Medical negligence, hospital inefficacy, and malpractice lawsuits are all a special area of the law. Some attorneys come out of law school and choose to start out in this area of the law. After a few years of learning through trial and error, they make the best sorts of lawyers to represent you. They are specialists, and a specialist is what you need when you have been wrongfully harmed in a hospital.
Doctors and medical staff have taken an oath to protect your health in whichever ways they can. They have a standard that the level of care they give you should never fall below. Anything less than excellent care quality needs to be assessed and, where needed, accounted for. By doing this, our healthcare systems keep thousands of Americans safe each year.
Some of us, however, fall through the cracks. There are rogue staff, doctors and nurses who have not been trained well enough. There are accidents, there are incidents, and sometimes you come out of hospital a little worse off than when you went in…
Hospital negligence is no trivial matter. Here is what to do if you find yourself on the rough end of it.
How to choose a Lawyer for a hospital negligence lawsuit?
There are several different ways that you can find a lawyer but no matter how you do it, representation should always be at the start of your list. Admittedly, when you are suffering and in pain, a legal representative is not your first thought… but perhaps it should be. A medical malpractice and negligence lawyer will gather evidence on your behalf that will help prove medical negligence took place. They will speak to witnesses, file reports where needed, and be your voice if you cannot speak.
You could take our word for it and, if you live in the Portland or Oregon area, contact the Johnston Law Firm. They are medical negligence case specialists who will fight for you until you get the best possible deal. If this is impossible, however, follow the steps below to find the best hospital negligence lawyer near you.
Option 1 – Choose by Location
By far the easiest way to find a lawyer is to ask the nearest search engine. All you must do is to find the nearest lawyer to you in a search and go there. We do advise that you shop around, even if you are forced to shop by location for a hospital negligence lawyer. You should be able to get telephone consultations from any potential legal representation before you meet.
Option 2 – Choose by Client List
To further narrow down your choice, consider asking the potential hospital negligence lawyer near you some questions. One of these should be a question of how many other clients they are seeing.
While it might seem that the more clients they have, the better evidence that they can represent you, this is not always the case. Instead, think about how they could represent you if they did not have time for you, because a lawyer with more than five regular clients is likely to let you down. 10 existing current clients is the absolute maximum you should expect.
Consider the state appointed defence attorney, for example. They have hundreds of active clients, to the point where they have less than an hour or two to spare on each case. Naturally, this means you are better to seek private representation than you are to seek it through state appointed means.
Option 3 – Choose by Case History
Our preferred method of finding the best hospital negligence lawyer in your area, is to ask questions about the firm’s case history. They will be better equipped to represent you if they have encountered cases like yours in the past. To find out if they have or not, simply ask. Most good lawyers out there have past precedent setting cases which they will be able to quote to you. If you are interviewing over the phone, then you can easily search the cases they suggest while you have them there. This has a double bonus of informing you about what settlement amounts you could be aiming for.
Option 4 – Choose by Personality
We would always urge caution when you are choosing by personality. Nobody wants to fall victim to a con artist. If the attorney is overly charming to represent you in your hospital negligence claim, they probably will not have your best interests at heart. Be wary of any potential attorney that tells you that you will not get a better deal elsewhere, of that you feel is too pushy.
When it comes right down to it, you should only choose a hospital negligence lawyer by personality when you have completed all other options and are still stuck over the choice. If you have two firms offering great rates and with equally brilliant portfolios, then personality can be the decider. Always be cautious of making important decisions based on who flashes the most cash. Often, it turns out to be nothing but a show.
Option 5 – Choose by Reference
There are two ways to choose a hospital negligence lawyer via reference. You can search reviews and past client testimonials on lawyer’s websites, but this does not always give you the best representation of the negative comments.
Better than the internet is the reliance of word-of-mouth reviews. If your friends and family have used a lawyer and think they are reputable, this trust goes much farther than any other referral a law firm might get. As such, you will gain a local lawyer that is trusted by your loved ones… and that is good enough for us.
Should I Claim for Hospital Negligence?
IF you suspect that a hospital has been negligent in their treatment of you, then you should be owed compensation. Reach out to a lawyer that specialises in hospital negligence for the best results from your lawsuit. Justice can be served after an injury if you know where to look.
