Portner Bond, PLLC will make sure you receive a full and fair settlement covering all of your needs. When such a settlement is not offered, we will then file a lawsuit to take the case to court.
People rely on their health care providers to make them better when they are sick or injured. When medical professionals are negligent in their performance of certain duties or do not uphold a specific standard of care, innocent patients could suffer severe and possibly life-threatening injury or experience serious health issues.
When a person is injured or killed as the result of a physician or other health care professional’s negligence, they may have a cause of action for a medical malpractice lawsuit. Medical malpractice actions in Texas are strictly governed by several state laws that make these claims far more complicated than many other types of injury actions.
Did medical malpractice in the greater Beaumont area cause you to suffer serious injuries or kill your loved one? Know that you may be entitled to various forms of compensation for the harm you’ve suffered.
Portner Bond, PLLC will fight to win and can make sure you get all of the compensation you need and deserve to rebuild your life. You can have our Beaumont medical malpractice attorneys discuss all of your legal options when you call (409) 838-4444 or contact us online to see up to a free consultation.
Do I Need A Medical Malpractice Lawyer?
You are going to want to speak to an attorney to make sure you have a medical malpractice claim, as it is vital to understand that dissatisfaction with a particular procedure outcome is not grounds for a medical malpractice lawsuit. You will need to demonstrate that a medal professional breached their duty of care and that breach caused you or your loved one to suffer severe injury or allowed a treatable illness to worsen.
Because proving malpractice can be extremely challenging, it is vital that you hire an attorney with the right experience and resources to handle your case. You need a lawyer who understands how to identify and prove that malpractice occurred, and you want a team with access to medical experts who can corroborate the facts and verify that the healthcare provider deviated from the standard of care of their profession.
These cases take time to build and must be handled with precision to prevail. Don’t trust your medical malpractice case to an inexperienced or apathetic lawyer. Know that the doctor, the hospital, and their insurers will fight aggressively to protect themselves from liability, so make sure that you hire a lawyer who knows how to recover the compensation that you need to pay your medical bills, recover for lost wages, and make sure that you and your family are made whole again after this devastating malpractice incident.
Why Choose Portner Bond, PLLC To Handle My Case?
Trent Bond is one of only about 10 percent of lawyers in Texas who is Board Certified in Personal Injury Trial Law by the Texas Board of Legal Specialization. He has also been recognized in Texas Monthly in 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2017, and 2018 as a Texas Super Lawyer by Texas Super Lawyers (a Thomson Reuters service).
Chris Portner was also recognized in Texas Monthly in 2007 and 2008 as a rising star by Texas Super Lawyers. He is a member of the American Association for Justice, Jefferson County Young Lawyers Association, State Bar of Texas, Jefferson County Bar Association, Million Dollar Advocates Forum, and Multi-Million Dollar Advocates Forum.
Portner Bond, PLLC represents clients in Jefferson County, Tyler County, Chambers County, Liberty County, Orange County, Hardin County, Fort Bend County, Jasper County, and Galveston County. Our firm represents clients on a contingency fee basis, so you never pay a dime unless you receive compensation.
Types of Medical Malpractice Cases We Handle
Portner Bond, PLLC handles many different kinds of medical malpractice claims. Some of the most common include, but are not limited to:
- Anesthesia errors
- Surgical errors
- Bacterial infections
- Infections
- Birth injuries
- Hospital negligence
- Brain damage
- Failure to adequately treat
- Misdiagnosis or failure to diagnose
- Emergency room errors
- Prescription drug errors
- Delayed diagnosis
Liability in medical malpractice actions can be extremely complicated. While certain doctors may treat people at hospitals, the hospitals themselves may avoid liability because of the agreement they have with the physician. That’s why it is essential to have an experienced medical malpractice lawyer represent you so that all liable parties can be identified and held accountable for their failure to treat you or diagnose your illness according to the expected standards of their profession.
Frequently Asked Questions about Medical Malpractice
How long do I have to file a medical malpractice lawsuit?
Texas Civil Practice and Remedies Code § 74.251 provides the statute of limitations specifically for health care liability claims. Under this law, a claim must be filed within two years from the date of the injury or the date treatment concluded when the harm occurred during ongoing treatment. Texas also has a statute of repose, a date after which no lawsuit can be filed, of 10 years. Texas Civil Practice and Remedies Code § 74.251 also establishes that a medical malpractice victim under 12 years of age has until their 14th birthday to have a claim filed on their behalf.
Who are the defendants in medical malpractice lawsuits?
Depending on the specific aspects of your case, multiple parties could be liable. Some of the most common kinds of defendants in these actions are the facilities, like hospitals, nursing homes, urgent care centers, medical centers, clinics, and rehabilitation centers.
In some cases, the professionals could be defendants, and possible parties may include:
- Physicians
- Physician’s assistants
- Surgeons
- Registered nurses (RNs)
- Licensed practical nurses (LPNs)
- Nursing assistants
- Anesthesiologists
- Radiologists
- Pharmacists
- Paramedics
- Emergency medical technicians (EMTs)
- Lab technicians
- Chiropractors
- Dentists
- Oral surgeons
- Psychiatrists
- Psychologists
- Physical therapists
- Neurologists
- Obstetricians
- Cardiologists
- Oncologists
Medical partnerships or associations could also be liable, depending on the specific circumstances of your case.
What kinds of damages can be recovered in a medical malpractice lawsuit?
The attorney handling your case is likely going to be negotiating a possible settlement to avoid having to take your case to court. If the case does have to go to trial, then you could be awarded compensatory damages, which are a combination of economic damages and non-economic damages.
Economic damages refer to tangible losses such as medical bills as well as past and future lost income. Noneconomic damages are not quantifiable kinds of harm, subjective awards at as pain and suffering, disfigurement, or loss of consortium.
Medical Malpractice Statistics
In November 1999, the Institute of Medicine (IOM) released a report entitled “To Err is Human: Building a Safer Health System” that estimates from two major studies indicated at least 44,000 and as many as 98,000 people die in hospitals each year because of preventable medical errors. In May 2016, patient safety experts at The Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine determined that over 250,000 deaths annually in the United States were due to medical error, making it the third leading cause of death.
The 2018 Medical Malpractice Analysis performed by Diederich Healthcare, a medical malpractice insurance placement company, found that Texas had a total payout amount of $120,976,550 for medical malpractice actions in 2017. This was a 33.67 percent increase from the $90,582,500 paid in 2016, which was a 14.65 percent increase from the $75,180,300 paid out in 2015, a 23.74 percent decrease in total payouts from 2014.
Diedrich reported that the per capita rate of $4.27 in Texas in 2017 was the sixth-lowest in the nation. When it came to payment amounts by the allegation, the leading cause was diagnosis with 34 percent, then surgery with 22 percent, treatment with 19 percent, obstetrics with 9 percent, medication with 5 percent, monitoring with 5 percent, and 6 percent was other.
The severity of the outcome in these cases included 30 percent resulting in death, 20 percent resulting in major permanent surgery, 18 percent resulting in significant permanent surgery, 12 percent resulting in quadriplegic, brain damage, or lifelong care, 8 percent resulting in minor permanent surgery, 7 percent resulting in major temporary surgery, and 5 percent being other.
The average payment amounts in these cases were $1,029,105 for a quadriplegic, brain damage, or lifelong care, $600,797 for major permanent injury, $424,645 for significant permanent injury, $374,530 for death, $236,057 for minor permanent injury, $214,407 for a major temporary injury, $109,583 for cannot be determined cases, $91,678 for emotional injury, $72,850 for a minor temporary injury, and $34,333 for insignificant injury.
Contact a Medical Malpractice Attorney Today
When you have sustained severe injuries or your loved one was killed by medical malpractice in Jefferson County, time is of the essence to file your claim and hold the responsible party accountable for the harm you’ve suffered. Do not wait to contact Portner Bond, PLLC today, and speak with an attorney about the treatment you received.
Our firm understands the complexity of medical malpractice claims and will work tirelessly to help you recover all of the compensation you are entitled to. Call (409) 838-4444 or contact us online to take advantage of a free, confidential consultation to discuss the specifics of your case with a Beaumont medical malpractice lawyer.