New Haven Birth Injury Lawyer
When your child has a birth injury, life can be overwhelming. You deserve peace of mind and the financial means to care for your family during this stressful period. Compensation may be available, and a New Haven birth injury lawyer from Kennedy, Johnson, Schwab & Roberge, P.C., can help. Call 203-865-8430 or contact us online to discuss your legal options.
Table of Contents
- Kennedy Johnson Can Get Justice for Your Child’s Birth Injury in New Haven, CT
- What Is a Birth Injury?
- Recognizing Birth Injury Symptoms in New Haven, CT
- Long-Term Effects of Birth Injuries
- Determining Liability in Birth Injury Cases
- Compensation for Losses Suffered Due to Birth Injuries
- Why You Need a Birth Injury Attorney by Your Side
- Contact Our New Haven Birth Injury Lawyers Today
- FAQs
Key Takeaways
- A birth injury happens when a child suffers physical harm from an unexpected event during gestation, labor, delivery, or newborn care.
- Birth injuries can cause serious long-term medical conditions and disabilities, such as cerebral palsy and brachial palsy.
- If the injury occurred due to a medical provider’s negligence, legal action can help the family recover compensation.
- A skilled attorney can help you investigate the birth, identify liable parties, and claim damages for current and future losses.
Kennedy Johnson Can Get Justice for Your Child's Birth Injury in New Haven, CT
When you fight for your child’s needs, you deserve an experienced Connecticut birth injury lawyer backing you up. Our firm has served families in and around New Haven since 1988 and has secured millions for victims of medical malpractice. Significant case results include:
- $17 million for a family with a stillborn child
- $12.5 million in a case against Stamford Hospital
- $7.3 million for a wrongful patient death
- $6 million for fatally negligent postoperative care
Clients choose us for our track record of success and experience representing injured victims and their families. We provide personalized service and compassionate legal representation that embraces integrity, professionalism, and a commitment to pursuing justice.
Our attorneys understand that our clients are struggling financially and emotionally. We take the burden of the legal process off their hands so they can focus on their families. We’re proud of the client testimonials and referrals that speak to our success.
John Kennedy Jr.
Founding Partner
John J. Kennedy, Jr., is the founding partner of Kennedy, Johnson, Schwab & Roberge, P.C. In 1988, John formed Kennedy & Johnson, along with David Johnson. John is an accomplished trial attorney, spending most of his more than 42 years practicing in Connecticut, representing injured clients before juries.
What Is a Birth Injury?
A birth injury, or birth trauma, is physical harm to a child’s body from trauma during birth. It is not the same as a birth defect, which is a congenital disorder that develops during gestation.
How Do Birth Injuries Occur?
These injuries result from trauma to an infant before, during, or shortly after delivery. Certain risk factors increase the risk of birth injuries, including the following:
- Premature delivery
- Non-head-first positioning of the baby
- Prolonged or difficult labor
- Caesarean delivery
- Use of devices, such as vacuums or forceps
Birth injuries can be accidental, but many happen because of medical error. This error may be something the team did incorrectly or failed to do.
For example, if a member of the medical team does not act on signs of fetal distress during a difficult labor, the baby may not receive enough oxygen to the brain. This phenomenon is known as birth asphyxia and has a high rate of long-term cognitive damage.
When medical negligence causes a birth injury, the family may be eligible for compensation. The law considers these a form of medical malpractice. A personal injury attorney experienced in this practice area can review your situation and determine if you have a valid case.
Recognizing Birth Injury Symptoms in New Haven, CT
Symptoms of birth trauma may not be immediately evident. Parents can notice signs when the child is a newborn, a toddler, or even older. Common symptoms of birth injuries include the following:
- Speech delays
- Cognitive delays
- Stiff or limp muscles
- Sluggishness
- Poor reflexes
- Difficulty eating or digesting
- Seizures
If you suspect your child has a birth injury, it’s important to reach out to an attorney as soon as possible to discuss legal options.
Long-Term Effects of Birth Injuries
A birth injury can affect a child for life and change a family’s world forever. Affected infants may develop permanent medical conditions and disabilities, such as the following:
- Nerve damage
- Fetal brain damage
- Spinal cord injury
- Hypoxic-ischaemic encephalopathy, or HIE
- Cerebral palsy
- Brachial palsy
- Erb’s palsy
- Facial paralysis
- Shoulder dystocia
If you are dealing with your child’s diagnosis and suspect birth injury as the cause, legal help is available. The first step is determining who is responsible for the injury.
Determining Liability in Birth Injury Cases
To be liable for a birth injury, a health care provider or organization must have deviated from the standard of care. Responsible parties may include:
- Physicians: Obstetricians and other doctors who may have ignored or missed signs of the baby’s distress or otherwise put the child at risk
- Nurses and supporting medical staff: Any members of the prenatal care, labor, delivery, or neonatal care teams whose errors contributed to the injury
- Medical facilities: Hospitals or medical centers that failed to staff, train, or equip their departments adequately
- Pharmaceutical companies: Manufacturers that released defective or risky drugs that harmed the baby
There is a time limit for filing a birth injury lawsuit, so it’s wise to speak with an attorney as soon as possible. An experienced medical malpractice lawyer can investigate your case, determine who may be at fault, and help you hold them accountable for their actions.
Deadlines for Filing a Lawsuit
Connecticut’s default statute of limitations for personal injury cases, including birth injuries, is two years from the original incident date.
If you discovered your child’s birth injury after the birth itself, the two-year statute of limitations may begin when you learned or should have learned about the harm done. However, you must still file within three years of the injury.
These extensions are not assumed, meaning you must have evidence of delayed discovery. However, Connecticut does apply an automatic 90-day extension to allow for investigation of medical malpractice cases. If you take advantage of the 90-day extension and the discovery rule, you could have until your child is three years and three months old to file.
Regulations related to statutes of limitations can be complicated, and missing your deadline usually means losing the ability to sue. A Connecticut birth injury attorney can help you protect your legal rights.
Compensation for Losses Suffered Due to Birth Injuries
An injury during birth can leave a family with a lifetime of unexpected health costs. Parents who experienced an otherwise healthy pregnancy may suddenly face years of expensive treatments, therapy, and supportive care.
Benefits of Legal Action
If your child’s injury resulted from medical negligence, the party responsible should carry these financial burdens. A birth injury lawsuit may help you recover both the economic costs of your child’s injury and the non-economic losses, such as the emotional impacts on your family.
Types of Damages for Birth Injuries
Birth injury compensation varies significantly due to the different circumstances of each case. Damages include the child’s lifetime medical needs, the financial impacts on the family, and the non-financial damages associated with the injury, including the following:
- Past and future medical costs: Doctor’s visits, hospital stays, treatment, and medications
- Rehabilitation services: Occupational, physical, speech, and other therapies
- Assistive equipment: Wheelchairs, walkers, adaptive beds, communication devices, and other mobility or life skills technology
- Accessibility modifications: Home ramps, vehicle lifts, and other equipment that the child needs to participate fully in daily life
- Future care: Costs of in-home or residential care for a child who will need full-time support when their parents can no longer provide it
- Lost wages: Income sacrificed to stay home and take care of the child, if the injury-related disability is the direct cause
- Reduced earning capacity: Future lost income if the child’s condition impacts the parent’s career mobility
- Reduced quality of life: Impact on the child’s and family’s ability to enjoy living due to the injury and resulting condition
- Pain and suffering: The physical effects of the condition on the child
- Mental anguish: The emotional effects of your child’s injury on the family
Why You Need a Birth Injury Attorney by Your Side
If someone is at fault for your child’s birth injuries, you deserve justice, and you don’t have to fight for it alone. Our experienced team has the skill and resources to help you gather evidence, identify at-fault parties, and work with insurance companies to reach a fair agreement.
Contact Our New Haven Birth Injury Lawyers Today
If your child was injured by medical negligence at birth, the malpractice attorneys at Kennedy Johnson are here to help. Legal action can relieve some of the financial burdens on your family, and calling to learn more won’t cost you anything.
Act now—secure your rights and get legal help today. Call 203-865-8430 or contact us online to schedule your free consultation
FAQs
How Do I Know if I Have a Valid Birth Injury Claim?
You may have a birth injury claim if your child suffered bodily harm during your pregnancy, labor, delivery, or the first moments of life, and a medical provider is at fault. If you’re unsure whether you have a case, contact our New Haven birth injury attorneys for personalized advice.
Is There a Statute of Limitations for Birth Injury Claims?
Connecticut law provides a base period of two years for filing personal injury claims, including birth injuries. If you discover an injury after it occurs, you may file up to three years after the incident, but no more than two years from the date of discovery.
Because a birth injury is a medical malpractice case, you may also have an additional 90-day allowance to allow for investigation.
Who Is at Fault for a Birth Injury?
A health care professional or organization may be responsible for a birth injury if they failed to provide a responsible level of care. Potentially liable parties include obstetricians, surgeons performing cesarean sections, and nurses or other staff responsible for monitoring labor and delivery.
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