A medical malpractice incident can cause your life to turn upside down. Whether you suffer a terrible injury or have severe financial issues due to the negligence of a healthcare professional, you need to make sure you file your case as soon as possible.
The Florida Senate explains time is not on your side when filing a medical malpractice claim. There is a time limit called the statute of limitations.
The statute of limitations
You have two years from the date of the incident to file a claim. If you fail to file before this deadline, the court will throw out your case. You will have no further legal right to claim damages in the case.
Exceptions
If the incident did not produce a loss right away, you have two years from the time when you discovered the issue, but it must happen within four years of the original incident. If your case is on behalf of a minor, then you do have additional time, up to the child’s eighth birthday.
If there was some type of fraud or other activity to conceal the medical malpractice, then you have a two-year extension on the statute of limitation for filing your claim. However, the total limit, in this case, is seven years from when the incident originally occurred. Again, there is an exception for children under the age of eight.
If you have a medical malpractice case, time is not on your side. It can take a while to gather the evidence you need and to prepare for trial, so you should move quickly to file your claim.