Wisconsin Cerebral Palsy Lawyer

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Was your child’s cerebral caused by medical mistakes? If so, contact an experienced Wisconsin cerebral palsy lawyer to help you. A qualified attorney can also help you with discrimination issues.

When to Hire a Wisconsin Cerebral Palsy Lawyer

With a child diagnosed with cerebral palsy, there is no time to lose in hiring the right lawyer. If you suspect that your child’s condition could have been prevented with better medical care, you need to take legal action.

There are limits on when you can file a medical malpractice lawsuit, so act quickly by finding a good Wisconsin cerebral palsy lawyer.

As your child gets older, you may find your family in other situations that necessitate legal advice and guidance.

For instance, if your child is not given adequate accommodations or services at your local schools, you may need legal action.

And if you have to make decisions about your child’s future, you may also need to involve legal advice and documents.

For instance, a living will is essential for anyone with children but especially children with special needs. Financial decisions, like how to seek compensation or benefits or set up a trust, will require a legal professional.

How Your Lawyer Can Help You Through the Years

There are numerous ways that a cerebral palsy lawyer will help, now and in the future, including:

• Taking some of the pressure off as you make big legal decisions
• Providing expert information so you can make better decisions
• Giving you the best possible chance of recovering damages to provide your child with reasonable care and early treatments
• Going up against organizations discriminating against your child
• Taking on your local schools or government agencies to ensure your child gets the benefits and services to which they’re entitled
• Drafting critical legal documents for your child’s future and helping you make decisions in your child’s best interests.

How to Find a Wisconsin Cerebral Palsy Lawyer

Your child needs an expert in malpractice, disability rights, and birth injuries to provide the best advice and best chance of winning significant compensation.

Search for this expert lawyer through the state bar association and referrals from parents with disabled children or local groups that work with or advocate for the disabled.

A qualified attorney should be able to provide you with references. From there, you can interview and choose the legal team you feel is best suited for your needs.

Wisconsin Malpractice Laws

If you choose the right lawyer to guide your decisions, you’ll have expertise in the laws on your side. You should, however, still have some understanding of the requirements in the state of Wisconsin.

For instance, you must file your malpractice lawsuit within three years of discovering that negligence occurred.[1] And you cannot register after five years have passed from the negligent act.

The state also put a cap on the amount of money you can recover for non-economic costs, things like emotional suffering or pain. Several cases tested that cap, hoping to have it ruled unconstitutional.

While an Appeals Court did find the limit of $750,000 was unconstitutional, Wisconsin’s Supreme Court disagreed and upheld the cap.[2]

Disability Rights in Wisconsin

Laws that govern medical malpractice will be most important to you initially, but as your child gets older, you need to understand that laws protect the rights of the disabled.

Federal laws, like the Individuals with Disabilities in Education Act and the Americans with Disabilities Act, are in place to protect disabled children from discrimination and ensure they receive a free and appropriate education.[3][4]

There are also several civil rights laws at the state level. Your lawyer will understand which rules apply in your child’s situation and how to file complaints and lawsuits to receive justice or ensure access and services.

Birth Injury and Cerebral Palsy Cases in Wisconsin

There are several examples of cases won for victims in the state, despite some restrictive laws. The role that Wisconsin cerebral palsy lawyers play in these cases is crucial. They help families win justice and compensation.

In one example, a baby was born at Hess Memorial Hospital in Mauston. Birth injuries led to quadriplegic cerebral palsy and severe disabilities. The family’s lawyer helped settle with the hospital to get them an award of $6 million.[5]

In a 2010 case, a doctor at St. Joseph Regional Medical Center was found negligent in forcefully using forceps and a vacuum to deliver a baby who ended up with brain damage and cerebral palsy.

The family’s lawyer helped make the case that the doctor should have performed a C-section. They recovered $22 million in damages.

Another significant case settled for $22.5 million in 2019. In this case, a newborn was undergoing surgery for a congenital disability when errors with anesthesia resulted in oxygen deprivation and permanent brain damage.[6]

The family’s lawyer helped prove that the resident in charge of the anesthesia failed to do anything about the baby experiencing low blood pressure.

A diagnosis of cerebral palsy is not something any parent wants to hear. However, your child can still have a great life. Let a Wisconsin cerebral palsy guide you through the legal process to a win for your child.