Medical Malpractice Lawsuit
If you believe you suffered injuries as the result of a physician’s actions or inactions, you may have grounds for a medical malpractice claim. Victims of medical errors are entitled to damages. Since courts cannot undo the negligence of your medical provider, the only way a judge or jury can “fix” the negligence is to compensate the victim with money. What does that truly mean, though? What kind of settlement are you entitled to? This is a complicated question to answer.
What Settlement Can You Expect?
To begin answering that question, it helps to look at an average. The average payout of a verdict or settlement in a medical malpractice claim is approximately $242,000. The median — which is different from the average – value of a medical malpractice settlement is $250,000. Around 90% of all medical malpractice cases end in some type of out-of-court settlement. Only about 10% of medical malpractice cases are unable to be settled and eventually resolved by jury trial. The average jury verdict in malpractice cases won by the plaintiff is just over $1 million. However, don’t get too excited by that figure. For those cases that do end up in a courtroom, the plaintiff only wins about 20% of the time.
Yet, you should be aware that simply knowing the average medical malpractice settlement is not very helpful to you. You want to know what your case is worth, not someone else’s. The amount that is paid out in individual medical negligence cases will vary greatly depending on not only the jurisdiction of the case but also the severity of the plaintiff’s injuries.
The formula to determine how much money (value) to provide to a victim of medical negligence or their family in a wrongful death/survival action claim is the following:
Value = Economic Damages (past & future) + Noneconomic Damages (past & future)
While the formula may look easy, it can be pretty complicated. Economic damages are calculated with near-exact precision because there are bills or receipts. What are the noneconomic damages that you should be compensated for? Non-economic damages are intangible things that cannot be precisely calculated, such as pain and suffering or emotional distress. This is why hiring a top lawyer is so important. They will not only be able to answer these questions for you, they’ll be able to argue on your behalf to the medical provider, insurance company, or jury.
Those considering filing such a lawsuit should seek the advice of an experienced Pittsburgh medical negligence attorney to ensure that they receive the compensation they are entitled to. The average payout for medical malpractice cases in Pennsylvania is attractive, but it’s important to note that this amount can vary greatly depending on the specifics of the case. The first step to understanding the settlement value of your malpractice case is to look at comparable cases with the help of a personal injury attorney.
