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Call a Rhode Island cerebral palsy lawyer if you have a child diagnosed with cerebral palsy and believe healthcare providers are to blame. A lawyer who knows the state’s laws will give you and your child the best possible chance of success. An experienced attorney can also help you understand disability rights.
Can Cerebral Palsy Be Caused by Negligence?
Preventable medical errors, also known as negligence, can cause birth injuries, like brain damage, that lead to cerebral palsy.
Brain damage is the underlying cause of cerebral palsy. If your child was born with brain damage and received a cerebral palsy diagnosis, it could be a result of medical negligence.
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Get Help NowWhy Do I Need a Rhode Island Cerebral Palsy Lawyer?
There are several reasons you may need a cerebral palsy attorney. The first issue likely to arise that requires a lawyer is a medical malpractice case.
A Rhode Island cerebral palsy lawyer can help you determine whether you have a case. If you do, they’ll guide you through filing a lawsuit.
When your child begins school, you may face another set of legal concerns. Your child has a right to free and appropriate education, but schools don’t always take that right seriously. You may need a lawyer to force your local schools to provide the services and technology your child is entitled to.
Over the years, your child may face other types of discrimination that require a lawyer to fight back against. You may also have financial decisions to make, such as trusts for your child, a living will, and other significant decisions and legal maneuvers that will benefit your child.
You need the right lawyer to help you get through these situations.
How Will a Rhode Island Cerebral Palsy Lawyer Help My Family?
The right lawyer can help you, your child, and your family in numerous ways as you cope with this challenging situation.
Finding out your child is disabled for life is overwhelming and upsetting. You likely feel lost, maybe as if someone is to blame for this, but you don’t know who or how.
In filing a lawsuit against a doctor or hospital, your lawyer will be an invaluable help. An experienced lawyer will know how to investigate malpractice and overcome all the barriers to filing a lawsuit. They give you the best chance of recovering the highest amount of damages.
Over the years, your lawyer can help you in numerous other ways, from making decisions about financial trusts for your child’s future to setting up a conservatorship for their care if something should happen to you. Your lawyer will help you fight discrimination and stand up to those denying your child access to educational services.
How to Find a Rhode Island Cerebral Palsy Lawyer
Check with the state bar association to find the right lawyer to help your family and guide you in making such crucial decisions. You can find information about lawyers with the right kind of specialty practice.
You cannot rely on a general lawyer for a case as important and complicated as medical malpractice.
If you know other parents of disabled children or work with a related community group, ask around for recommendations. It’s likely someone you know has been through this process already.
As you research potential law firms and lawyers, make sure you feel comfortable with your choice. Ask questions, get references, and do what you need to make the right decision for your child’s future.
Rhode Island Malpractice Laws
One of the most significant legal issues you will face as the parent of a disabled child is filing and trying to win a malpractice lawsuit. The state laws regarding these cases are complicated and tend to favor the defendants.
You need to know some of the basics of the rules, and your lawyer can fill in the rest of the details to guide your decisions. For instance, be aware that you have just three years since you realized your child suffered from negligence to file this lawsuit.[1]
Disability Rights in Rhode Island
Your child will grow older and face discrimination and other issues because of their disabilities. There are laws to protect against this, and you may need your lawyer to help you fight against schools, airlines, government agencies, and other groups that deny your child benefits, services, or access.
Both federal and state laws in Rhode Island protect your child from discrimination and denial of opportunities.[2]
Your lawyer will understand which rules apply in your specific case and how to go up against those agencies and individuals causing the problem.
Cerebral Palsy Lawyers Win for Rhode Island Families
You can find dozens of examples of successful cerebral palsy and birth injury cases brought by families in Rhode Island. These cases are won by the lawyers they choose.
One such instance occurred when a newborn baby needed a blood transfusion. The delivery by C-section had gone well, but the baby had a low red blood cell count. The pediatrician on staff was too inexperienced to provide a transfusion and delayed it.[3]
The baby girl suffered brain damage due to the delay faced in the hospital after her birth. Since she did not get the transfusion on time, she didn’t get enough oxygen to her brain.
She developed cerebral palsy and disabilities and will need lifelong care. Her family’s lawyer helped them win $4.5 million in a malpractice case.
Cerebral palsy is a severe and often debilitating condition, and too often, the brain damage causing it could have been prevented with better medical care.
If your child has this condition, find a Rhode Island cerebral palsy lawyer to help you make your case for justice and recover your child’s damages.
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Get Help NowReferences
- State of Rhode Island General Assembly. (n.d.). Title 9. Courts and Civil Procedure — Procedure Generally. Chapter 1. Causes of Action. R.I. Gen. Laws § 9-1-14.1.
Retrieved from: http://webserver.rilin.state.ri.us/Statutes/Title9/9-1/9-1-14.1.HTM - ADA National Network. (n.d.). What is the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA)?
Retrieved from: https://adata.org/learn-about-ada - Crane, M. (2017, February 27). 50 Shades of Malpractice. Medscape.
Retrieved from: https://www.medscape.com/viewarticle/849305_11