Learning that your beloved newborn has suffered a preventable birth injury creates overwhelming emotions for parents. Baltimore families affected by medical negligence during childbirth face substantial emotional distress alongside hefty medical bills and uncertainty about their child’s future. A Baltimore birth injury lawyer from Schochor, Staton, Goldberg and Cardea, P.A. provides the compassionate legal guidance your family needs during this turbulent time.
Our experienced attorneys understand the hardships of birth injury cases and the specific legal requirements within Baltimore. We help families secure the financial resources needed for specialized care while holding negligent medical providers accountable for their actions.
Common Causes of Birth Injuries Due to Medical Negligence
Birth injuries often result from specific failures by medical professionals to follow established standards of care. Understanding how these injuries occur strengthens your potential legal claim and aids in securing proper compensation.
Oxygen Deprivation (Birth Asphyxia)
Birth asphyxia occurs when an infant’s brain doesn’t receive adequate oxygen during labor or delivery. This serious condition may result from failure to recognize umbilical cord complications, inadequate response to signs of fetal distress on monitoring equipment, or delayed intervention when the baby shows signs of oxygen deprivation.
The consequences of birth asphyxia can be severe and long-lasting. Medical research published in the Journal of Perinatal Medicine confirms that even brief periods of oxygen deprivation can lead to hypoxic-ischemic encephalopathy (HIE), cerebral palsy, and other permanent brain injuries requiring lifelong care and support.
Delayed C-Section
When complications arise during labor, timely cesarean delivery can prevent significant birth injuries. Medical facilities must follow precise protocols for emergency C-sections, including prompt recognition of fetal distress indicators, efficient preparation of surgical teams, and timely decision-making by attending physicians.
According to research published in the American Journal of Obstetrics and Gynecology, delays for emergency C-sections markedly increase risks of permanent brain damage and other severe complications. When healthcare providers fail to perform timely C-sections despite clear indications of distress, they may be held liable for resulting injuries.
Improper Fetal Monitoring
Delivery rooms utilize electronic fetal monitoring to track vital signs during labor. Effective monitoring requires continuous attention to fetal heart rate patterns, recognition of concerning variables that indicate distress, clear communication between nursing staff and physicians, and swift intervention when monitoring shows potential problems.
The American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (ACOG) has established detailed guidelines for fetal monitoring interpretation. When hospital staff fail to interpret monitoring data or communicate concerns to physicians properly, babies may suffer preventable brain injuries, nerve damage, or other grave conditions that could have been avoided with attentive care.
Misuse of Delivery Tools
In difficult deliveries, obstetricians sometimes use assistive devices like forceps or vacuum extractors. While these tools can be necessary, improper use can cause devastating injuries.
Forceps can cause skull fractures, facial nerve damage, or brain bleeds. Vacuum extractors may lead to subgaleal hemorrhages or cephalohematomas. Excessive pulling can damage the brachial plexus nerves, causing Erb’s palsy or similar conditions.
Medical centers must ensure physicians have thorough training in instrumental delivery techniques. When doctors apply excessive force or use these tools in contraindicated situations, they may be held responsible for resulting injuries.
Medication or Treatment Errors
Medication mistakes during pregnancy, labor, or delivery can have dire consequences for both mother and baby. For example, the Food and Drug Administration explained that improper administration of Pitocin (labor-inducing drug) can cause uterine hyperstimulation and fetal distress.
Additionally, failure to treat maternal infections can lead to sepsis in the newborn. Mismanagement of maternal conditions like gestational diabetes or preeclampsia can harm the baby. Anesthesia errors may compromise both maternal and fetal well-being.
The Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality reports that medication errors may occur in hospitalized patients, including labor and delivery units. Medical facilities must maintain rigorous medication protocols and ensure all staff follow established safety procedures to prevent these hazardous errors.
Other Preventable Errors
Additional forms of medical negligence that can cause birth injuries include failure to consult specialists for high-risk pregnancies, insufficient prenatal screening for potential complications, flawed communication during shift changes or between departments, staffing shortages that compromise patient safety, and dismissing patient concerns or symptoms requiring immediate attention.
Each birth injury case has distinct circumstances, and a methodical investigation is necessary to identify all instances of negligence that contributed to your child’s injury.
Determining Liability: Identifying Responsible Parties
Birth injury cases often involve multiple responsible parties, and your Baltimore birth injury attorney will investigate to identify all potentially liable parties to ensure full compensation.
Delivering Obstetrician or Medical Doctor
The primary physician overseeing your delivery has significant responsibility for your care and may be liable if they failed to identify or address risk factors during pregnancy, made errors during the delivery process, used inappropriate delivery techniques or excessive force, delayed necessary interventions like emergency C-sections, or failed to respond to fetal distress properly.
When physicians fail to meet the standard of care, they can be held accountable regardless of their reputation or hospital affiliation.
Nurses and Medical Staff
Labor and delivery nurses have critical responsibilities. They must monitor fetal heart rates and maternal vital signs, recognize warning signs that require physician attention, implement physician orders correctly, document important information accurately, and communicate effectively with the medical team.
When nursing staff fail in these duties, they may share liability for resulting birth injuries.
Hospital or Medical Facility
Hospitals and birthing centers may be held responsible for birth injuries under several legal theories. These include direct liability for systemic failures like inadequate protocols or staffing, vicarious liability for the negligence of employed healthcare providers, corporate negligence for failing to credential or supervise staff properly, and responsibility for equipment failures or facilities issues.
These institutions have a duty to maintain safe environments with proper equipment, qualified staff, and effective safety protocols.
Other Healthcare Providers
Additional medical professionals who may bear responsibility include anesthesiologists who administer epidurals or other pain management, perinatologists who manage high-risk pregnancies, maternal-fetal medicine specialists who provide specialized care, neonatologists responsible for newborn care, and radiologists who interpret prenatal ultrasounds or other imaging.
Your birth injury attorney will conduct a thorough investigation to determine which healthcare providers failed to meet the standard of care and how their negligence contributed to your child’s injury.
Maryland Birth Injury Laws and Your Rights
Baltimore birth injury cases are governed by Maryland state law, which includes specific provisions that can significantly impact your claim.
Statute of Limitations
The time limits for filing birth injury claims in Maryland are strict:
- General Rule: Under Maryland Courts and Judicial Proceedings § 5-109, medical malpractice claims typically must be filed within the earlier of five years from when the injury occurred or three years from when the injury was discovered.
- Minors: For children under 11 years old, Maryland law extends the deadline. Claims can be filed until the child’s 11th birthday or within the standard timeframe, whichever provides more time. This extension recognizes that some birth injuries may not be immediately apparent.
- Wrongful Death: If a birth injury resulted in death, surviving family members generally have three years from the date of death to file a wrongful death claim.
Missing these deadlines can permanently bar your right to compensation, regardless of how severe the negligence was or how clear the liability might be. This makes prompt consultation with a Baltimore birth injury attorney essential.
Maryland’s Damage Caps
Maryland law limits certain types of compensation in medical malpractice cases:
- Non-Economic Damages Cap: Maryland Courts and Judicial Proceedings § 3-2A-09 restricts non-economic damages (pain and suffering) in medical malpractice cases. As of 2025, this cap is approximately $905,000 for most cases, with slight annual increases. For wrongful death cases with multiple beneficiaries, higher limits may apply.
- No Cap on Economic Damages: Importantly, Maryland does not limit economic damages like medical expenses, lost wages, and costs of ongoing care. This allows Baltimore families to recover the full amount of current and future financial losses related to the birth injury.
Understanding these caps is crucial when evaluating potential settlements and determining fair compensation for your family’s losses.
Other Maryland Requirements
Additional legal requirements affect Baltimore birth injury claims:
- Health Care Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR) Office: Maryland requires medical malpractice claims to be filed with this office Plaintiffs can waive arbitration and proceed directly to court, but this filing step is mandatory.
- Certificate of Qualified Expert: Maryland law requires filing a certificate from a qualified medical expert who confirms that the medical care violated professional standards and caused the injury. This certificate must be obtained within 90 days of filing the claim.
- Contributory Negligence: Maryland follows a strict contributory negligence rule, meaning if the plaintiff is found even 1% at fault, they may be barred from recovery. In birth injury cases, this rarely applies to the injured child but could potentially affect claims by the parents.
These requirements make Baltimore birth injury cases procedurally complicated, requiring attorneys with specific experience in these matters.
Damages Available in a Baltimore Birth Injury Claim
Families affected by birth injuries in Baltimore may seek several types of compensation to address both immediate and long-term needs.
Medical Expenses and Future Care
Birth injuries often require extensive medical treatment throughout a child’s life, including emergency interventions immediately after birth, hospitalizations and surgical procedures, rehabilitation therapies (physical, occupational, speech), specialized medical equipment and assistive devices, home modifications to accommodate disabilities, ongoing medications and treatments, and professional caregiving services.
The American Society for the Positive Care of Children (American SPCC) explained that some birth injuries mean long-term disabilities or permanent ones. The consequences would require continuous medical care, special appliances, and accommodations for the welfare of the child.
Families can seek compensation for both current medical bills and the projected cost of future care. Medical economists and life care planners often testify regarding the substantial financial resources needed for a lifetime of specialized care, particularly for conditions like cerebral palsy or severe brain injuries.
Lost Income and Financial Losses
Birth injuries can create significant financial strain beyond medical expenses. Parents may experience lost income while caring for an injured child. Children with permanent disabilities face reduced earning capacity. Families often encounter additional costs for specialized education and training, transportation expenses for medical appointments, and loss of household services and contributions.
The American SPCC observed that when a newborn suffers a birth injury, one or both parents must stop working and spend their time caring for their baby. That means lost income on top of the accumulating expenses. Many even have to quit their job in order to care for their child all the time. In those cases, the loss of income will then be permanent.
These economic damages are not subject to any statutory cap in Maryland, allowing for full recovery of all financial losses related to the injury.
Pain and Suffering
Birth injuries can cause significant physical and emotional distress. Children may experience physical pain from the injury and subsequent treatments. Both children and their families often suffer emotional trauma and mental anguish. The injury may result in loss of enjoyment of normal activities, diminished quality of life, and psychological impacts like anxiety or depression.
While these non-economic damages are subject to Maryland’s statutory cap, they remain an important component of birth injury compensation, acknowledging the profound impact these injuries have on the child and family.
Compassionate, Experienced Legal Representation for Birth Injury Victims
Baltimore families facing the challenges of a birth injury need attorneys who understand both the emotional and legal aspects of these cases.
Guidance and Support
Our birth injury lawyers provide compassionate support throughout the legal process. We offer clear explanations of your legal rights and options, regular updates on your case’s progress, assistance in dealing with the state’s healthcare system, connections to support resources for families and honest assessment of case strengths and challenges.
We understand that this may be the most difficult time in your family’s life, and we approach each case with sensitivity and respect.
Investigation and Expert Analysis
Building a strong birth injury case requires thorough investigation. This includes obtaining and reviewing all relevant medical records, consulting with top medical experts across relevant specialties, analyzing fetal monitoring strips and other technical data, interviewing witnesses and healthcare providers, and reviewing hospital protocols and standards of care.
Our attorneys collaborate with medical professionals to build scientifically sound, compelling cases.
Identifying All Liable Parties
Comprehensive accountability is essential in birth injury cases. Our process includes a thorough review of all healthcare providers involved in the mother’s care, analysis of hospital policies and procedures, examination of staffing patterns and supervision, investigation of equipment maintenance and functionality, and exploration of systemic issues that contributed to the injury.
By identifying all responsible parties, we ensure that your family receives full compensation and that all negligent actors are held accountable.
Handling Insurance and Legal Filings
Our attorneys manage all procedural aspects of your claim. We prepare and file required documents with the Health Care ADR Office, obtain qualified expert certificates within the timeframes needed, respond to defense motions and legal challenges, negotiate with insurance companies and defense attorneys, and manage discovery processes.
These technical legal requirements demand experienced representation to avoid procedural pitfalls that could jeopardize your claim.
Negotiating Settlements or Fighting in Court
We pursue fair compensation through all available means. Our approach includes preparing comprehensive settlement demands based on thorough damage calculations, engaging in effective negotiation with insurance companies and defense counsel, representing your interests in mediation or settlement conferences, preparing compelling trial presentations when settlement offers are inadequate, and presenting medical evidence in understandable terms to judges and juries.
While many cases settle before trial, we prepare every case as if it will go to court, ensuring we negotiate from a position of strength.
Achieving Justice and Closure
Beyond financial compensation, our birth injury attorneys help families hold negligent providers accountable for substandard care and advocate for improved safety protocols to prevent future injuries.
With our clients, we strive to achieve a sense of closure and justice following preventable harm and secure the financial resources needed to provide the best possible life for their injured child.
Contact a Baltimore Birth Injury Attorney
Our experienced Baltimore birth injury attorneys at Schochor, Staton, Goldberg and Cardea, P.A. offer free, confidential consultations to evaluate your potential claim. We’ll provide straightforward answers about your legal options and the strength of your case.
If your child suffered an injury during birth at any Baltimore medical facility, don’t wait to seek legal help. The decisions you make in the weeks and months following a birth injury can significantly impact your ability to secure the compensation your family deserves.
Contact us today to discuss your situation with an attorney who understands both the medical and legal aspects of birth injury cases in Baltimore. Your family deserves compassionate advocacy and skilled representation.