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Wyoming Medical Malpractice Lawyer

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Wyoming allows for the recovery of losses to a patient or their family in the event of injury or death due to the negligence of a health care provider. Heath care providers can be doctors, nurses, pharmacists, hospitals, dentists or any other health care facility or professional. An attorney specializing in medical malpractice attorney can help you understand and pursue your claim.

Medical malpractice is defined as an act or an omission by a health care provider who is professionally negligent, and who provides care which is not of accepted standards in the medical community, and which also causes death or injury to a patient. Medical malpractice falls under tort law, and is intended to give to the injured patient compensation for damages.
Medical malpractice attorneys are similar to general personal injury attorneys, in that they usually provide a free initial consultation to discuss the merits of your case. During this appointment your attorney will discuss the attorney fee structure as governed by Wyoming law.

Wyoming has established rules for contingency fee agreements, under which the attorney is paid a percentage of the final settlement. Legal costs, ranging from expert witness fees to copy costs, are typically excluded from this fee structure, and should be discussed with your attorney.
Often one of the highest costs in a medical malpractice case is for expert witness fees. Expert witnesses are often health care professionals who can testify to the appropriate standard of medical care, how the defendant deviated from this standard, and how the patient's injury is directly related to this deviation. Only in very rare cases, where the medical error is so obvious that it does not require specific medical knowledge to understand the circumstance, is an expert witness not required.

Medical malpractice cases are time-consuming and complicated. It may take years for a case to come to a conclusion. When choosing an attorney to represent you, keep in mind that this relationship will last for quite a while. You will also have contact with other staff at your attorney's office, such as paralegals and possibly a nurse legal consultant. Staff members will help to prepare your case and keep you informed throughout the process.

In Wyoming, as in other states, there is a time limit to file a medical malpractice case. This is called the statute of limitations. Your attorney can help you determine this date, but it is generally within two years of the injury or of discovery of the injury, if it is not immediately apparent. Wyoming also requires that cases be reviewed by a medical panel to substantiate your case. The results are non-binding and may be admitted as evidence in a subsequent trial.

Wyoming does not limit the amount of damages you can recover due to medical negligence. Economic and non-economic damages can be requested. Economic damages include lost wages and medical expenses, while non-economic damages include pain and suffering.

73% of settled medical malpractice cases involved a medical error, and a recent study showed that an average of 195,000 deaths in a hospital from 2000 to 2002 in the U.S. occurred because of potentially preventable medical errors. Medical errors harm about 1.5 million people every year, and 400,000 preventable drug-related injuries occur in hospitals every year, 800,000 in long-term care settings, and 530,000 in outpatient clinics.

In Wyoming, a wrongful death action has to be brought within the two years of the decedent's death. There is also no limit to the amount of damages that may be recovered.

Wyoming has many experienced and reputable malpractice attorneys. The Wyoming Bar Association provides a free lawyer referral service to help find an attorney in your area.