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How Long do I Have to File a Lawsuit for my Child With CP?
If you have a child with cerebral palsy, you may need additional compensation to help your family cope with the birth injury. From medical expenses to mobility equipment to special therapies and education, your child needs certain accommodations to live a comfortable life. You can claim compensation for your child’s injuries through a cerebral palsy lawsuit.
While you can file this lawsuit in your civil court, you need to adhere to a certain timeframe to file your lawsuit. If you do not file your lawsuit within this period, you could lose your chance at compensation altogether. Here’s what you need to know about the statute of limitations in cerebral palsy lawsuits.
What are Statutes of Limitations?
When you want to file a cerebral palsy lawsuit in your state’s civil court, you have to file with a certain time. This deadline is known as the statute of limitations. These statutes of limitations prevent you from initiating a lawsuit after a particular date, primarily to protect the interests of the at-fault party and to reduce the number of improper claims.
In addition, the evidence in cerebral palsy cases is fresher the sooner to the malpractice you file your lawsuit. The longer you wait to file, records disappear, witnesses move on, your evidence becomes more unreliable, and your credibility disappears. The statute of limitations pushes you to file your lawsuit as soon as possible to increase your chances of a successful settlement.
The court will refuse to hear your claim if you do not file within the statute of limitations. Different states have different statutes of limitations for cerebral palsy cases. You will have to check with your civil court requirements to ensure that you are filing within the deadline. It is important to visit a cerebral palsy attorney as soon as you discover your child’s condition in order to meet the statute of limitations.
When do the Statutes of Limitations Begin?
Different states have different requirements for the date on which the statute of limitations for cerebral palsy begins. In some states, the statute of limitations may begin on the date that your child experiences the injuries that leads to his or her cerebral palsy, or his or her date of birth. In some circumstances, it is impossible for you to know that the injury took place until years later. Many states will base the statute of limitations on the day you discovered the injury instead.
Examples of Statutes of Limitations for Cerebral Palsy Across the United States
Statutes of limitations for filing cerebral palsy lawsuits can vary widely from state to state. Here are a few examples of cerebral palsy statutes of limitations across the United States.
- In the state of California, you must file your cerebral palsy lawsuit within three years of the date of your child’s injury, or his or her birthday. If you did not know about the cerebral palsy until after the three-year period, you could file your lawsuit within one year from the day you discover the cerebral palsy injury.
- In Illinois, you must file your cerebral palsy lawsuit within two years to the day on which you knew about the cerebral palsy or you could have reasonably known about the cerebral palsy. You cannot file your child’s cerebral palsy case within more than four years following his or her birth injury. If your child is a minor under the age of 18, you can file your cerebral palsy lawsuit within eight years of the date of the birth injury.
- New York maintains a slightly longer period for filing cerebral palsy lawsuits. You have two years and six months to file your child’s cerebral palsy lawsuit. The clock starts running on the day your child suffered the injuries.
- In Texas, you must file your cerebral palsy lawsuit within two years of your child’s birth injury. However, if your child is under the age of 12, you have until his or her 14th birthday to file your cerebral palsy lawsuit.
- If you live in Florida, you have to file your cerebral palsy claim within two years of the date that you discovered your child’s cerebral palsy and the medical malpractice. You have to file your lawsuit within four years of the date that the doctor performed the malpractice. If the doctor intentionally concealed the malpractice, you have six years from the date of the malpractice to file. If you are filing your lawsuit on behalf of a child under the age of 8, you have to file before your child’s 8th birthday.
- For Pennsylvania cerebral palsy lawsuits, you have two years from the day you discover the cerebral palsy to file your lawsuit. At most, you have seven years from the birth injury to file the claim.
Do you have a child with cerebral palsy? Did a doctor’s negligence lead to the injuries that caused his or her cerebral palsy? You need to file your birth injury lawsuit as soon as possible to claim the compensation you deserve. Contact Rosenfeld Injury Lawyers, LLC today to receive your free case evaluation and learn more about your legal options.
**Disclaimer: This information is provided for informational purposes and is subject to change. As with all legal advice, it is important to consult with an attorney who has experience with your particular case type to see how the law applies to your situation.