In NSW you must lodge your “initiating claim” within three years from the date of injury or diagnosis. However, long-stop periods and considerations can be given to children and people with disabilities. If you’ve exceeded a time limitation, time extensions might be available, so you should speak with one of our specialist medical negligence lawyers who can provide you with advice on your situation.

Medical negligence claims in Australia often take years to settle. This is because claims can be complex, and it may be necessary to wait for injuries to stabilise before a claim can be made.

However, it’s possible for claims to settle in a shorter timeframe if injuries have stabilised and there’s clear evidence of medical negligence, or if your circumstances require a more urgent settlement.

It’s difficult to access data on medical negligence claims across NSW as a whole, but we can look at local health districts within NSW. According to data obtained by the Northern Daily Leader* in a freedom of information request, the Hunter New England Health Service made 105 medical negligence claims payouts in NSW between October 1, 2016, and October 1, 2018. The average medical negligence payout for this NSW region was more than $650,000.

This figure is considered high and it’s likely that the average across NSW is lower than $650,000, as payouts of this magnitude generally indicate quite serious medical negligence cases.

*Ref: https://www.northerndailyleader.com.au/story/6249086/hunter-new-england-health-district-pays-out-69-million-for-medical-mistakes/

To prove medical negligence, you need to prove that the medical practitioner or facility had a duty of care, and that duty was breached. Or, looking at it another way, you need to prove that the treatment was below the standard of care and skill that a reasonable professional would have provided in the same circumstances. You also need to prove that your injury would have been avoided if your care had been appropriate.

To provide this proof, you’ll need to have a thorough assessment conducted by a medical expert that concludes the practitioner was negligent.

When you first call, our medical negligence lawyer will assess your situation and form an opinion on whether you have a valid claim. We’ll start by going through your medical records to determine whether they support an allegation of medical negligence. The next step is to consult one or more qualified medical professionals and get written reports to back up the allegation of medical negligence. We can only win your case if we have evidence from a medico-legal expert that medical negligence has occurred.

Once we’ve established the likelihood of success with your claim, we’ll advise you on your options. If you decide to proceed, we’ll take care of the whole process, starting with compiling all the evidence needed including medical records, witness statements, medical reports and forensic accounting reports to substantiate your claim.

Our medical negligence lawyer will provide you with a costs agreement to sign before taking on your claim. It’s important to understand that fee structure and costs agreements vary between different lawyers – here are some things you should know:

• Medical negligence lawyers in Sydney and NSW can’t take a percentage of your compensation claim.
• Some medical negligence lawyers charge an hourly rate, while others work on fixed rates according to a schedule of services they provide. Beware of agreeing to an hourly rate, as it might put you off talking to your lawyer for fear of running up a large bill.
• We work on a no-win-no fee basis, so you only pay our fees after we win your case and you get your compensation.
• Some medical negligence lawyers will ask you to pay up front for expenses such as medico-legal reports, travel costs or court fees, or charge you interest on these expenses. We’ll fully fund your claim for you and we won’t charge you interest on any expenses we incur.
• Some firms will still charge you for disbursements* if they don’t win your case. With Law Partners, if we don’t win you won’t have to pay anything.

*Disbursements are costs incurred by the law firm in the course of running your medical negligence claim.

Caring for our clients drives everything we do – that’s why thousands of Australians every year choose Law Partners.

• We’ll match you with a lawyer who specialises medical negligence claims.
• We’ll build a personal relationship with you and your family to make sure we understand the true impact of your injuries or illness.
• Your medical negligence legal team will check in with you regularly and always keep you up to date with your case.
• We win over 99% of our cases and pride ourselves in winning more compensation.