Legal Question in Medical Malpractice in California
during my left arm surgery, the doctor suddenly decided to cut a piece of bone of my left elbow to
use it in my arm without my consent. the surgery failed and i've been suffering a lot from pain.
my left hand turns black everytime i put it down and the pain radiates to my elbow,shoulder ,neck and
my head. i have been thru a lot of therapy and medications but nothing helps.
its been 2 years now since i had the surgery, i lost my job of 8 yrs and very depressed . the doctor
admitted that he damaged some major nerves in my hand and that is the reason why the blood cannot circulate properly and he told me that it can happen sometimes and i need another surgery!
do i have a case ???
2 Answers from Attorneys
Too bad you waited two years (which is the legal time limit for filing medical malpractice lawsuits).
Two years is NOT the statute of limitations in California for Medical Malpractice cases.
A medical malpractice action for injury or death must be brought within one year from the date the claimant discovered the negligent act, but no more than three years from the date of injury. Cal. Civ. Proc. Code � 340.5 (West 1992).
Actions by or on behalf of minors must be brought within three years from the date of the negligent act, unless the child is under the age of six, in which case the action must be commenced within three years or prior to the child's eighth birthday, whichever provides the longer time period. It is notable that the statutory period begins to run for adults at the time of discovery but for minors at the time of the negligent act.
The answer to your question will depend on the date you discovered your doctor was negligent. It seems that your discovery was probably the date of the surgery since you state that you did not give your doctor permission or consent and you probably felt the outcome close to the surgery date. You may be out of luck on this claim because you failed to file a lawsuit within one year of the surgery or within one year of the discovery of the negligence of your doctor.
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