Wrongful Death

Introduction to Medical Malpractice Leading to Wrongful Death in Georgia

Medical malpractice can tragically result in wrongful death when healthcare providers fail to meet the expected standard of care, causing fatal harm to a patient. In Georgia, as in other states, patients and their families rely on healthcare professionals to provide safe and effective care. Understanding how medical malpractice can lead to wrongful death is essential for those who have lost loved ones due to negligence.

Common Forms of Medical Malpractice Leading to Wrongful Death

Wrongful deaths caused by medical malpractice can take various forms. Some common examples include surgical errors, medication mistakes, misdiagnosis or delayed diagnosis of serious conditions like cancer, inadequate monitoring during surgery or post-operatively, and failures in providing proper post-operative care. Each of these instances involves healthcare professionals failing to uphold the standard of care, ultimately resulting in fatal harm to the patient.

Impact on Families and Loved Ones

The loss of a loved one due to medical malpractice is a devastating experience. Families and loved ones often face not only emotional grief but also financial burdens resulting from medical expenses, funeral costs, and the loss of the deceased’s financial contributions to the household. Coping with such a loss can be challenging, and pursuing legal action can provide a path to justice and financial support for the surviving family members.

Proving Medical Malpractice in Wrongful Death Cases

In Georgia, establishing medical malpractice leading to wrongful death typically requires demonstrating that the healthcare provider owed a duty of care to the patient, that this duty was breached through negligence, and that this breach directly caused the patient’s death. Expert testimony from qualified medical professionals who can attest to the standard of care and whether it was violated is often crucial in building a strong case.

Legal Recourse for Wrongful Death Due to Medical Malpractice in Georgia

Families who believe they have lost a loved one due to medical malpractice in Georgia have the right to pursue legal remedies. Our Georgia law firm specializes in wrongful death cases related to medical malpractice. We are dedicated to advocating for the rights and well-being of surviving family members, helping them secure compensation for their losses, including medical expenses, funeral costs, and the emotional suffering endured. If you have lost a loved one due to medical malpractice in Georgia, contact us for a free consultation to explore your legal options and seek justice for your family’s devastating loss.

No. That’s like asking, “I need brain surgery; can my primary care provider do it?” For brain surgery, you need a brain surgeon. For a medical malpractice case, you need a medical malpractice attorney. Davis Adams exclusively represents medical malpractice victims; that’s why you won’t find information about personal injury cases on this website. In contrast, most other firms that solicit medical malpractice clients primarily handle car wrecks and other personal injury cases. Just visit their websites, and you’ll see.

You have one opportunity to make the right decision for your Georgia medical malpractice case. We recommend asking every lawyer the following questions before making your choice:

Is your practice dedicated exclusively to medical malpractice cases?

If not, what percentage of your firm’s cases involve medical malpractice?

How many medical malpractice cases in Georgia have you successfully handled in the past 12 months?

Can you provide examples of Georgia medical malpractice cases similar to mine that you’ve successfully resolved?

Is your firm based in Georgia, with a long history of winning cases throughout the state?

When you’ve asked these questions and listened to the responses, you’ll likely discover that few law firms — other than Davis Adams — can provide good answers. We’d be honored to have the opportunity to speak with you.

Like all reputable medical malpractice law firms in Georgia, our firm operates on a contingency fee model. If we recover money for our clients, we earn a percentage. If we don’t recover any money, we’re paid nothing. Don’t be fooled by the flashy TV and billboard lawyers who advertise “No fee unless you win” as if they’re offering a special deal. They’re not – all reputable law firms offer the same contingency fee payment structure.

A variety of people may be able to file a lawsuit in Georgia for medical malpractice that results in death, including: 

The spouse, parents, or child of a person killed by medical malpractice can file a wrongful death medical malpractice lawsuit in Georgia to recover for the “full value of the life” of the decedent; and 

The estate representative for a person killed by medical malpractice can file a medical malpractice lawsuit in Georgia to recover for the pain and suffering the decedent experienced before death, medical bills, and final expenses, and in some cases, the full value of the decedent’s life (on behalf of the decedent’s next of kin) — this option is often overlooked by attorneys. 

Every Georgia medical malpractice case involving wrongful death is different. Some take a few months, and some take a few years. As a general rule, we’ve traditionally advised our clients that their case will likely settle or go to trial within 24 months of our firm being hired. However, as the court system continues to recover from the Covid backlog, getting a case to trial now takes closer to 36 months.

We’d encourage you to run — don’t walk — away from any lawyer who tells you what your wrongful death case is “worth” before doing the work necessary to answer that question honestly. Before any lawyer can begin to value your case, they must engage you as a client, meet with you to hear and understand the story of what happened, order and analyze your medical records, hire expert witnesses, determine the venue for your case (the county in which the lawsuit would be filed), and confirm that amount of insurance coverage available from the defendant(s). Until those tasks are completed, no good lawyer will attempt to give you a reliable estimate as to what your case may be worth.

The majority of Georgia medical malpractice cases are resolved through settlements prior to reaching trial, but it’s crucial to approach each case with the possibility of trial in mind from the very beginning. The reason is simple: we cannot predict which cases will ultimately go before a jury. Consequently, our medical malpractice lawyers litigate every case with a focus on trial preparation. This approach not only strengthens our client’s position during pre-trial settlement negotiations but also ensures that we are fully prepared to present our case to a jury should a negotiated resolution prove unattainable.

Yes, we routinely take complex cases around the country that require our advanced level of medical negligence expertise. To date, we’ve helped medical malpractice victims in 46 states.

Our marketing people tell us this should be the first FAQ, not the last. We disagree. You should have the opportunity to learn who we are and what we’re all about before we ask for your trust in handling your medical malpractice case. We hope the information you’ve already seen gives you a sense of what makes us different, and better.

Why do we think we’re better?

First, we’re laser-focused on one thing: helping medical malpractice victims in serious cases, all day, every day. That’s a commitment we’ve made. By contrast, most other lawyers claiming to handle medical malpractice cases spend the majority of their time working on matters other than medical malpractice — car and truck wrecks, etc. Our dedication to those injured by medical negligence sets us apart.

Second, we know Georgia; it’s home for us and always has been. We’ve earned our reputation as effective and respected Georgia medical malpractice attorneys among judges, court clerks, defense lawyers, risk managers, claims adjusters, and mediators over nearly two decades. Our deep local knowledge and long-standing relationships in the legal and medical communities are absolutely essential to getting the best results for our clients.

Finally, we’ve consistently achieved extraordinary results for victims of medical negligence in Atlanta and throughout Georgia. You can see what we’ve accomplished on the Case Results page of this website, and what our clients think of us on the Client Reviews page. The people who’ve hired and trusted us in their time of greatest need are glad they did. And that’s what matters most of all.