Time Limits for Filing Medical Malpractice Claims (Statutes of Limitation) in Florida

If you have suffered an injury due to the negligence of a medical professional, then there is no time to waste. Floridians have only a limited time to plan and file a legal case to initiate their medical malpractice claim.

However, the rules associated with the amount of time a person has to file a lawsuit are not always straightforward. There are a number of factors that can impact the deadline under which an injured person must file a lawsuit to maintain a claim.

What is the basic statute of limitations in Florida in medical malpractice cases?

A medical malpractice lawsuit must be filed within two years from the date of treatment. With few exceptions, this is the rule that you must abide by in considering when to file your own medical malpractice case. If you believe that your situation has circumstances beyond your control or need to know if any exceptions apply, then be sure to contact an experienced Fort Lauderdale medical malpractice attorney.

In some situations, an injury may not be noticeable immediately. A doctor sending a patient home from a check-up with a headache may have missed the diagnosis of a brain hemorrhage or stroke. If the patient suffers an injury at home because of that missed diagnosis, then a lawsuit would need to be filed within two years after the date on which the headache was first examined by the physician.

When in doubt as to whether an injury counts as malpractice, consult with an attorney

An injury that occurs under medical supervision is not always medical malpractice. There are conditions that may be so far developed that any mistake or error made by a medical provider would not have changed the overall course of a patient’s care.

The key to understanding whether a circumstance involving an injury constitutes medical malpractice is often based on small details. These small details end up mattering when trying to figure out whether an injury was brought about due to medical malpractice. Speaking with the Fort Lauderdale medical malpractice attorneys at Liberman Cabrera Thompson & Reitman for a confidential consultation is the best course of action.

When can the two-year statute of limitations be extended to four years?

There are limited circumstances where the two-year statute of limitations for filing a medical malpractice lawsuit may be extended to four years. These are situations that involve fraud, concealment, or other acts by caregivers that were not immediately discoverable by a patient.

Contact Liberman Cabrera Thompson & Reitman today for a free consultation

Instead of asking yourself questions about subject matter related to medical malpractice claims, contact Liberman Cabrera Thompson & Reitman today. Gain knowledge and perspective from their decades of collective experience in this area of the law. You have so much to lose by waiting too long to file a claim or by learning too late about a potentially negligent act by a doctor. Contact our office today for a free consultation.