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If you believe your child suffered a birth injury, Powless Law Firm can help. Contact our personal injury lawyers in Indiana for a free birth injury claim evaluation today.
Do you believe your child suffered a birth injury?
Our experienced birth injury attorneys are ready to help. Birth injuries can result from medical errors, which can leave a child with lasting medical conditions. In some tragic cases, birth injury can even lead to wrongful death . The emotional and financial burden of a birth injury is truly significant.
Medical professionals have a responsibility to account for any risk of injury during labor and delivery. In many cases, the lifelong consequences of a birth injury—paralysis, neurological damage, disfigurement, disability—could have been prevented with adequate medical care.
If your child has suffered a birth injury, you are entitled to ask questions and seek clear answers about what occurred. You have the right to know whether the injury could have been prevented. Most critically, you are entitled to pursue a birth injury claim to obtain the compensation and peace of mind your family deserves.
Understanding Birth Injuries
Birth injury describes a type of physical injury occurring before, during, or immediately after childbirth. Birth injuries occur in some 6 in 1,000 births, and can range from mild (bruising) to severe. Serious birth injuries can result in spinal cord trauma, paralysis, cerebral palsy, and even infant wrongful death .
Bruising is one of the most frequent birth injuries and typically heals within a few days. However, more severe injuries can occur, such as hypoxia, oxygen deprivation, shoulder dystocia, cerebral palsy, Erb’s palsy, and brachial plexus injuries . Newborns may also suffer from conditions like meconium aspiration syndrome, hemorrhages, cephalohematoma, kernicterus, and caput succedaneum. In cases of significant medical negligence, babies can experience facial nerve damage, skull fractures, or spinal cord injuries.
Common birth injuries include:
- Cerebral palsy
- Brachial plexus injuries
- Erb’s palsy
- Hypoxic ischemic encephalopathy (HIE)
- Spinal cord trauma
- Closed head injuries
- Fractures
- Hemorrhages
- Seizures
- Stroke
- Infections
- Meconium aspiration syndrome
- Stillbirth
Read More from Powless Law Firm: The Difference Between Birth Defects and Birth Injuries: Legal Implications
How Birth Injuries Occur
Birth injuries can occur in both vaginal and cesarean-section births. They are more common in instances of breech delivery, fetal distress, and placental abruption. While these factors do not constitute a medical emergency, failing to account for the increase in risk or informing the parents about potential complications can constitute medical negligence .
There are several types of medical errors that can cause harm to children . These include delay in diagnosis , as well as delayed cesarean section when one is medically necessary. They can also result from medical errors, surgical errors, and a failure to properly monitor the child’s vital signs before, during, and after childbirth.
Regardless of the reason, a birth injury can seriously affect both the child’s quality of life and the parents’ sense of well-being. Birth injuries can result in significant financial costs, as well as emotional distress and ongoing disruption to a young family’s life.
If your child experienced a birth injury, you have the right to hold healthcare providers responsible for:
- Inadequate monitoring of fetal vital signs
- Failing to perform an emergency C-section in a timely manner
- Not detecting when the umbilical cord is wrapped around the baby’s neck
- Allowing labor to become prolonged or overly difficult
- Missing the diagnosis of pregnancy-related conditions
- Allowing oxygen deprivation during delivery
- Leaving infections untreated
- Insufficiently monitoring the baby during delivery
- Not responding appropriately to birth emergencies or complications, such as breech birth, excessive blood loss, multiple births, or other risk factors
- Delaying the diagnosis of fetal distress
- Administering too much labor-inducing medication (such as Pitocin)
- Using excessive force on the baby’s shoulder, which can lead to Erb’s palsy
- Infant wrongful death
The experienced personal injury attorneys at Powless Law Firm are here to help you collect compensation after a birth injury or other traumatic event. Call our Indianapolis birth injury attorneys at 877-769-5377 .
Read More from Powless Law Firm: Birth Injuries: Recognizing Signs of Medical Malpractice
If you are offered a birth injury settlement, always consult with a birth injury lawyer first.
If you receive a settlement offer from a hospital after your child suffers a birth injury, always seek a legal opinion before accepting it. Most settlements require you to forfeit your right to pursue additional compensation in the future. This means that if new issues develop, you will be unable to take further legal action.
Speak to a Birth Injury Lawyer in Indianapolis, IN: 877-769-5377 .
Birth Injury? Powless Law Firm Understands.
Birth injuries can cast a long and lasting shadow on your entire family, affecting mothers and fathers as well as their children. Preventable birth injuries often leave families facing overwhelming grief, anger, and uncertainty. Mistakes such as missed diagnoses , surgical errors during C-sections , and harmful drug interactions can force new parents into devastating situations.
In these challenging times, the Indianapolis birth injury attorneys at Powless Law Firm provide more than just understanding. With extensive experience, our legal team is equipped to challenge negligent medical providers and pursue the compensation families deserve. Recognizing that birth injuries bring both emotional and financial burdens, they are committed to offering compassionate and dedicated support throughout the legal process.
Birth Injuries: Frequently Asked Questions
Throughout the legal process, our Indianapolis birth injury attorneys work closely with medical care specialists to consider all aspects of your claim. This includes medical records, training protocols, and any prior complaints about your treating doctor(s). If we find that your healthcare providers did not uphold the accepted standard of care, we then file a lawsuit on your child’s behalf to cover your past and future medical expenses, lost income, and the emotional distress you have endured.
Powless Law Firm strongly advises against sharing details about your case with insurance adjusters, hospital staff, or even friends and relatives. Avoid posting about your situation on social media. When pursuing a birth injury claim, only disclose your medical information to your attorney.
Powless Law Firm operates from a contingency fee, meaning our clients never pay for legal assistance until we secure financial compensation on their behalf. Our services are 100% free until you get paid.
In Indiana, the standard statute of limitations for filing a birth injury lawsuit is two (2) years from the date of the injury. If the child was under six years old at the time of the injury, a lawsuit can be filed at any point up to the child’s eighth birthday. This extension is designed to protect the rights of young children who may not be able to bring a claim immediately.
In rare cases where the injury or malpractice could not have been reasonably discovered within the two-year period, Indiana courts may apply a “discovery rule,” allowing the statute of limitations to begin when the injury is discovered or should have been discovered with reasonable diligence. These cases can involve brain damage or other types of injury that may not be apparent immediately. However, these situations are complex and fact-specific; always speak with a birth injury attorney to learn how this rule may apply to your situation.
If you believe you have a birth injury case, consult a qualified medical malpractice attorney as soon as possible.
Call Powless Law Firm today to discuss your birth injury claim: 877-769-5377 .
While some birth injuries are apparent right away, others may not become noticeable until months or even years later.
Immediately After Birth:
- Crying with an arched back
- Trouble with motor skills during feeding, such as difficulties with sucking, swallowing, or excessive drooling
- Hands that appear clenched or shaped unusually
- High-pitched cries or grunting sounds
- Low levels of oxygen or a slow heart rate
- Muscles that seem unusually stiff or floppy
- Heightened sensitivity to light or sound
- Weak, slow, or missing reflexes, including trouble making facial expressions
- Seizures or signs of paralysis
Between Ages 1-2:
- Delays in speech development or trouble speaking
- Problems with coordination when walking, crawling, balancing, grasping, eating, or drinking
- Cognitive challenges, such as difficulty remembering things
- Muscle spasms or poor coordination between both sides of the body
- Limited movement or poor muscle control (ataxia)
- Lack of response to loud sounds
- Weak or absent startle reflex (Moro reflex)
- Difficulties with vision or hearing
After Age 2:
- Partial or complete loss of vision
- Partial or complete hearing loss
- Speech delays, speech difficulties, or inability to speak
- Trouble understanding or forming complete sentences
- Coordination problems that make everyday tasks like dressing, eating, or climbing stairs difficult
- Persistent muscle stiffness or limpness
- Developmental disorders such as autism or epilepsy
- Learning difficulties
- Difficulty drawing straight lines or circles
- Shaking, tremors, or poorly controlled movements
IMPORTANT NOTE: This information is not a substitute for medical advice or diagnosis. Always speak to a medical professional if you suspect that your child has suffered a birth injury.
To pursue a legitimate birth injury claim, two key elements must be proven: liability and damages .
Liability means that the injury was caused by a healthcare provider’s negligence. If the birth injury would have occurred no matter what, there is no legal basis for a claim, and the doctor cannot be held responsible. Damages refer to the actual harm suffered, such as medical costs or emotional distress. If there was a medical mistake but no resulting harm, no additional expenses, or suffering-there is no foundation for a lawsuit.
The experienced personal injury attorneys at Powless Law can help you understand if you have a valid birth injury case. To explore your legal options, call our Indianapolis office at 877-769-5377
.
A successful birth injury case may provide compensation for:
- Medical expenses related to additional obstetric treatments, including surgeries
- Medical equipment, including stents, wheelchairs, mobility aids, and lifting devices
- Rehabilitation services , like physical and occupational therapy
- Medications , including prescription and over-the-counter pharmaceuticals
- Long-term care costs like in-home aides
- Disability assistance, including modifications to the home or vehicle
- Pain and suffering are sometimes referred to as emotional distress
- Lost wages for the parents and loss of earning capacity, both the child and their family
- Loss of consortium , or reduced quality of the parent-child relationship
Indiana Birth Injury Resources
If we can show that your medical staff did not act appropriately when a potential problem was present, or failed to act in a manner consistent with established medical practices, they may be held responsible for medical malpractice .
If you believe that your child has a birth-related illness due to medical malpractice, contact Powless Law today at 877-769-5377 .
