Kansas Erb’s Palsy Lawyer

Birth injuries can be devastating, transforming what should be a joyful day into a stressful nightmare. Unfortunately, some of the most common types of birth injuries are those that involve damage to the brachial plexus nerve. This kind of damage can lead to lasting injuries, including Erb’s palsy. If your child has suffered a birth injury, it’s vital to turn to a Kansas Erb’s palsy lawyer.

At Palmer Law Group, our Erb’s palsy lawyers in Kansas can help you recover the losses you’ve suffered. Since 1980, we have fought on behalf of families impacted by birth injuries, and we know how devastating these injuries can be both emotionally and financially. That is why we do everything in our power to prove your claim and get you the compensation your family deserves.

Why Choose Us?

Kansas Erb’s Palsy Attorneys Bringing Dedication to Every Case

Finding the right Kansas Erb’s palsy attorney can have a substantial impact on your case. You need to have a team on your side that has years of experience handling claims dealing with birth injuries in Kansas.

At Palmer Law Group, we know how to gather the necessary evidence to prove your child suffered an injury because of a medical error. Because we never shy away from taking a case to court, you know you have the kind of representation that won’t push you to accept a low settlement. Our goal is to get you as swift a resolution as possible, but always with the knowledge that you deserve fair compensation for the losses you’ve suffered.

Our team of Kansas birth injury lawyers can offer the support you need during these trying times, every step of the way.

Call us today at (785) 233-1836 to schedule a free consultation with a Kansas Erb’s palsy lawyer. 

Understanding Brachial Plexus Nerve Injuries

Erb’s palsy is a birth injury that involves the nerves in the shoulder and arms. The brachial plexus is a group of five nerves that connects to the hand, arm, and spine. If anything causes the brachial plexus nerves to tear or stretch, it can result in weakness or loss of muscle function in the arms. The most common type of brachial plexus injury is Erb’s palsy.

Some of the signs that a newborn has Erb’s palsy include:

• Poor grip
• An arm bent in
• Muscle weakness in one or both arms
• Diminished sensations
• Abnormal arm positions
• Decreased reflexes
• Limp arm.

Erb’s palsy is often a result of a medical error during birth. It can occur during a difficult vaginal birth, as well as during a Caesarean section. During the birthing process, the medical professional may need to move your baby’s head to one side to allow the shoulders out. If the nerves in the shoulder are pulled beyond what they can manage, they can stretch and even tear.

Kansas brachial plexus injury attorneys often see these kinds of injuries as a result of preventable medical mistakes. If the medical professional pulls too hard on the baby’s head or neck as they’re exiting the birth canal, or if they use forceps and vacuums to assist the birth without having the skill to do this safely, Erb’s palsy can occur.

Medical Malpractice in Kansas

How a Kansas Erb’s Palsy Attorney Can Help Prove Your Claim

In Kansas, a medical malpractice lawyer can help you file a claim against any medical care provider, including doctors, nurses, and mental health professionals. By law, Kansas recognizes a medical healthcare provider to be any organization or individual authorized, certified, or licensed to offer care to patients.

Unlike other states, Kansas holds state-owned hospitals to the same standards as private hospitals when it comes to liability. There are only limitations if the hospital is a charitable one or is owned by a political subdivision.

When filing a medical malpractice claim in the state, the burden of proof lies with you. With the help of a Kansas brachial plexus injury lawyer, you will need to demonstrate that your child . . .

• Was owed a duty of care by the medical professional
• Experienced a breach in that duty of care
• Suffered an injury
• Wouldn’t have sustained the injury without the breach of duty.

One of the crucial reasons why you need to turn to a Kansas Erb’s palsy lawyer is that the state follows the doctrine of modified comparative fault. This doctrine allows the court to assign a percentage of fault to each party involved in the claim, with any damages reduced by that percentage of fault. Of the 33 states in the country that follow this doctrine, Kansas is one of 12 states that follow the 50% rule. The 50% rule states that you can only recover damages if your percentage of fault in the injury is 49% or less.

Your Kansas birth injury attorney plays a crucial role in helping to prove that the majority of the fault lies with the medical professional who caused the injury. At Palmer Legal Group, we work tirelessly to gather medical records, expert testimony, and all other types of evidence that can demonstrate what happened on the day your child was born and suffered the injury.

Expert witness testimony is particularly helpful in these kinds of claims. An expert witness can testify that the medical professional failed to exercise the degree of skill or knowledge that other providers would have offered.

Statute of Limitations for Kansas Medical Malpractice Claims

In most cases, you only have two years from the day the injury occurred to file a medical malpractice claim in Kansas. Bringing a claim after the statute of limitations has passed will usually result in its dismissal. These time limitations serve to ensure that there is still evidence available for potential claims.

When dealing with birth injuries, parents filing for their child also have to abide by this two-year rule. In instances when you may not notice the injury until later, you have up to two years from the moment of discovery.

Available Compensation After a Birth Injury in Kansas

By turning to Erb’s palsy attorneys in Kansas, you can get compensation for the losses you and your child have suffered. This may come in the form of compensatory or punitive damages.

Economic Damages

Economic damages are compensatory damages that address the tangible losses you and your child suffered because of the injury. This compensation reimburses you for out-of-pocket expenses, including medical costs. Economic damages cover:

• Hospital stays
• Ambulance fees
• Physical therapy
• Nursing
• Prescriptions.

Because Erb’s palsy can lead to lasting damage that your child might struggle with for the rest of their life, they could need ongoing care. Fortunately, economic damages can cover future medical needs as well.

Having a child who has suffered an injury of this kind often means you’ll need to miss work. Economic damages can compensate you for lost income, including salaries, bonuses, and anything else you would have otherwise received if the birth injury hadn’t occurred.

Non-Economic Damages

A brachial plexus injury attorney in Kansas can also help you claim non-economic damages, which seek to compensate you for losses that are more difficult to put a value on. Pain and suffering is one of these. You can recover compensation for both the emotional and physical distress that you and your child have gone through.

Loss of enjoyment of life is another type of non-economic damage you can claim, especially if your child will have lasting physical issues. For instance, if you will have to provide long-term nursing care for your child, you can also claim loss of enjoyment of life because of the way the injury affects you now and will affect you in the future.

Keep in mind that Kansas does have a cap of $350,000 on the amount of non-economic damages you can receive.

Punitive Damages

Punitive damages aren’t meant to compensate you but instead focus on punishing the defendant. If you want to seek punitive damages in Kansas, you need to request the filing of an amended pleading on the basis of affidavits. To win these damages, your Kansas brachial plexus injury lawyer has to demonstrate that the defendant’s conduct was wanton, willful, malicious, or fraudulent.

FAQs About Erb’s Palsy

If your child suffered a birth injury, you may have many questions about the process and what filing a claim involves. Here are some of the most common questions we receive.

Will my child get better after developing Erb’s palsy?

Often, a child does get better after developing this condition. If their nerves were mildly damaged, they may heal on their own in weeks or months. This isn’t always the case, however. If the nerves were torn or if the nerve root was cut from the spinal cord, the damage could be permanent.

What does going to court for a birth injury entail?

If the parties involved in the medical malpractice can’t reach a settlement, the next step that your brachial plexus injury lawyer in Kansas will recommend is to go to court. Once you file a complaint, which should clearly state that you’re asking for the relief you feel you’re entitled to, the defendant will be notified via a civil summons. The defendant then has 21 days in which to file an answer that either admits or denies the claims you make.

Discovery can begin after all of the paperwork is in order. This process can involve written interrogatories, requests for admissions, and other elements. Discovery is when depositions occur, allowing opposing parties to ask questions of a witness under oath.

If you and the other parties are still unable to come to an agreement, the case can go to trial, where the outcome is decided by a jury or judge. The trial begins with opening statements, followed by the plaintiff’s presentation of their facts. The defendant then presents theirs.

What kind of damages can I claim?

After your child suffers a birth injury, you can claim economic and non-economic damages, and in some cases, punitive damages. Economic damages compensate you for actual expenses you’ve had because of the injury your child sustained. These include medical expenses of all types. Because an injured infant can mean having to stay home from work to care for them, you can also claim lost wages.

Non-economic damages compensate you for less tangible losses, like pain and suffering. They take into account your economic losses and the severity of the injury your child suffered. If your child’s injury could leave them with lifelong damage, the non-economic losses you can claim are much greater than if your child’s injuries will heal in a few weeks.

Punitive damages are not always applicable. Your birth injury attorney in Kansas has to prove that the defendant acted with malicious, wanton, willful, or fraudulent intent.

How does a birth injury lawyer in Kansas prove medical malpractice?

To prove that the injury your child suffered was the result of medical malpractice, your lawyer has to first show that the defendant had a duty of care toward your child and that they breached that duty. A medical professional has a responsibility to act in a way that any other reasonable medical professional would have acted. For example, if the doctor didn’t monitor how the baby was positioned in the birth canal, they could have pulled without realizing there was too much pressure on the shoulder, leading to damaged nerves. The lack of monitoring in this case was the breach of duty.

Next, your lawyer has to show that this breach in duty of care led to the injury. This is where expert testimony is vital. This testimony can prove that the injury wouldn’t have occurred if the medical professional had acted in a responsible manner.

How long do I have to file a birth injury claim?

You have two years from when the injury occurred or when you noticed your child had an injury.

If you have more questions about the process of filing a claim in Kansas, you can rely on our team of Kansas Erb’s palsy attorneys at Palmer Law Group for clear answers during your free consultation.

Get Help From Kansas Erb’s Palsy Attorneys Now

When a medical professional fails to keep your child safe during their birth, you have rights in Kansas. At Palmer Law Group, our team of birth injury lawyers can help gather the necessary evidence to prove you and your child deserve compensation. We can negotiate on your behalf and won’t hesitate to take your case to court, if necessary.

If your child has suffered a birth injury that resulted in Erb’s palsy, don’t face the aftermath alone. Contact Palmer Law Group by calling us at (785) 233-1836 to speak to a Kansas Erb’s palsy lawyer today.

Attorney LJ Leatherman

LJ Leatherman passionately believes in fair and dedicated representation for individuals who have been affected by automobile negligence, electrical injuries, firearm litigation, wrongful death, and third-party claims against insurance companies and all other areas of personal injury litigation. [Read More]