What is a birth injury lawsuit?
A birth injury lawsuit is a legal claim filed by families seeking financial compensation for preventable harm that occurred before, during, or shortly after childbirth.
Birth injury lawsuits are filed against the hospitals, doctors, nurses, or other medical personnel who may be responsible for a child’s injuries.
Birth injuries can leave families with significant treatment expenses that they could never have planned for. By taking legal action, many families are able to get compensation to improve their child's quality of life.
Watch our short video to learn more about birth injury lawsuits.
Learn how birth injury lawsuits support families who have been impacted. You may be able to access financial assistance to provide a better future for your child. View Transcript.
Duration: 1 min 19 sec
A birth injury lawsuit gives families the opportunity to hold negligent medical staff accountable for their child's preventable birth injury. A lawsuit can help you get the money you need to pay for your child's treatment and future needs.
If your child suffered a preventable birth injury, Cerebral Palsy Guide can help you get the compensation you deserve. We work with top birth injury law firms across the country. Together, they've recovered over $800 million for families affected by preventable birth injuries.
We understand the challenges and costs of raising a child who has suffered a birth injury. That's why we're committed to helping families like yours. Compensation can cover medical bills, therapy expenses, special equipment, and other necessary treatments.
Your child's birth injury treatment shouldn't burden your family financially. A birth injury lawsuit can provide the funds to pay for the specialized care your child needs. It's time to take action and ensure your child's future is secure.
To learn more about how a birth injury lawsuit can help your family, call or visit our website. Our experienced legal team is here to guide you and fight for your rights.
Visit www.cerebralpalsyguide.com today and take the first step towards securing a better future for your child.
While each birth injury lawsuit is different, some have awarded millions of dollars to cover medical expenses like surgery, medications, therapy, and other care costs.
Cerebral Palsy Guide partners with top law firms that can help families file birth injury lawsuits in all 50 states. Together, they have secured over $1 billion for preventable birth injuries.
Find out if we can help you file a birth injury lawsuit with a free case review right now.
Birth injury compensation our legal partners secured
Experienced birth injury law firms are known for the payouts they secure for their clients. This financial compensation can come from birth injury lawsuit settlements or trial verdicts.
In March 2025, a Missouri jury awarded $48.1 million in a birth injury lawsuit after a baby was left with brain damage and cerebral palsy from mismanaged prolonged labor.
No amount of money can change what happened to families affected by preventable birth injuries, but knowing their future is secure can offer some peace of mind.
- $10.4 million+ on behalf of a child in Pennsylvania with cerebral palsy (CP)
- $8 million for a New York family whose child was injured during vacuum extraction
- $7.8 million for a Florida family with a child who developed cerebral palsy
- $5.1 million on behalf of a Texas child who suffered from neonatal asphyxia
- $4.5 million to an Illinois family whose child developed Erb’s palsy
- $2 million+ on behalf of a North Carolina child with a brachial plexus injury
- $4.1 million for a child who suffered umbilical cord strangulation and fetal distress
- $5 million for a Massachusetts child for brain damage during delivery
- $6 million for a California family whose child developed CP
Each case is unique, but knowing the results of similar birth injury lawsuits can help you understand how much your case may be worth. If your child was injured, you could also be eligible for compensation.
Call us right now at (855) 220-1101 or Click to Live Chat to see if we can connect you with a top birth injury attorney near you.
Medical negligence and birth injury lawsuits
Medical negligence can cause severe birth injuries, affecting a child's life forever and creating significant financial strain on families.
Birth injury lawsuits offer a way for families to seek justice and compensation for preventable injuries caused by negligent medical professionals.
- Brain damage
- Cerebral palsy
- Erb’s palsy
- Hydrocephalus
- Hypoxic-ischemic encephalopathy (HIE)
- Infant meningitis
- Intrauterine fetal demise (stillbirth)
- Intraventricular hemorrhage (IVH)
- Kernicterus
- Meconium aspiration syndrome (MAS)
- Neonatal asphyxia
- Periventricular leukomalacia (PVL)
- Shoulder dystocia
- Skull fractures
These conditions often result from improper use of delivery tools, failure to monitor and respond to fetal distress, delayed cesarean sections (C-sections), and other lapses in proper care.
Many families feel frustrated and ignored by health care providers when things go wrong during childbirth. These unanswered questions can cause a tremendous emotional burden.
Birth injury lawsuits can provide a path to answers and justice.
Types of birth injury lawsuits
Birth injury lawsuits typically fall under two categories: medical malpractice personal injury lawsuits and wrongful death lawsuits.
If a baby suffered significant injuries that affect their quality of life, lawyers can file a medical malpractice birth injury lawsuit against the health care professionals responsible.
Unfortunately, some medical mistakes during childbirth can lead to a baby’s death. If this is the case, lawyers will file a wrongful death lawsuit.
Learn more about the types of birth injury lawsuits below.
Medical malpractice birth injury lawsuits
Medical negligence
occurs when a doctor or nurse makes a decision that goes against professional standards and harms the mother or child.
Doctors and nurses are trained to provide appropriate care for mothers and newborns. Medical professionals should be aware of the consequences of medical negligence, yet some still make poor decisions with lasting consequences.
Wrongful death birth injury lawsuits
Some deaths during childbirth could have been prevented if doctors had not been negligent in their care. Wrongful death birth injury lawsuits can be filed if a doctor makes a fatal mistake before, during, or shortly after delivery.
Cerebral Palsy Guide has experienced and compassionate labor and delivery nurses on staff who are available to talk with you about what went wrong during your child’s birth.
Connect with a registered nurse right now.
Kristin Proctor, RN
Registered Nurse for 20+ Years
Birth injury lawsuit process
When you file a labor and delivery lawsuit, you can expect your lawyers to build a case against the doctors, nurses, or other medical professionals who delivered your child and fight for as much money as possible.
Most lawsuits generally follow the same process, but each case is different. Get a better understanding of the steps below.
1. Getting a free consultation
During this process, a member of the attorney’s legal team will listen to your story, ask questions about your child's injury, and help determine if you may have a case. Get your free case review right now.
2. Collecting evidence
If your birth injury lawyer believes you have a valid claim, your legal team will conduct a thorough investigation and collect detailed evidence.
- Expert testimonies from medical specialists
- Medical records of prenatal care, labor, and delivery
- Photographs or videos of injuries
- Statements from witnesses present during childbirth
- Treatment records showing ongoing care and costs
Your attorney will use this evidence to prove medical malpractice and build a strong birth injury lawsuit.
3. Filing the birth injury lawsuit
Next, your lawyer will file your birth injury lawsuit to demand the compensation needed to pay for your child’s lifetime care. This step starts the formal process of seeking compensation from those responsible.
By working with an experienced attorney, you can help make sure your birth injury lawsuit is filed by the deadline that applies to your case.
4. Negotiating a settlement
Lawyers specializing in birth injury lawsuits negotiate with negligent medical professionals and their insurance companies on your behalf. They aim to secure a settlement covering your child's medical expenses, ongoing care, and other related costs.
If a settlement isn’t reached, your birth injury lawsuit may proceed to court. However, roughly 95% of personal injury lawsuits settle, according to the Law Dictionary.
5. Going to court if necessary
If your birth injury lawsuit goes to trial, your lawyer will continue to fight for your family in court. They will present evidence, make legal arguments, and advocate for your family to secure the maximum compensation possible for your child's injuries.
Why should I file a birth injury lawsuit?
One of the main goals of a lawsuit is to obtain financial compensation to pay for birth injury treatment costs. Care costs for severe birth injuries can put a significant financial strain on families.
A Florida mother filed a birth injury lawsuit after a midwife caused a brachial plexus injury that left her baby’s arm permanently damaged. She lost her job while getting him to a specialist for surgery.
Health care costs for children with cerebral palsy are up to 26 times greater than those without the condition, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).
- Adaptive equipment and home modifications
- Emotional damages, like pain and suffering, and loss of companionship
- Medical costs, including past and future expenses
- Physical therapy and rehabilitation
- Other medical and quality-of-life expenses
During a birth injury lawsuit, your legal team will map out the projected costs of your child’s care through a life care plan. If your case is successful, you may be awarded compensation to cover these expenses.
Most life care plans estimate future care costs using current data and research. In some cases, you and your attorney may work with a life care planner to estimate these costs.
Successful birth injury lawsuits can also hold the doctors who delivered your child responsible for the harm they caused.
Therefore, birth injury lawsuits may help provide closure and justice. Further, lawsuits can help other families learn the dangers of birth injuries and the doctors who caused them, protecting future mothers and their babies.
Deadlines for birth injury cases
You should consider filing a birth injury lawsuit as soon as you spot signs of a birth injury in your child. Getting a head start on the legal process may help you access compensation as quickly as possible.
One of the biggest factors in filing a birth injury lawsuit is the statute of limitations. This law puts a time limit on how long you have to file your lawsuit.
The statute of limitations varies for each state, so it is very important to consult a reputable birth injury law firm in your area to determine how long you have to file.
Most families have 2 or 3 years to file a birth injury lawsuit. Typically, the statute of limitations starts when the injury occurred or when the harm should have reasonably been discovered.
For all of these reasons, it is important to take action without delay.
Get help filing a birth injury claim
Careless mistakes made by doctors, nurses, and other medical professionals during childbirth can cause your child to require lifelong treatment.
Permanent birth injuries are often incredibly costly to manage, and they can usually be prevented with proper medical care. A successful birth injury lawsuit can provide money to help pay for your child’s treatment costs and hold those at fault accountable.
Our partner birth injury attorneys can help families file birth injury lawsuits in all 50 states. Together, they have recovered over $1 billion for families nationwide.
Call Cerebral Palsy Guide at (855) 220-1101 right now or get a free case review to find out if we can help you seek justice.
