Birth Injury Lawyer Easton, PA

Easton birth injury lawyer Edward P. Shaughnessy offers experienced legal representation for families facing the aftermath of a birth injury in Easton, PA, and throughout Lehigh Valley. Whether it’s due to medical negligence or a preventable medical mistake, these personal injury cases can involve catastrophic injuries that have lifelong consequences. If you believe you have a birth injury case, our team of Easton birth injury attorneys can help you navigate the complexities of a medical malpractice claim. Our Easton medical malpractice attorney team understands the emotional and financial toll birth injuries can take, which is why we offer a free consultation to discuss your options for legal representation. If you need experienced legal counsel in Easton, Pennsylvania, contact an Easton birth injury attorney to learn how we can support you through this challenging time.

Operating on a contingency fee basis, The Law Offices of Edward P. Shaughnessy ensures that quality legal counsel is accessible without upfront costs for injury victims and their families. Contact us at 610-258-9955 or complete our online contact form to schedule a free consultation and learn how we can assist you in securing financial compensation.

easton birth injury lawyer

What are Birth Injuries?

Birth injuries are catastrophic injuries that occur to a newborn before, during, or following the delivery process. This personal injury type can range from nerve damage to severe brain damage, which can have lifelong impacts on the child’s development and quality of life. 

Determining liability requires a thorough investigation by an experienced birth injury attorney to prove that harm was caused by the failure of healthcare providers to adhere to standard care practices. 

Pennsylvania Statute of Limitations for Medical Malpractice Claims

In Pennsylvania, the statute of limitations for medical malpractice claims is generally two years from the date the plaintiff discovers that an injury occurred and that it was caused by a doctor or healthcare provider’s breach of duty. This timeframe is crucial for seeking justice and fair compensation for medical malpractice injuries.

Personal injury lawyers in Easton & Lehigh Valley emphasize the importance of understanding this statute to ensure that victims who have suffered due to medical malpractice can pursue a personal injury lawsuit before the window of opportunity closes. 

easton birth injury lawyers

Most Common Types of Birth Injuries Our Personal Injury Lawyers Handle

Common types of birth injuries our Easton birth injury lawyers handle include cytotec injuries, meconium aspiration, umbilical cord prolapse, Cerebral palsy, Erb’s palsy, shoulder dystocia, Klumpke palsy, HIE birth injuries, and brachial plexus injury. 

Cytotec (misoprostol) is a medication that has been used off-label to induce labor in pregnant women. While it can be effective in starting or speeding up labor, its use has been associated with a range of serious personal injury complications to both the mother and the baby. 

Potential Cytotec injuries include uterine rupture, which can be life-threatening for both the mother and baby, excessive bleeding, and severe fetal distress leading to brain damage or death.

Meconium aspiration syndrome (MAS) occurs when a newborn inhales a mixture of meconium (the baby’s first feces) and amniotic fluid into the lungs around the time of birth. This condition can lead to respiratory distress, infection, and other complications. 

Oxygen deprivation, or hypoxia, can occur as a direct result of the blockage of the airways by meconium, preventing the baby from receiving adequate oxygen before, during, or after birth. This can lead to brain damage, developmental delays, and, in severe cases, cerebral palsy or death. 

Pennsylvania law requires healthcare providers to adhere to established standards of care during childbirth, including timely and appropriate responses to signs of fetal distress. Our Easton personal injury lawyers can hold negligent doctors accountable for failure to act quickly.

Umbilical cord prolapse is a critical emergency in obstetrics that occurs when the umbilical cord slips through the cervix into the vaginal canal ahead of the baby during delivery. This condition poses a significant risk of asphyxia to the baby, as the prolapsed cord can become compressed, reducing blood flow and oxygen supply. 

If umbilical cord prolapse is not promptly identified and managed by healthcare professionals, leading to injury or death of the baby, it may constitute medical malpractice.

Cerebral palsy is a group of permanent movement disorders that appear in early childhood, often resulting from brain damage or malformations during brain development in the womb, during or shortly after birth. Cerebral palsy can be a focal point in personal injury cases if it is believed that medical malpractice contributed to the child’s Cerebral Palsy condition. 

Our Easton Cerebral palsy injury attorneys can gather evidence, calculate long-term costs, and hold negligent medical professionals liable for your child’s birth injury.

A brachial plexus injury refers to nerve damage to the nerves sending signals from the spine to the shoulder, arm, and hand. Brachial plexus injuries occur particularly in complicated deliveries or cases involving shoulder dystocia, where excessive force is applied to the baby’s head or neck to facilitate delivery. 

If this birth injury can be attributed to medical malpractice—such as failure to anticipate or manage birth complications properly or the inappropriate use of delivery instruments—affected families have the right to an Easton personal injury lawyer and may be entitled to seek compensation. 

Erb’s Palsy, a form of brachial plexus palsy, arises when the nerves in a baby’s upper arm are injured during birth, often due to excessive force applied to the shoulder during a difficult delivery.

Erb’s Palsy is considered a significant birth injury that may result from medical malpractice. If healthcare professionals fail to appropriately manage and mitigate risk factors during delivery or fail to opt for a cesarean section when necessary, our Easton personal injury lawyers can help your family hold them liable for the resulting injury.

Shoulder dystocia is a serious and potentially dangerous delivery complication where one or both of a baby’s shoulders become lodged in the mother’s pelvic bone during birth, making delivery difficult. This birth injury is recognized as a critical event that requires immediate and skillful intervention by the attending healthcare professionals to prevent injury to both the mother and child. 

When mishandled, shoulder dystocia can lead to severe injuries for the newborn, such as brachial plexus injuries, fractured bones, or even brain damage due to lack of oxygen, and injuries to the mother. If shoulder dystocia is mismanaged, resulting in injury, it can be grounds for a personal injury claim.

Klumpke’s Palsy is a form of brachial plexus injury that affects the lower nerves of the arm, resulting in weakness or paralysis of the wrist and hand muscles. This condition is usually the result of a difficult delivery or improper handling by medical personnel. 

If the Klumpke Palsy injury can be attributed to medical negligence—such as failure to manage a complicated delivery appropriately, excessive force during birth, or not opting for a cesarean section when indicated—the affected families may have grounds to file a medical malpractice lawsuit. 

Easton Birth Injury Lawsuit

In the Easton & Lehigh Valley areas, birth injury lawyers help to provide a legal pathway for injury victims and their families to recover compensation for injuries suffered due to someone else’s negligence during childbirth. 

Birth injury lawsuits are crucial for clients who have suffered significant harm, enabling them to receive the necessary compensation to cover medical expenses, ongoing care, and other damages related to the injury. In birth injury cases where an infant is injured due to medical malpractice or improper handling during delivery, Pennsylvania law allows for the pursuit of compensation to ensure that the responsible parties pay for their negligence. 

For families navigating the aftermath of a birth injury, securing an experienced Easton birth injury attorney can be pivotal in fighting for their rights and ensuring they receive the justice and compensation they deserve. 

Easton birth injury attorneys help provide financial relief to the injured and hold healthcare providers accountable, emphasizing the importance of adhering to the highest standards of care in Pennsylvania.

easton birth injury attorney

Who Can Be Held Liable in a Birth Injury Claim?

Depending on the circumstances leading to the birth injury, healthcare professionals and institutions around Lehigh Valley can be liable for a birth injury claim. This includes obstetricians, nurses, midwives, anesthesiologists, and other medical staff involved in prenatal care, labor, and delivery. 

Additionally, hospitals, birthing centers, and medical practices can also be held accountable for systemic failures, lack of proper training, use of defective products, or inadequate supervision that contribute to birth injuries. 

Liability is determined based on whether the defendant breached the standard of care expected, leading to patient harm. Establishing liability requires a thorough investigation into the medical records, procedures followed, and actions taken by the medical professionals and the institutions that employ them. This complex process underscores the importance of consulting with legal professionals experienced in medical malpractice cases and birth injury claims to ensure all responsible parties are held accountable for their actions or omissions.

Compensation for Birth Injury Claims

A medical malpractice claim is designed to provide just compensation to families affected by medical negligence, with Easton, PA, birth injury attorneys playing a pivotal role in securing justice for their clients. 

An experienced birth injury attorney in Easton can help families navigate the complex legal landscape to recover damages for the extensive costs of long-term care, medical treatments, and rehabilitation services. 

Compensation in this type of personal injury case may cover economic and non-economic damages, including medical expenses, lost wages if a parent must leave work to care for the injured child, and compensation for pain and suffering. 

Economic damages are quantifiable financial losses that directly result from the injury, such as ongoing medical bills and lost wages, emphasizing the crucial role of legal expertise in ensuring families receive the full compensation they deserve for the hardships endured due to medical negligence.

Experienced Birth Injury Lawyers in Easton, PA

The Easton personal injury lawyers at The Law Offices of Edward P. Shaughnessy are skilled in representing families affected by birth injuries and offer the expertise and compassion you need to seek justice. 

Our experienced Easton birth injury attorneys understand the profound impact a birth injury can have on your family’s life. They are dedicated to securing the financial compensation you deserve for medical expenses, lost wages, and other economic damages. Operating on a contingency basis, our birth injury lawyers provide quality legal representation without upfront costs. 

Contact an experienced Easton, PA, birth injury lawyer at 610-258-9498 or complete our online contact form to schedule a free initial consultation with a skilled personal injury lawyer who can make a difference. 

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