Findlay Medical Malpractice Statute of Limitations

It is significant to know about the Findlay medical malpractice statute of limitations if you have suffered an injury due a negligent doctor’s actions because it will determine the amount of time someone has to bring a case. The length of this time limit largely depends on the patient’s age and the time of the malpractice discovery.

Although the Findlay medical malpractice statute of limitations is very short for adults, know that there are ways to potentially extend it with the help of a professional injury attorney by your side. Read on to learn more about how the Findlay medical malpractice statute of limitations could potentially affect your ability to successfully bring a claim today.

Defining the Statute of Limitations

The Findlay medical malpractice statute of limitations sets the time period to bring a lawsuit, meaning an injured patient can only bring a lawsuit for medical malpractice for an adult within one year from the date they knew or should have known there was malpractice. So, if someone files a case after the specific statute of limitations, the defense counsel can file a motion to dismiss the case so that it cannot proceed. If a case of medical malpractice occurs to a child, then they have the ability to wait up until the day before their 18th birthday to bring a claim. At that point, they are no longer considered a minor, so the regular statute of limitations kicks in and as a young adult they are only given one additional year to file a case.

Extending the Time Limit

Some potential ways of extending the Findlay medial malpractice statute of limitations would be to argue that a reasonable individual would not have known there was malpractice until they were told so by another doctor. A seasoned medical malpractice lawyer could also argue that the statute of limitations does not begin until the end of the doctor-patient relationship. So, for example, if the doctor allegedly committed medical negligence on June 1st but the doctor-patient relationship did not end until January 1st, the argument could be that the statute of limitations would end one year from January 1st rather than from June 1st.

Another way to extend the Findlay medical malpractice statute of limitations is through a 180-day letter.

If someone sends a certified letter that talks about the potential claim in writing and it is received by the doctor within the one-year statutory time period, they could extend the statute of limitations for an additional 180 days against the defendants to whom they have properly served those letters. In addition, an argument can be made if somebody who is in a state hospital under a guardianship was ruled mentally incompetent.

While these disabilities could provide a legitimate reason to extend the Findlay medical malpractice statute of limitations, know that there are different standards of proof for those very unusual circumstances.

Role of a Skilled Injury Attorney

Because the Findlay medical malpractice statute of limitations remains the shortest out of all personal injury cases, an individual needs to contact an attorney as soon as possible if they believe that their physician may have deviated from their proper standards of care. A dedicated malpractice lawyer will have experience in evaluating these cases quickly and efficiently in order to determine whether or not they would constitute going to court. If you or a loved one wish to bring charges based on the negligence of a medical professional, retain the expertise of a qualified injury attorney today.