CHARLOTTESVILLE, VA MEDICAL MALPRACTICE ATTORNEY

Virginia Code § 8.01-581.1 establishes that the term malpractice is defined as “any tort action or breach of contract action for personal injuries or wrongful death, based on health care or professional services rendered, or which should have been rendered, by a health care provider, to a patient.” Simply put, a medical malpractice claim involves a person seeking damages from a health care provider for injuries resulting from a practitioner's negligence.

Numerous issues can arise in a medical malpractice claim, beginning with whether a doctor, nurse, or other personnel is legally considered a health care provider under Virginia law. There are also commonly issues with the statute of limitations (or time limit) for filing these claims, as a person typically must file a case within two years of the date of the negligence or one year from the date an act of negligence is discovered or reasonably should have been discovered.

It is important to keep in mind that the rules for medical malpractice are also different when the victim happens to be a minor. In such cases, a person will have to bring suit within five years and cannot recover anything beyond the actual damages or medical bills.