Appealing a Medical Malpractice Case in Florida

Medical malpractice cases can be arduous and overwhelming to go through. Some people settle their case in order to avoid the process while others, press forward, lose their cases, and continue litigation in pursuit of damages. It can be difficult to decide whether you want to settle a case or whether it is worth appealing a medical malpractice case in West Palm Beach but an attorney can help. A skilled lawyer can look at the facts of your case, and help you move forward whatever your decision. Whether you need help filing a motion to appeal, or negotiating a settlement, contact a West Palm Beach malpractice lawyer who can help.

Considering a Settlement

When considering a settlement, the injured person should take into account the extent of the injury that they have suffered, the amount of money that is being offered, the certainty of a settlement versus the uncertainty of a trial and those would be the things that they ought to consider.

It takes about 18 months for someone to receive a settlement. The process can be expedited by doing everything a person can to conduct the discovery and respond to discovery as quickly possible and go talk to the judge early on when the case is filed to see if the person can’t get a date certain for a trial early on.

Issues Negotiating a Settlement

An issue that a person might encounter when negotiating a settlement is that the other side learned enough about the case and has taken enough discovery to be able to fully evaluate the case. The person is going to be looking at how negligent the party was, how sure they are that are going to be able to prove that they were negligent and that their negligence was the cause of harm.

The person is going to look at the ability of the defendant to pay and how much insurance they have. If they do not have adequate insurance, the person can look at other resources that the person would be able to get. If the other side needs more information to determine how much they are going to pay then the person is not going to get a settlement until they have accomplished all of those things, and that can take time.

The best step that a person can take in order to ensure that they receive their settlement in a timely manner is to hire an experienced medical malpractice attorney who knows how to move the case forward and can provide the monetary resources to hire the experts that need to be done.

Appealing a Case

In order to appeal a case, all a person has to do is file a notice of appeal. Filing a notice of appeal is a matter of filing an appropriate document with the court. Then, a person goes and files briefs explaining to the appellate court why they think that something wrong happened at the trial court level. Then, the other side will file their response. The person will argue it to the court and then the court will make its decision. Appellate courts often reverse decisions and if there are good issues for appeal then there is a good chance of the appellate court recognizing that.

The amount of damages that someone will recover if they win the appeal is going to vary from case to case but the hope would be that if the person wins the appeal then they are going back down to retry the case but they are going to get more damages.

Appealing a medical malpractice case in West Palm Beach generally takes about a year, and it is rare for it to take less time than that. It could take longer if the appellate court is particularly busy, if the issues are particularly complex or if, after the regular appellate court rules, one party or the other seeks to have the Florida Supreme Court review the matter. If the person loses their appeal, they can try to get the Florida Supreme Court to hear the case. If they refuse to hear the case then the case is over.

Role of an Attorney

A medical malpractice attorney can help someone appeal their case by bringing in the best appellate lawyers that are most familiar with the issues that are going to be presented and are most well-known to the particular appellate court that they would be dealing with. If you want to know more about appealing a medical malpractice case in West Palm Beach, reach out to a local attorney. A skilled lawyer can help you get the appeal process started.