of all pregnancies in the United States are complicated by fetal macrosomia, which occurs when the baby is born weighing more than 4000 grams (8 pounds, 13 ounces). There are several life-threatening complications associated with macrosomia, such as infections, postpartum hemorrhages, prolonged labor, severe perineal tears, and complications associated with anesthesia. Macrocosmic fetuses are more likely to suffer from perinatal asphyxia, clavicle fractures, and shoulder dystocia, according to the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (ACOG).
Women who receive Midwife-Led Continuity of Care (MLCC) from trained midwives are 16% less likely to lose their baby and 24% less likely to give birth prematurely. In the United States, hospital stays for pregnancy-related complications are longer (2.7 days) than those for deliveries without complications (1.9 days). A common cause of birth complications is injury to the newborn during birth (e.g., a broken collarbone, infection, or head injury) as well as obstetrical trauma (i.e., a tear in the perineum) caused by vaginal delivery with or without instruments (such as forceps).
Medical care must be provided promptly to pregnant women suffering complications by doctors and other healthcare providers to prevent birth injuries. For cesarean deliveries with complications. The Atlanta Birth Center estimated facility costs for cesarean deliveries with complications at $20,0800 and for natural births with complications at $11,410. Pregnancy-related complications must be treated promptly by doctors and other healthcare providers to prevent preventable birth injuries.
High death rates and poor outcomes for new mothers are associated with the lack of healthcare accessibility in Georgia. An estimated 16.6% of pregnant women did not receive prenatal care or received inadequate prenatal care, which is greater than the national average of 14.8%. Research conducted by the Maternal Mortality Review Committee determined that 84.96% of pregnancy-related deaths are preventable.
Pregnancy-related maternal deaths are deaths that occur during pregnancy or within one year of the end of pregnancy as a result of pregnancy complications. Pregnancy-related complications resulted in 32.9 maternal deaths per 100,000 live births in 2010. The most common causes of pregnancy-related deaths in Georgia were cardiomyopathy, preeclampsia, and eclampsia.
Who Can Be Held Responsible for Medical Negligence?
Doctors, nurses, hospitals, and other medical professionals have a duty to provide a mother and her baby with the best possible care at all times. When healthcare providers and hospitals fail to meet the required standard of care, they may be held liable for medical negligence. Several parties may be held liable for a child's birth injuries, and in some cases, liability may be shared among multiple parties.
Here are some examples of healthcare providers and/or entities that may be held liable for medical negligence:
Maternal-fetal medicine physicians and specialists (MFM)
Laboratory staff
Hospitals may be held "vicariously" if a patient suffers harm due to the negligent actions of their employees. For example, hospitals may be held vicariously liable for a doctor's failure to monitor a mother and her baby before, during, or after delivery. A hospital may also face direct liability for its own negligent actions or omissions. For instance, hospitals may be liable for failing to staff certain units properly or for labeling medication improperly.
Elements of Medical Negligence in a Birth Injury Case
When a child and their family have been affected by sub-standard medical care, pursuing a medical malpractice lawsuit against the negligent doctor, hospital, nurse, or other medical professional can help them recover compensation to cover the cost of their child's current and lifelong needs. If you decide to file a birth injury claim, your Atlanta birth injury attorney will have the burden of presenting evidence to prove that your child's birth injury was caused by medical malpractice.
The following are key elements that must be established in a medical malpractice claim related to a birth injury:
Duty of care: The plaintiff (pregnant mother) must establish that they had an existing relationship with the physician or other healthcare provider. Once this has been established, the doctor has a duty to provide reasonable care to a mother and her child during childbirth.
Breach of duty of care: The physician failed to provide an expected standard of care that another medical professional would have provided under the same or similar circumstances. This is what is commonly known as "medical negligence" or "medical malpractice."
Causation: The doctor's breach of duty (negligence/malpractice) was a cause or contributing cause of the birth injury.
Damages: The doctor's negligence caused the child to suffer compensable damages (i.e., lost income, the cost of medical care, disability, mental anguish, and pain and suffering).
Establishing these legal elements requires testimony from expert witnesses. Medical professionals with extensive experience in the relevant field and knowledge of accepted practices within that specialty can offer invaluable insight as expert witnesses and play a critical role in determining whether negligence occurred. A qualified birth injury law firm like Miller Weisbrod Olesky works with highly regarded experts across the United States.
A birth injury lawyer can find out who is at fault for your child's injuries and hold them accountable for their actions. Your attorney will begin investigating the facts of your case as soon as possible and gather all relevant evidence to support your claim.
Types of Evidence Required in Birth Injury Cases
Compiling evidence that demonstrates the harm your child has endured due to a medical provider's negligent care is essential to substantiating the cause of your child's birth injury and building the strongest case possible. If you're considering filing a birth injury claim, the types of evidence you may need will ultimately depend on the specifics of your case.
Be sure to gather up your child's medical records and keep notes on any doctor's appointments, medications, therapy, and records of any communication you have had with your physician and/or the hospital. If you do not know how to gather these records, quickly hiring an expert birth injury attorney in Atlanta like those at Miller Weisbrod Olesky can gather these records on your behalf.
Here are common types of evidence our attorneys will gather on your behalf:
Medical records of the baby's birth injury and any follow-up care
The mother's medical records during pregnancy, labor, and delivery
Witness interviews from anyone involved in the delivery (obstetricians, nurses, and other medical professionals)
Test results, X-rays, and MRI scans
Expert testimony from medical experts in the same or related field, financial experts, actuaries, and life-care planners
The estimated cost of any future treatment the child will need
Previous complaints filed against the medical professional
Invoices, check stubs, or work schedules showing income you've lost as a result of your infant's injury
The medical professional's employment and disciplinary records
A detailed account of the events that occurred before, during, or after delivery
Physician, nursing, and operative notes
Records detailing the administration of any medication
Photos and videos of the labor, delivery, and even your child's injuries
Documentation that describes co-existing conditions or complications
Medical bills for any injury-related costs
Other bills and receipts showing any additional costs you've incurred
Hospital orders, policies, and records
Our Atlanta Birth Injury Attorneys will consult with one or more expert medical witnesses who can demonstrate how a doctor, hospital, or other healthcare provider's actions or failure to act led to your child's birth injury. Expert testimony is typically required to establish the standard of care a reasonable medical professional in the same specialty would have provided in a similar or the same situation.
We will also consult with physicians, life care planners, and economists who can provide an opinion regarding your child's long-term medical needs and diminished ability to earn income in the future due to the injury. In pursuing compensation, strong evidence is crucial to prove liability and demonstrate the extent of the harm caused by the medical provider's negligence.
Available Compensation for a Birth Injury Claim in Atlanta
The compensation you could receive if your child has suffered a birth injury due to medical negligence can help you cover expenses associated with your child's injury, including the cost of lifelong care. The settlement amount you may be awarded in a birth injury claim will depend on several factors, including the level of medical negligence that took place. Damages in birth injury cases are generally divided into two categories: economic and non-economic losses.
Economic Damages
Economic damages include any direct financial losses you or your child have suffered as a result of the birth injury.
Medical bills and life care expenses (including the cost of any future medical care)
Lost future earning capacity (if the child's birth injury impacts the child's ability to work in the future)
The cost of special education and tutors
Home and vehicle modification costs (such as ramps or accessible bathrooms)
The cost of surgery or other specialized treatment
The cost of diagnostic testing
Non-Economic Damages
Non-economic damages are meant to compensate birth injury victims for more subjective forms of harm, such as pain and suffering or emotional distress.
Pain and suffering
Diminished quality of life
Disability and Physical Impairment
Disfigurement and permanent scarring
Mental Anguish
Anxiety, depression, or post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD)
Loss of consortium
Punitive or Exemplary Damages may be awarded when the at-fault party's conduct is grossly negligent, reckless, intentional, or malicious. These damages are designed to punish the negligent healthcare professional for their extreme carelessness or disregard and deter others from making the same mistakes in the future.
Some of the factors that may be considered in determining the amount of compensation you may be awarded include the severity of your child's birth injury, the extent of economic losses you've incurred, and the long-term effects of the injury on your child's quality of life.
To determine the potential amount you're owed, an Atlanta birth injury lawyer will investigate the details of your case and determine which damages apply in your case. It is crucial to remember that the statute of limitations sets the maximum time you have to initiate legal proceedings. Missing the deadline could prevent you from filing a lawsuit altogether.
The statute of limitations specifies the amount of time a birth injury victim has to file a medical malpractice lawsuit against a negligent doctor, hospital, or other healthcare professional. The clock generally begins to run from the date of the injury. The discovery rule is an exception to the statute of limitations that extends the deadline for filing a medical malpractice case based on the date the injury was discovered or reasonably should have been discovered by a victim of medical negligence.
The standard statute of limitations for a medical malpractice lawsuit in Georgia can be found at section 9-3-71 of the Georgia Medical Malpractice Code, and it reads "an action for medical malpractice shall be brought within two years after the date on which an injury or death arising from a negligent or wrongful act or omission occurred".
Adults in Georgia typically have 2 years from the date of injury to file a medical malpractice suit. The statute of limitations for cases involving children is slightly different. For a child, a birth injury lawsuit must be filed no later than the day the child turns 7. If your child was born in a state or U.S. government hospital, the statute of limitations may be different (or even shorter). These may include military or federally funded hospitals or clinics providing care for a pregnant mother and her child.
You may be barred from pursuing legal action or recovering compensation for your child's birth injury if you miss the deadline that applies in your case. Figuring out what statute of limitations applies to your child's case can be confusing, so don't hesitate to contact our Birth Injury Lawyers in Atlanta for assistance.
Miller Weisbrod Olesky Is Different from Most Law Firms...We Provide Help Now.
Many law firms focus only on pursuing their client's legal cases. At Miller Weisbrod Olesky, we know your child needs help today – not just when your birth injury lawsuit is settled. Our team focuses on helping our clients NOW when they need it most.
We know that children with birth injuries like hypoxic-ischemic encephalopathy (HIE) and cerebral palsy often require intense therapy, specialized medical treatment, and assistive care. The stress of providing for a birth-injured child's needs can be both emotionally and financially draining.
But just 'knowing' this is not enough. We act on this knowledge by providing exceptional services to birth-injured children and their families.
What Can Our Atlanta Birth Injury Lawyers Do for You?
As Birth Injury Lawyers in Atlana, we fight to get justice for our clients. We believe in holding negligent medical professionals accountable for their negligence. We do this by:
Discussing your case with you in detail
Using our extensive resources to investigate your baby's records thoroughly
Providing nurse-attorneys and nursing staff who understand what has happened medically
Consulting with experts who understand how you and your child should have been treated
Seeking compensation for your baby's injuries from the people who caused them
Miller Weisbrod Olesky's Dedication to Clients
Let Our Atlanta Birth Injury Lawyers Help You Get the Justice You Need and Deserve
Was your child born with a traumatic birth injury? Do they have severe disabilities and struggles that are financially and emotionally exhausting? Medical malpractice and preventable medical mistakes could be the cause of your child's injury. If so, we can help.
Schedule a free consultation with one of our experienced Birth Injury Attorneys. We have the skills and resources to investigate your potential claim. Our registered nurses and nurse-attorneys on staff provide a deeper understanding of medical issues and an unmatched level of care to our clients. We don't get paid until we win your case.
Please call (888) 987-0005 to get started or send us a completed contact form.
You're facing some challenging decisions – whether someone caused your baby's birth injury and how to hold them accountable.
As experienced Birth Injury Attorneys in Atlanta, we have obtained multi-million dollar verdicts and settlements for clients like you. The millions of dollars our clients received were used for therapies, treatments, assistive devices, caregivers, and planning for the future. Don't hesitate to get in touch with us today to discuss your unique circumstances.
At Miller Weisbrod Olesky, we understand the unbelievable toll birth injury medical malpractice can take on your child and your family. Once you hire our law firm, we’ll get to work investigating how your child’s birth injury occurred, determine who is at fault, and gather the necessary evidence to prove liability. Our dedicated and nationally-recognized birth injury attorneys understand how important it is for our clients to recover compensation that can help them provide the best possible quality of life for their children.
We have successfully represented medical malpractice clients and their families in over 20 states and obtained multi-million dollar results. If your child was the victim of an injury that resulted from the negligence of a doctor, hospital, or other medical professional during pregnancy, labor, or delivery, you need ethical, honest representation. Call our toll-free line today at 888-987-0005 or fill out our convenient online form to set up an initial consultation, and learn more about how we can help.
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Birth Injury Support Groups and Resources Around Atlanta
Getting involved in support groups can be very helpful for both parents and their children who are suffering from a birth injury such as cerebral palsy, HIE, facial paralysis, and spinal cord injuries during birth. When parents attend support groups, they can learn about the benefits and drawbacks of various management and treatment strategies for their child with a disability and talk to other parents in similar situations without feeling judged.
Here are some support groups and resources that can be helpful to children and families impacted by birth injuries in Atlanta:
A birth injury may result from a difficult delivery, a complication, or the negligence of healthcare providers and hospitals. Through support groups, children and families affected by birth injuries can connect with others who share common experiences and find a sense of belonging by communicating with others who understand their journey. Additionally, birth injury support groups can help families cope with the stress, anxiety, and depression of navigating the everyday challenges of caring for a child with a birth injury.
