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For a family with a child diagnosed with cerebral palsy, the future may seem uncertain and even frightening. You probably have a lot of questions about how it happened and if anyone can be blamed. Could your child’s disability have been prevented? This is a question that an experienced Texas cerebral palsy lawyer can answer.
This kind of cerebral palsy lawyer, with experience handling cases involving birth injuries and disabilities, can help you make a case for medical malpractice. This case may bring justice for the harm caused to your child and provide compensation so you can give the best care.
Additionally, this lawyer can help you with several other legal decisions and needs you and your child will have in the future.
Why Do I Need a Texas Cerebral Palsy Lawyer?
You may need a cerebral palsy lawyer for many reasons. But generally, if you have a child diagnosed with this condition, you need the right lawyer on your side to help seek justice. An experienced attorney will review medical records, investigate, and determine if medical malpractice played a role in your child’s condition.
It’s challenging to figure this out without expert knowledge. Even more challenging is taking that information and trying to win a lawsuit against doctors, medical centers, hospitals, and their insurance companies’ legal teams. You need the right lawyer to take on a severe case like this and give you the best chance of winning.
As your child gets older, you may possibly need a reliable lawyer for advice about other issues. Disabled children and adults often face discrimination; they’re denied access to public places and services, and denied opportunities, in spite of laws that should prevent this.
Further, you may also need a lawyer to draft legal and financial documents and to make sure your child gets needed educational services and government benefits.
How a Texas Cerebral Palsy Lawyer Can Help
The immediate needs you may have for a cerebral palsy lawyer are substantial, like starting a medical malpractice case on your child’s behalf. Yet, there are many other ways that a lawyer with the right expertise and knowledge can benefit you, your family, and your child:
- Determining if you have enough evidence for a malpractice lawsuit
- Investigating and finding evidence for your case
- Contacting qualified medical experts for testimony
- Negotiating with the defendants for a settlement
- Getting the compensation that will help you provide your child with treatment
- Going up against individuals or groups discriminating against your child
- Making sure your child receives all appropriate education services at school
- Drafting legal and financial documents such as a living will or setting up a trust for your child
- Helping you make smarter choices for your child
- Taking away some of the pressure and stress of trying to make these decisions on your own
How to Find the Right Lawyer
Finding the right lawyer to help you and your child can be tricky. Avoid choosing a lawyer who takes on all kinds of cases, even all types of personal injury cases. The laws regarding medical malpractice are involved, and to go up against defendants successfully, you need someone with in-depth knowledge and experience helping others.
The state bar association should be able to help you find a lawyer with the right area of specialty, but you should dig deeper and rely on references or referrals. If you know parents in a similar situation, find out if they have a law firm they trust.
If you work with a local community group that helps the disabled, see if they have any recommendations. And always ask questions and make sure you get your concerns addressed before you hire anyone.
Malpractice and Disability Laws in Texas
While your Texas cerebral palsy lawyer will be able to guide many of your legal decisions with expert knowledge, you should also feel empowered by understanding some of the main points. One law that is crucial to understand is the statute of limitations.
Texas statute of limitations states you have two years after the negligent medical care to start a case. For a minor, like your child, you may have until their 18th birthday to file a lawsuit.
Texas also requires that you file an expert report at least 120 days from when you file your malpractice lawsuit. This is a document that shows a qualified medical expert believes your case has merit. This can be tough to get without an experienced lawyer.
The state has capped the amount you can recover for non-economic costs, such as pain, suffering, and loss of future independence.
The laws in the state regarding disability rights are not the strongest in the country, but you can also rely on federal regulations. While your child is of school age, for instance, the Individuals with Disabilities in Education Act is essential.
This law ensures disabled children receive free and appropriate education and may be the basis of a lawsuit if your local schools are not providing adequate services or necessary technologies. Your lawyer will have a deep understanding of the laws and can decide which are appropriate to invoke in any situation in which your child is experiencing discrimination.
Texas Malpractice and Disability Rights Cases
Texas cerebral palsy lawyers are continually working on behalf of children with disabilities. There are numerous examples of how they guide families to help seek justice and recover damages in the state. One such case involves an instance of discrimination, how it impacts people with disabilities, and how lawyers can help these victims fight back.
A woman with cerebral palsy is accusing several Uber drivers in Texas of discriminating against her by refusing to give her rides. She says that drivers always cancel her rids because of her disability and service dog.
Uber claims that it has a policy of zero tolerance for discrimination, and yet it has happened. This young woman is now fighting, with a lawyer at her side, to win this discrimination case. She seeks to bring awareness to the issue and to prevent future discrimination.
This and other cases involving birth injuries and discrimination are complicated and often stacked against the victim. The laws are complex and confusing, and especially in the case of medical malpractice, favor defendants.
You need the best Texas cerebral palsy lawyer by your side to ensure your family and your child have the best possible chance of succeeding in a case, whether it is to recover damages or to end discrimination and get access to services and benefits.
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