Las Vegas Birth Injury Lawsuit Reinstated by Nevada Supreme Court
Posted on Nov 10, 2008 3:10pm PST
Recently, the Nevada Supreme Court ruled that a
birth injury lawsuit in Las Vegas will be able to continue with legal proceedings, even though the case was beyond the
statute of limitations. According to court documents, the mother of the child filed the case more than four years after her child had sustained the birth injury.
The Supreme Court ruled that the child's injury qualifies as brain damage and/or a birth defect, which means that the mother could have filed the lawsuit up until the time the child reached 10 years of age. Because the mother filed the case prior to her child turning 10, the court proceedings were allowed to continue.
Reports indicate that the mother is alleging there were medical mistakes made during the delivery of her child, James Monroe. James was born in May of 1995 at Sunrise Hospital via a Caesarean section. The mother claims that during the Caesarean section, James' head was lacerated by a scalpel. Hospital staff tried to stop the bleeding from the injury for over an hour, but were unsuccessful, so the infant was transferred to Southwest Regional Neonatal Center.
Four years after the delivery, the mother decided to file a medical malpractice lawsuit. At first, the lower court dismissed the birth injury lawsuit because it was filed more than four years after the injury was sustained, well past the state's statute of limitations.
However, a Nevada statute allows
malpractice lawsuits involving "brain damage or birth defect, the period of limitations is extended until the child attains 10 years of age."
This week, the Nevada Supreme Court overruled the lower court's dismissal, which means the mother will be allowed to proceed with her medical malpractice case.
The lawsuit is pending further litigation at this time.
If you need assistance with a birth injury case in
Nevada, click here to find an
experienced personal injury lawyer!