How Much Is My Medical Malpractice Case Worth?
There Are Many Factors That Contribute To The Value Of Your Case...
Several different factors can affect the value in your case and there is no magic formula that can tell you exactly what your medical malpractice case is worth.
Compensation covers any damage that has arrised due to your injury. A jury is instructed to only award damages that would fairly compensate the paintiff. This means that if your case is taken to trial it is ultimately the jury who would decide how much your case is worth.
It is important to note that even though a jury decides the dollar amount of your case worth, the judge may lower the amount after the fact. This may happen for any number of reasons, but typically your case value is lowered due to caps in Maryland law. Lets take a look at just a few of the factors that go into deciding what your case is worth.
Medical Bills
This is the most basic question to answer. What is the dollar amount of your medical bills? The total cost of your medical bills leaves little guess work. Lets take a look at some of the other factors of your case worth and see how they can be a little more complicated.
Lost Wages
If you are fully or partially disabled due to your injury and are unable to work, then you can seek compensation for lost wages. Lost wages may require experts to decide exactly how lost wages are calculated. This is why it is strongly recommended that you have an experienced medical malpractice attorney to assist you with your case. Without experience and qualified experts you may not receive what your case is actually worth.
Consortium
Consortium is defined as the loss of the benefits from a relationship due to an injury. This blanket term is used to described the loss of the following between the injured party and their spouse:
- Companionship
- Affection
- Sexual activity
Loss of consortium does not have a dollar value assigned to it and therefore is harder to determine. The ultimate value of loss of consortium damages is determined by the jury.
Pain & Suffering
Putting a value on your pain and suffering is extremely difficult. Unlike medical bills or lost wages, there is no magic number or forumla to decide. An injury can have totally different effects depending on how the injury impacts the victim.
The jury will decide the dollar amount given to injured party. A dollar amount can be estimated by how life altering the injury is to the victim. Is the injury preventing you from enjoying activities you once enjoyed?
Wrongful Death
In the event of a wrongful death case there is even more varying factors in determining a dollar amount on the damages to be compensated. Such factors would include:
Finacial Support
If the deceased party was responsible for bringing income for the surviving family members. What was the earning capacity of the deceased? How badly do the surving family members need the support?
Health
How old was the victim at the time of the death? What was his or her remaining life expectancy?
As you can see with all of these factors, medical malpractice cases can be especially involved. A common question we get is ‘Do I need a lawyer?’. An experienced medical malpractice lawyer is highly recommended with these types of complicated cases.
When you deal with insurance companies they all have one single goal in mind – ‘minimize payouts’. They want nothing more than to keep as much of their money as possible. Our experienced attorneys are the exact opposite – we work for you to bring you the highest compensation amounts for you and your family.
Additional Resources:
- Our main Medical Malpractice page
- What are medical malpractice damages?
- Schedule A Free Legal Consultation
Conclusion
When it comes to medical malpractice the question ‘What is my case worth?’ can be very difficult to answer. Hopefully this article has given you some insight on how our legal team determines the value of your case. For additional information please contact our law firm.
If you or a loved one has suffered a medical malpractice injury, call our medical malpractice lawyers at Greenberg & Bederman at 301-589-2200 or toll free 800-800-1144. Or you may fill out the legal consultation request form below.
The initial consultation is free of charge, and if we agree to handle your case, we will work on a contingency fee basis, which means we get paid for our services only if there is a monetary recovery of funds. A lawsuit must be filed before an applicable expiration date, known as a statute of limitations so please call right away to ensure that you do not waive your right to possible compensation.
