Grand Rapids Birth Injury Lawyers

During labor and delivery, a doctor’s negligence can cause a child to suffer birth injuries with serious lifelong complications, from brain damage to permanent disability. Extensive medical care can often be financially devastating to families.

If your child was injured at birth in Grand Rapids or elsewhere in Michigan, you may be eligible to recover compensation for damages suffered. A Grand Rapids birth injury lawyer from our firm is prepared to help. Jay Trucks & Associates has represented many injury victims across Kent County for more than 30 years and recovered millions of dollars in verdicts and settlements for our clients.

Your initial consultation is always free. There is no risk in calling our legal team and no obligation to pursue legal action. If we represent you, there are no upfront fees, and we only collect if you obtain a recovery.

Birth Injury Claim for Compensation

A birth injury claim provides parents with a legal path to pursue compensation on behalf of a child who has suffered harm during or shortly after birth. To make this claim, you must be able to prove that your child’s birth injury was caused by negligence. Medical malpractice can be difficult to establish. However, with the help of an experienced lawyer, you may have a better chance at obtaining fair compensation for the care your child’s needs.

Our Grand Rapids birth injury lawyers need to review the circumstances surrounding your child’s injury and any complications that may have occurred during the pregnancy, labor or delivery. The consultation is 100 percent free and confidential. We are prepared to discuss your legal options and answer any questions you have about the claims process.

What is the Value of My Birth Injury Case?

Birth injuries often require follow-up care, which can be costly. It is important that you keep track of all the expenses related to the birth injury so that we are able to calculate current and projected costs for future care. You may be eligible to obtain compensation to help cover treatment for your child’s entire life, such as:

• Therapy your child may need
• In-home medical care
• Institutional care
• Medications
• Assistive devices (prosthetic devices, hearing aids, etc.)
• Adaptive equipment (crutches, walkers, wheelchairs, etc.)
• Medical testing
• Corrective surgeries
• Travel to and from doctors’ appointments

You may even be able to recover non-economic damages, such as for any disability and/or disfigurement your child has endured as well as the pain and suffering you and your child has experienced due to the birth injury.

For cases involving medical malpractice in Michigan, there is a cap or limit to the amount of non-economic damages that may be recovered. Cases filed in 2020 are capped at $495,700 and increase annually because of inflation. This cap can increase if an injury results in permanent disability, impairment or organ damage.

Taking Legal Action After a Birth Injury

Michigan’s statute of limitations for medical malpractice, including birth injuries, is generally two years from the day the injury took place to take legal action.

If the two-year deadline passes before the injury was discovered or should have reasonably been discovered, you have only six months from the date of discovery to file a legal claim. Overall, all claims must be filed no later than six years from the date the malpractice occurred.

Failure to file before the applicable deadline will likely result in a court dismissal of your claim.

How is a Birth Injury Identified?

A birth injury is an injury that occurs during childbirth. Some of these injuries are physical, such as broken bones, skull fractures or paralysis of the arm or face while other injuries can be mental or neurological, such as nerve damage that can cause irreversible harm to the brain or spinal cord.

Unlike birth or genetic defects, which develop while the child is still in the mother’s womb, birth injuries are often preventable and the direct result of negligence or substandard care by a medical professional.

What Causes Birth Injuries?

Birth injuries are generally caused by a lack of oxygen to the brain. Several factors can lead to a child being deprived of oxygen during birth.

For instance, there could be complications in the womb, during delivery or due to an untreated maternal infection. Preeclampsia, a dangerous pregnancy complication caused by high blood pressure for the mother, can result in the child not receiving enough oxygen and suffering brain damage.

If a doctor or other medical professional delivering the child uses too much force, either when pulling or using birthing tools like vacuums and forceps, that can also cause trauma and damage.

When Negligence Causes a Birth Injury

Instances that can lead to a birth injury due to medical negligence include, but are not limited to:

• Failing to monitor the mother or child for signs of distress
• Delaying a C-section or failing to do it when necessary
• Allowing the labor to prolong, unreasonably
• Improper use of medical instruments when delivering a child
• Improper pulling or placing stress on a child during delivery
• Prescribing medication that can harm the child in the womb

If you believe negligence caused your child to suffer a birth injury, our Grand Rapids birth injury attorneys are standing by to take your call.

Birth Injuries With Lifelong Complications

It only takes a few minutes for a child to suffer a birth injury that can change his or her life forever. This is why doctors and other medical professionals have a duty to provide proper medical care through a mother’s pregnancy and during the labor and delivery process.

Common birth injuries with serious lifelong complications include:

• Brachial plexus – These injuries affect the nerves in a child’s upper arm often due to a difficult delivery or a collarbone fracture. The hands and shoulder can also be impacted and cause weakness and an inability to use certain muscles in the affected arm. Injuries can be temporary or permanent.
• Erb’s palsy – These injuries cause nerve damage when a child’s shoulders get stuck in the birth canal. Total paralysis or loss of feeling or weakness in the affected area can occur in the most severe cases.
• Cerebral palsy – This can happen when a child does not receive enough oxygen during birth. This condition can lead to speech problems, uncontrolled body movements and muscle stiffness.
• Klumpke’s palsy – These injuries affect the lower nerves of a child’s arms during a traumatic birth when children are pulled from the birth canal with their arms above their heads. This can cause paralysis of the muscles in the forearms and hands, giving a child’s hand a claw-like appearance.
• Shoulder dystocia – This can happen when a child’s shoulders are unable to pass through the birth canal without medical intervention. If not immediately treated, the child can suffer paralysis, cerebral palsy, or even death.

Speak With a Grand Rapids Birth Injury Attorney

If your child was injured at birth by a negligent doctor, we encourage you to schedule a free initial consultation with a Grand Rapids birth injury attorney as soon as possible. We understand how difficult this situation can be as a parent, and we are prepared to help you pursue maximum compensation for your child’s care.

Our legal team at Trucks & Associates have decades of legal experience representing injury victims in the Grand Rapids area and across Michigan state. We have recovered more than $500 million in compensation for our clients. Our consultations are completely free and there are no upfront fees unless we help you win.