New York Medical Malpractice Statute of Limitations
You Have 30 Months To File Your Malpractice Claim
A statute of limitations places a time limit on seeking legal recourse for wrongful conduct. After this time period expires, the injured victim loses their right to file a lawsuit to collect damages. With regard to medical malpractice, injured patients in New York generally have 30 months to file a lawsuit. Should this time period expire, the injured patient will be prohibited from filing a medical malpractice lawsuit , regardless of the severity of their injuries.
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If you or a loved one has been injured due to a medical error in New York, fill out our FREE case review form. Our New York medical malpractice lawyers will determine, at no cost to you, whether you are eligible to collect compensation for your injuries. If so, we can help ensure your claim is filed within the New York medical malpractice statute of limitation s .
New York Medical Negligence Statute of Limitations Examples
In New York, medical malpractice claims must be filed within 2 ½ years from the date of the alleged negligent action or omission that caused the patient’s injury. In cases where the patient was injured due to a foreign object left inside the body, they must file a New York medical malpractice claim within one year of the date the object was or should have been found, whichever comes first. When a minor is injured due to medical malpractice, they have three years from their eighteenth birthday to file a medical malpractice claim; however, the negligent action or omission in question must have occurred within the previous 10 years.
The Discovery Rule
In some instances, a patient cannot reasonably discover or know that an injury has developed until a considerable amount of time has passed. For instance, imagine a patient visits his doctor complaining of chest pains on Oct. 2, 2007. The doctor neglects to order proper testing and sends the patient home with a diagnosis of minor chest congestion. For the next several years, the patient suffers from intermittent chest pains. Then, on May 1, 2010, the patient experiences severe chest pains and visits the emergency room, only to find out he has a serious respiratory disorder. In this case, the patient did not realize his injury until more than two years after the misdiagnosis; therefore, the New York statute of limitations for filing a medical malpractice claim would not be considered expired. However, if the patient had been suffering severe chest pains consistently throughout the two-year period, the medical malpractice statute of limitations in New York would have passed.
New York Medical Malpractice Lawyers
In certain cases, an injured patient may be able to bring multiple causes of action from one instance of wrongful conduct; therefore, even if it seems that the New York medical malpractice statute of limitations has expired, the patient may be able to file a different claim. Additionally, there may be an exception under the New York medical malpractice statute of limitations that applies to your case. Therefore, if you would like to determine how the medical malpractice statute of limitations in New York applies to your case, speak to an experienced medical negligence lawyer.
Because the time period for filing a medical malpractice claim in New York is relatively short, injured patients should speak with a New York medical malpractice attorney as soon as possible. Acting quickly ensures this time period does not expire and provides your New York medical malpractice attorneys with ample time to develop a watertight case. To contact a medical malpractice lawyer in New York today, fill out our FREE case review form on this page.