Northern California Medical Malpractice Lawyer

Healthcare Professionals Have a Duty

The medical malpractice lawyers at our Chico, Roseville, Sacramento, and Northern California offices have extensive experience with this field of law and are uniquely capable of handling medical malpractice cases. Mr. Larry Buckley, our firm's founder, started his career in medical malpractice litigation and has a background in science.

This provides him with unique insight on these cases. Rest assured, we will work with your best interests in mind. To arrange a free consultation with a member of our team, please don't hesitate to contact the Law Offices of Larry S. Buckley today. We would be happy to speak with you regarding your potential claim.

Schedule a consultation by submitting your information, or call (530) 413-0245 to speak with us today!

Damages and Eligibility

Healthcare professionals have a legal and professional obligation to abide by an industry-standard of care. If a healthcare professional fails to live up to this standard - through medical error, misdiagnosis, or omission of treatment - and the victim suffers injury or death as a result, it's possible to hold the negligent party or parties accountable through legal action. Individuals who are injured may be able to recover damages for a variety of factors, including loss of wages, medical expenses, and pain and suffering.

In the event that medical malpractice results in permanent injury, we will work with economic experts to determine lifetime costs, including associated expenses and loss of wages, to ensure that the victim receives fair and just compensation. If a loved one has been killed, we can help you file a wrongful death suit so that your family is justly compensated for its suffering. Damages in wrongful death cases can include loss of income, funeral expenses, and pain and suffering.

Establishing Liability

According to the HealthGrades Patient Safety in American Hospitals study, some 100,000 people die of potentially preventable, in-hospital medical errors in the United States every year. These numbers illustrate clearly the real danger posed by medical malpractice. At the Law Offices of Larry S. Buckley, we work with top experts in the fields of medicine to establish what the standard of care is, whether or not it was met by the defendant, and whether or not this failure to abide by the industry standard of practice resulted in the plaintiff's injury.

Specific examples may include anesthesia complications, leaving a foreign object inside the body, infection, and accidental punctures. Of the patients who experience these patient safety events, there is a one-in-ten chance of death, according to the findings by HealthGrades. Medical professionals have a duty to provide medical treatment that meets or exceeds the industry standard of care, and such incidences of patient safety events are simply unacceptable.

Victims' Rights

When speaking with our clients, the medical malpractice attorneys at our Chico, Roseville, and Sacramento offices go to great lengths to explain both victims' rights and the defendant's duty. Though in nearly all personal injury cases, there exists a duty on the part of the defendant, it's particularly pertinent in medical malpractice cases. The nature of the relationship between the plaintiff and the defendant in medical malpractice cases is unique.

If you or someone you love has suffered what you believe is a preventable in-office injury, you are entitled to compensation for damages, as it can be definitively shown that a duty was breached. Our

Northern California medical injury team can help ensure that you stand the best chance of obtaining the best possible recovery. Healthcare professionals and their employers have vast resources at their disposal and will aggressively defend their interests; we highly encourage you to take action so that you have equal resources and expertise on your side.

What Is the Statue of Limitations on Medical Malpractice Claims in California?

Like other types of personal injury claims, California imposes a statute of limitations on personal injury claims involving medical malpractice. This means you only have a certain amount of time to bring your claim; failing to bring your claim within that window will almost certainly result in the court dismissing your case.

In California, the statute of limitations on medical malpractice claims is three years from the date of injury or one year from the date on which the plaintiff discovered or reasonably should have discovered the injury, whichever comes first. In short, if you are aware of the injury on the date it occurred, you only have one year to bring your claim. Regardless of when you discover (or reasonably should have discovered) the injury, once three years have passed since the date the alleged malpractice occurred, you are ineligible to bring a claim.

There are several exceptions to the three-year statute of limitations on medical malpractice claims, but they are rare. However, these exceptions include when the injury was concealed through a medical practitioner’s fraud, when the victim of malpractice was a minor, and when the malpractice involved a medical professional unintentionally leaving a foreign object inside the body during/after surgery. To learn more, please contact the Law Offices of Larry S. Buckley today.

Our Philosophy

At the Law Offices of Larry S. Buckley, we are committed to helping our clients. If you require constant medical care because of an in-hospital injury but are unable to afford treatment, we can set you up with a network of doctors, therapists, and healthcare providers to ensure that you receive the treatment you need. These board-certified doctors are happy to work with us to provide our clients care on a lean basis, and are among the best in the industry.

We do this because we believe in the value of customer service. This is the level of service that you can expect should you solicit counsel and representation from our Northern California medical malpractice lawyers. Our offices are located in Chico, Roseville, Sacramento, Redding, and Yuba City, and we handle cases in State and Federal Court, statewide.

Medical Malpractice FAQ

• What kinds of damages are available in a medical malpractice lawsuit?
  A medical malpractice claimant can seek the same or similar damages as a claimant in any other type of personal injury claim. Past and future medical treatment costs, past and future lost income, and pain and suffering are three cornerstone damages in most medical malpractice lawsuits. In a medical malpractice claim, it might also be possible to receive punitive damages, which penalize the medical practitioner or institution for egregious negligence. Punitive damages are paid directly by the defendant, not their insurer, so they are uncommon.
• Who can I sue in a medical malpractice claim?
  Individual medical professionals – like doctors, nurses, surgeons, pharmacists, obstetricians, etc. – are often the defendants in medical malpractice claims. However, they are often not the only defendants. It is common for the medical clinic or hospital group that employed the medical professional to also be a defendant if it can be shown that it contributed to the patient’s injuries.
• What is the statute of limitations for a medical malpractice case?
  In California, medical malpractice claims have a three-year statute of limitations, which begins on the date of the injury. The law acknowledges that the harm caused through medical negligence is not always immediately noticeable, though. For example, if you are given an unsafe prescription, then you might not notice any dangerous side effects until several years later. This is why California also allows the statute of limitations to begin on the date that the injury should have been reasonably noticed by a patient who took the due diligence to preserve their own health. Once the statute of limitations expires, a court can reject any future claim filed against the defendant.
• Is poor treatment the same as medical malpractice?
  Countless patients each year are unhappy with the medical treatments they receive from their primary care physicians and other medical professionals. Not liking your treatment or thinking that it is of poor quality is not enough to justify a medical malpractice case, though. Medical malpractice only occurs if you are harmed by a mistake that another medical professional reasonably would not have made in the same situation.

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What Our Clients Have to Say About Us

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• Understanding the Statute of Limitations for Medical Malpractice Claims
• Medical Malpractice: Misdiagnosis or Failure to Diagnose