How to Find the Best Medical Malpractice Lawyers in Pittsburgh

When we go to the doctor, we assume that we are going to get great care. We generally don’t think about complications or something going wrong. Unfortunately, medical malpractice is extremely common in the United States, and many people are injured or killed as a result of a medical professional’s negligence. If you or a loved one has suffered an injury because of medical malpractice, you should consider contacting a lawyer right away. 

Morgan & Morgan has handled medical malpractice cases for decades. We have successfully recovered more than $20 billion dollars for our clients, and our attorneys aren’t afraid to go to trial when necessary. If you need help and aren’t sure how to find the best medical malpractice lawyers in Pittsburgh, PA, you’ve come to the right place. Morgan & Morgan is always here and would be honored to help you with your claim. Contact us today for a free case evaluation. 

What Is Medical Malpractice?

Medical Malpractice occurs when a medical professional causes an injury or death as a result of negligence. In order to prove medical malpractice in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, your lawyer would have to show the following in court:

1. Duty

The first element of a medical malpractice case that you must prove in court is that the doctor owed you a duty of care. For there to be a duty of care, there needs to be a doctor-patient relationship. Simply put, you hired the doctor and the doctor agreed to be hired. It’s not enough that you know someone who is a doctor and ask them for advice. 

2. Breach

The next element that needs to be shown is that the medical professional breached the duty of care. This means that the doctor took an action (or failed to take an action) that is not in line with the accepted standard of care within the medical community. To simplify, this means that the doctor did not act in the way that another competent doctor would have acted under the same or similar circumstances. 

3. Injuries/Causation

The next issue to be proven is that you actually suffered injuries as a result of the doctor’s negligence. It’s not enough to simply prove that the doctor was negligent. If you didn’t suffer any negative consequences, or the injury you suffered was not a result of the doctor’s negligence, you will not be successful with your claim.

4. Damages

Once you’ve shown that you suffered injuries because of the medical professional’s negligence, you must show that the injuries actually caused you harm and you suffered from quantifiable damages in some way. Therefore, if you have a bruise on your arm that goes away in a few days, even if the doctor was negligent, it’s unlikely that you would be successful in a medical malpractice case regarding that bruise.

How to Find The Best Medical Malpractice Lawyers in Pittsburgh, PA

Now that you understand the basics of medical malpractice, the next big question is how to find the best lawyer for your potential claim. 

Find a Lawyer Who Understands the Law AND Medicine

Medical malpractice claims are complicated because there’s always a lot of legal and medical jargon surrounding the case. If you hire an attorney who doesn’t know how to explain complicated subjects clearly to the judge or a jury, it will be very difficult for you to win your case. The judge and jury must understand what happened, and what effect it has had on your life. When you meet with lawyers, ask them how they would explain confusing medical terms to the court. Are they clear and concise?

Choose a Lawyer Who Cares

While this might seem incredibly obvious, it’s still worth mentioning. You might assume that every single lawyer cares about all of their clients and will do anything to ensure they get the best outcome possible. While this is probably true in most cases, it’s not always true. You will run across people in every profession who don’t really like what they do and don’t care that much about their clients/patients. You want to make sure that you find a lawyer who can show you the dedication and compassion that your case needs. You deserve to be treated this way. 

If you hire a firm that won’t even pick up the phone to call you back or update you regularly about your case, it can leave you in a vulnerable and frustrating position. Ask any potential lawyers how they handle updating their clients as the case progresses. Do they call clients personally and often enough with information? Can clients easily reach them? Will they share an email address with you for easy communication? Can you only speak with a paralegal when you want help? The answers to these questions should shed some light on how the firm operates and how often you’ll actually be able to speak with your lawyer. 

Find Someone With Experience

While it’s great if you can find someone who cares and who can also explain complicated medical and legal terms, it’s just as important to find a lawyer who actually knows what they’re doing. Find someone who has a lot of experience handling medical malpractice cases in general, and who has also handled the particular type of case relating to your specific claim. While every lawyer has to get their career started and try their first case at some point, that doesn’t mean that you want to be one of their first clients.