Best Birth Injury Lawyers in Ohio
What Does It Mean for a Birth Injury Lawyer to Be the Best?
After months of anticipation, the birth of a child should be a joyful occasion for the parents. But when a preventable birth injury accompanies that birth, joy turns to worry, and the future changes dramatically for the parents and the child. Therefore, finding the best birth injury lawyer to advocate for the parents and the child is imperative. But what characteristics should be considered when including a lawyer as among the best birth injury lawyers in Ohio?
Extensive experience and a proven track record of successful settlements and verdicts in birth injury lawsuits are unquestionably necessary to be considered one of the best. Those factors alone, however, are not enough. We feel strongly that while professional excellence is crucial, other elements are also needed to be among the best. Dedication and passion, for example, can turn a very good lawyer into a great lawyer. When a lawyer truly cares about a client’s suffering, it shows when they litigate a case. Excellence is also affirmed through professional accolades, peer reviews, and client testimonials. The best lawyers are those who combine these traits and factors, allowing them to stand out as the best birth injury lawyers in Ohio.
It Starts with Results
Finding the best birth injury lawyers in Ohio starts with looking for lawyers with a history of getting results for their clients. Within the area of the law known as “personal injury” law, medical malpractice cases are widely regarded as the most challenging cases to litigate. Birth injury claims are often among the most complex type of medical malpractice lawsuits. Ohio’s best birth injury lawyers are often those with a track record of successful settlements and verdicts in this highly specialized area.
Lawyers Who Get Results
Now that we know what we are looking for in a birth injury lawyer, let’s review some attorneys who have a history of successfully litigating birth injury lawsuits in Ohio and who have gained the respect and recognition of their peers.
Michael F. Becker of the Becker Law Firm secured a $25 million jury verdict for the family of a child deprived of oxygen during her birth. Attorney Becker, who has six law firm locations throughout Ohio, is a Certified Civil Trial Lawyer with The National Board of Trial Advocacy (NBTA), and a member of the Inner Circle of Advocates representing the top 100 personal injury lawyers in the country. He is also a former President of the Cleveland Academy of Trial Attorneys (CATA), and former Chair of the Medical Negligence Section of the Ohio Academy of Trial Lawyers (now the Ohio Association of Justice), as well as being listed among the Best Lawyers in America® and Ohio Super Lawyers®. Based on his firm’s numerous five-star Google reviews, Michael Becker has earned recognition from past and current clients as well as his professional peers.
Brian N. Eisen of The Eisen Law Firm in Cleveland, Ohio, focuses his entire practice on medical malpractice, emphasizing birth injury litigation. A magna cum laude graduate of Harvard College with a major in neurobiology, Attorney Eisen went on to graduate from Harvard Law School. He has been named as an Ohio Super Lawyer each year since 2007 and a member of the Million Dollar Advocates Forum since 2005. Attorney Eisen has secured several multi-million-dollar settlements and verdicts in Ohio birth injury cases. His firm’s commitment to results is affirmed by dozens of positive Google reviews from satisfied clients.
John A. Lancoine, of the Lancoine Law Firm in Rocky River, Ohio, also devotes his practice exclusively to medical malpractice and birth injury cases. The firm has been named one of the “Best Law Firms” by U.S. News & World Report every year since 2011 and has recovered over $350 million for clients. Attorney Lancoine takes pride in the personal service and individualized attention he provides to clients, as evidenced by the numerous positive testimonials from clients on his website.
William S. Jacobson, a partner at Nurenberg, Paris, Heller & McCarthy in Cleveland, Ohio, is a member of the Birth Trauma Litigation Group, a national organization of attorneys representing families of children who suffered brain injuries at birth. Attorney Jacobson has also published several academic articles on birth injury litigation and been included in the Ohio Super Lawyers® list since 2006. With almost a century of experience practicing law and hundreds of satisfied clients, the firm has collectively recovered over $1 billion for clients.
Examples of Ohio Birth Injury Lawsuits
To successfully litigate an Ohio birth injury lawsuit, the attorney must show that one or more health care providers were negligent during the child’s birth, resulting in injury to the child. Something a health care provider did, or failed to do, can form the basis of an allegation of negligence in a birth injury lawsuit.
Negligent acts or omissions by a health care provider that result in an Ohio birth injury lawsuit can take various forms, including:
- Improper use of forceps or vacuum extractors
- Improper use of Pitocin or Cytotec
- Using excessive pressure or excessive traction when extracting a baby
- Applying too much pressure to the mother’s abdomen during delivery
- Failing to act when the mother has toxemia
- Failing to diagnose and/or act when there is a dangerous infection
- Failing to properly manage prolonged labor
- Failing to properly manage a breech delivery
- Failing to recognize fetal distress, including signs of fetal heart problems
- Failing to perform a timely emergency cesarean section or failing to order a C-section
- Failing to act when the mother has preeclampsia, high blood pressure, or low blood pressure
These negligent acts or omissions can contribute to a plethora of birth injuries, among the most common of which are:
- Cerebral Palsy. Cerebral palsy refers to a group of disorders that affect movement, muscle tone, and/or posture. Damage to a child’s immature, developing brain before or during birth can cause cerebral palsy. Specifically, lack of oxygen to a baby’s brain during a prolonged or difficult delivery frequently leads to cerebral palsy.
- Brachial Plexus Injuries. Brachial plexus injuries can cause both Erb’s palsy and Klumpke’s palsy. The brachial plexus is the network of nerves that sends signals from the spinal cord to the shoulder, arm, and hand. A brachial plexus injury occurs when these nerves are stretched, compressed, or in the most severe cases, ripped apart or torn away from the spinal cord. Brachial plexus injuries may occur when a baby’s neck is improperly maneuvered (twisted or pulled too hard) during delivery by the healthcare professional delivering the baby.
- Hypoxic Ischemic Encephalopathy. Hypoxic-Ischemic Encephalopathy (or HIE), sometimes referred to as birth asphyxia, is a non-specific term for brain dysfunction caused by a lack of blood flow and oxygen to the brain. HIE can lead to developmental delay, cerebral palsy, epilepsy, and cognitive impairment.
- Forceps and Vacuum Injuries. Improper use of forceps or vacuum can cause fractures of the baby’s clavicle or skull. Swelling, bruising, bleeding, and infection are often secondary complications associated with fractures. Excessive pressure on a baby’s cranial nerves can lead to facial paralysis, most commonly around the lips.
- Preeclampsia. Preeclampsia occurs when a pregnant woman experiences high blood pressure, resulting in constricted blood flow throughout her body. High blood pressure can also affect blood flow to the placenta, causing reduced fetal oxygen. Along with health risks to the mother, preeclampsia puts the fetus at risk for inhibited growth and preterm delivery. Both of these can cause or contribute to birth injuries.
Lawyers for Ohio Cerebral Palsy Cases
While the medical and legal community all agree that lack of oxygen to a baby’s brain causes cerebral palsy, determining exactly when that lack of oxygen occurred can be challenging. In an Ohio birth injury lawsuit, the Plaintiff must prove that the oxygen deprivation occurred during the baby’s delivery and was due to the negligence of the defendant(s). Among the best birth injury lawyers in Ohio for cerebral palsy cases are:
Robert D. Lewis of The Lawrence Firm in Cincinnati, Ohio. The Lawrence Firm obtained a $31 million jury on behalf of a family for permanent brain injuries sustained to their minor son because of a failure to timely perform a C-section. At the time, the verdict was the largest jury verdict of its type in Ohio.
Michael F. Becker with the Becker Law Firm again stands out as a premier attorney for Ohio families who need representation in a cerebral palsy case. He secured a $14.5 million verdict for a child suffering from permanent injuries caused by doctors who allowed the mother to go home when she should have stayed in the hospital at 25 weeks, and for failing to act when the baby showed signs of fetal distress after the mother went into active later six days later.
Common Birth Injury Defendants in Ohio
Unlike many other types of personal injury lawsuits, a birth injury lawsuit typically includes more than one defendant. In fact, it is common to initially name every health care provider involved in the birth as a defendant because it may not be clear whose negligence caused or contributed to the injury. An Ohio birth injury lawsuit may include the patient’s primary physician, medical specialists (surgeon, neonatologist), anesthesiologist, and nurses. The hospital where the birth occurred is routinely included as a defendant in a birth injury lawsuit, which, in Ohio, may mean:
- OhioHealth Riverside Methodist Hospital
- Miami Valley Hospital
- Metro Health Medical Center
- Ohio State University Wesner Medical Center
- Cleveland Clinic
- Christ Hospital
- University Hospitals Cleveland Medical Center
- Mercy Health
- St. Joseph Warren Hospital
- Lima Memorial
About Ohio Birth Injury Cases and Birth Injury Law
An injured victim must initiate a lawsuit within the applicable statute of limitations to preserve the right to pursue damages from a negligent defendant. The case does not need to be resolved within the statute of limitations; however, failing to file the lawsuit in time effectively waives the right to file at all. Ohio has an unusually short statute of limitations. Found in Ohio Revised Code section 2305.113, a medical malpractice lawsuit “shall be commenced within one year after the cause of action accrued.” Courts have interpreted the one-year period as starting from the date a victim discovered, or reasonably should have discovered, the injury OR when the health care provider-patient relationship ends, whichever occurs later. In any case, however, a “statute of repose” sets a maximum limit of four years within which a medical malpractice lawsuit must be filed unless one of the narrow exceptions applies.
Ohio law also requires a Plaintiff (the party filing the lawsuit) to submit an “Affidavit of Merit” when filing a medical malpractice lawsuit. The affidavit must be signed under oath by an expert witness (typically a physician or health care specialist in the same field as the defendant) who declares under oath that the expert:
- Has reviewed all medical records available to the Plaintiff
- Is familiar with the medical standard of care that applies to Plaintiff’s treatment
- Believes that medical providers did not meet the standard of care, and
- Believes that the Plaintiff was injured as a result.
In short, the Plaintiff must find an expert to say that the elements of negligence appear to have been met for the lawsuit to move forward.
The amount of noneconomic damages a Plaintiff can receive in a medical malpractice lawsuit is also limited by law in Ohio. Noneconomic damages represent the subjective injuries suffered by a victim, such as pain, suffering, and trauma, whereas economic damages are the easily valued losses such as hospital and medical bills and the cost of specialized equipment and therapy. Governed by Ohio Revised Code section 2323.43, noneconomic damages in a medical malpractice case may not exceed the greater of $250,000 or three times the Plaintiff’s economic damages, subject to a maximum of $350,000 per Plaintiff (or a total of $500,000 in any case where there is more than one Plaintiff). If the victim suffered permanent and/or catastrophic damages, the limit may increase to $500,000 per Plaintiff or $1 million per lawsuit.