Brooklyn Medical Malpractice Attorneys
Medical malpractice is a core part of what we do, and we are one of the few firms in the area willing to take these cases. A medical error is not always obvious when it happens. Sometimes the problem becomes apparent only after a second physician reviews the records, a condition worsens despite repeated visits, or a family discovers that an important test result was never acted on.
A Brooklyn medical malpractice lawyer at Finz & Finz P.C. can examine the medical record, consult qualified medical professionals, and determine whether the care may have fallen below the applicable standard. We handle claims involving hospitals, physicians, nurses, emergency departments, surgical care, diagnosis, birth injuries, and wrongful death.
Our Brooklyn office is located at 31 Spencer St, Suite 1202, Brooklyn, NY 11205. Call 718-946-2273 for a free case review.
Medical Malpractice Cases We Handle in Brooklyn
Brooklyn Medical Malpractice Attorneys at Finz & Finz
Medical malpractice in Brooklyn can take many forms, from a missed diagnosis to an error during surgery or inadequate monitoring in a hospital. We handle a broad range of medical negligence claims, and our approach depends on the medical issue, the evidence in the record, and the injury that followed.
Misdiagnosis
A misdiagnosis occurs when a provider identifies the wrong condition when the available information should have led to a different one, and the patient may then be treated for that wrong condition while the actual illness progresses. We review test results, physician notes, and treatment decisions to determine whether the diagnostic process may have fallen below the applicable standard of care.
Failure to Diagnose
A failure to diagnose occurs when a provider does not identify a condition that should have been detected from the patient’s history, examination, or test results. These cases can involve a failure to order appropriate testing, an overlooked abnormal finding, or no referral for further evaluation. We examine what the provider knew at the time and work with qualified medical professionals on what should have been done.
Delayed Diagnosis
Delay in diagnosis can become a malpractice claim when the delay causes an injury or worsens an existing condition. The fact that a physician eventually reached the correct diagnosis does not resolve the issue if an earlier diagnosis could have changed the treatment or the outcome, and the range of conditions involved is wide. We reconstruct the treatment timeline to determine when warning signs appeared, what providers knew, and whether the delay caused additional harm.
Hospital and Emergency Room Malpractice
Hospital malpractice can involve failures by the institution itself rather than a single physician’s clinical decision. Claims may involve inadequate supervision, communication failures, unsafe systems, medication administration, monitoring, or deficient safety procedures. Emergency department claims can involve:
- Premature discharge
- Failure to order appropriate testing
- Failure to identify a stroke or a heart attack
- Medication mistakes
- Failure to respond to a change in the patient’s condition
We review triage records, vital-sign data, diagnostic testing, physician and nursing notes, medication records, and discharge instructions when investigating a hospital or emergency department claim.
Surgical Errors
Surgical errors can occur before, during, or after an operation. Potential claims may involve wrong-site surgery, preventable procedural mistakes, inadequate preparation, anesthesia problems, failure to recognize complications, or inadequate post-operative care. We examine operative reports, anesthesia charts, nursing documentation, and imaging to understand how the injury occurred.
Medication Errors
Medication errors can involve prescribing, dispensing, administering, or monitoring a drug. Examples include an incorrect dosage, failure to account for a known allergy or interaction, giving medication to the wrong patient, or failing to monitor a known risk. We review medication records, prescriptions, provider instructions, and the treatment that followed.
Lack of Informed Consent
New York treats lack of informed consent as its own claim, separate from a claim that the treatment itself was negligent. Under Public Health Law § 2805-d, a claim arises when a provider fails to disclose the alternatives and the reasonably foreseeable risks and benefits that a reasonable practitioner would have disclosed.
The claim is limited. It reaches non-emergency treatment, procedures, and surgery, along with diagnostic procedures that invade the integrity of the body, and the patient must show that a reasonably prudent person in the same position would have declined the treatment if fully informed.
Birth Injuries and Neonatal Malpractice
Medical errors during pregnancy, labor, delivery, or newborn care can cause birth injuries with effects that may continue throughout a child’s life. Claims can involve failures in fetal monitoring, delayed intervention, improper use of delivery instruments, or other departures from accepted care.
We work with qualified medical professionals to review prenatal records, fetal monitoring strips, delivery records, and neonatal records when evaluating a birth injury claim.
Medical Malpractice Resulting in Wrongful Death
When negligent medical care contributes to a patient’s death, surviving family members may have claims under New York law. The underlying issue can involve a missed diagnosis, surgical error, medication mistake, inadequate monitoring, or another form of malpractice. We investigate the treatment that preceded the death and evaluate the evidence concerning both medical negligence and the losses associated with the death.
Each category involves different records, different medical professionals, and different legal issues. If you believe a Brooklyn provider or hospital made an error that caused serious harm, a Brooklyn medical malpractice attorney can review the circumstances and explain whether further investigation is warranted.
How Do You Prove a Brooklyn Medical Malpractice Claim?
A medical malpractice claim requires more than showing that treatment had a bad result. The evidence must support that the healthcare provider departed from accepted medical practice and that the departure caused the patient’s injury.
Medical records are often central to that analysis. Physician notes, nursing records, diagnostic images, laboratory results, medication records, operative reports, and discharge instructions are what allow the care provided to be compared against the applicable medical standard.
New York also requires a certificate of merit in most medical malpractice actions. A certificate of merit is a signed statement filed with the lawsuit confirming that the case has real medical support behind it. Under CPLR § 3012-a, the attorney bringing the case must certify that the facts have been reviewed, that at least one physician was consulted, and that there is a reasonable basis to bring the action.
That is what separates medical malpractice from most other personal injury claims: the medical basis has to be evaluated before litigation begins rather than during it. A medical malpractice lawyer, Brooklyn, NY, patients rely on, therefore starts with the records, not the complaint.
Brooklyn Hospitals and the Question of Who You Are Suing
Identifying the correct defendant is not a formality in a Brooklyn medical malpractice case, because the deadline changes depending on the answer.
Kings County Hospital Center, Woodhull Medical Center, and other facilities in the borough are operated by NYC Health + Hospitals, a public benefit corporation. Claims against those facilities require a notice of claim, a formal written notice served within 90 days under the same standard set by General Municipal Law § 50-e, and it goes to a director or officer of the corporation or to the Corporation Counsel rather than to the Comptroller’s office.
The deadline to sue changes as well. An action against NYC Health + Hospitals generally must be commenced within one year and 90 days of the date the claim arose, which is far shorter than the two-and-a-half-year rule that applies to private care.
Maimonides Medical Center, NYU Langone Hospital–Brooklyn, The Brooklyn Hospital Center, Brookdale Hospital Medical Center, and Interfaith Medical Center are private institutions, so a claim arising from care at one of them is not subject to that public-corporation notice requirement and follows the standard medical malpractice limitations rules instead.
A hospital malpractice lawyer Brooklyn patients contact should establish a facility’s status early, because a claim filed on the private-hospital timeline against a public hospital can already be too late by the time it is filed.
How Long Do You Have to File a Medical Malpractice Claim in Brooklyn?
For most medical, dental, and podiatric malpractice claims in New York, the deadline is two years and six months from the date of the alleged act or omission, or from the last treatment where continuous treatment applies. Continuous treatment means an ongoing course of care for the same condition, and it pushes the starting point of the clock to the end of that course rather than the date of the error.
A separate exception applies when certain foreign objects are left inside a patient’s body. Under CPLR § 214-a, the action may be commenced within one year of discovering the object, or of discovering facts that would reasonably lead to its discovery, whichever occurs earlier.
The statute also narrows what counts as a foreign object, excluding chemical compounds, fixation devices, and prosthetic aids or devices.
If you believe a Brooklyn hospital or medical provider caused an injury through negligent care, contact a Brooklyn medical malpractice lawyer promptly. We can help identify the proper defendants, obtain the relevant medical records, and establish which filing requirements apply.
What Changed for Cancer Misdiagnosis Claims in New York?
A cancer misdiagnosis claim can now run from the point of discovery rather than from the date of the error. Before that change, the deadline generally ran from the date of the negligent act or omission, even when a patient had no reason to know that a cancer diagnosis had been missed. Chapter 506, known as Lavern’s Law, amended CPLR § 214-a to create a specific exception for claims based on the negligent failure to diagnose cancer or a malignant tumor.
Under the cancer-specific rule, the two-year-and-six-month period runs from the later of two points: when the patient knew or reasonably should have known both of the alleged negligent failure to diagnose and that it caused an injury, or the date of last treatment where continuous treatment applies. An outside limit of seven years from the alleged act or omission applies regardless of when the discovery occurs.
The exception is narrow, reaching cancer and malignant tumor claims only, and it does not create the same discovery rule for every type of misdiagnosis. That distinction matters when years have passed between an abnormal scan, the eventual diagnosis, and the discovery of a possible error. We review the diagnostic timeline, including imaging, radiology reports, and follow-up records, to determine which limitations rule applies.
Why Choose Finz & Finz P.C. for a Brooklyn Med Mal Case?
Medical malpractice is not a side issue in our practice. We are one of the few firms in the area willing to take these cases, including claims involving major hospitals and difficult questions about diagnosis, treatment, surgery, emergency care, and birth injuries.
Our approach begins with the medical evidence. We obtain records, reconstruct the treatment timeline, identify the relevant issues, and consult qualified medical professionals when a detailed review is necessary.
We also prepare these cases with the expectation that they may proceed to trial, rather than treating litigation as an afterthought. That matters most when a claim involves a hospital, multiple providers, conflicting medical opinions, or a disputed cause of injury, because those are the cases an insurer is least likely to resolve early.
Our published results include significant medical malpractice recoveries, and individual cases vary substantially depending on the injury, liability, and available evidence.
Results may vary. Prior case outcomes do not guarantee similar results.
We take Brooklyn cases from across the borough, and consultations are free. Our Brooklyn office is located at 31 Spencer St, Suite 1202, Brooklyn, NY 11205. Call 718-946-2273 to talk through what happened.
Steps to Take If You Suspect Medical Malpractice
Start by obtaining appropriate medical care for any continuing condition, because your health needs should not be postponed while you investigate whether someone else may have been negligent. Then preserve the information you already have:
- Medical bills, test results, discharge papers, prescriptions, and appointment records
- Correspondence with providers and the facility
- Records were requested from each provider, so the full treatment history can be reviewed together.
- Written notes of what you remember about important conversations and treatment decisions, made while those details are fresh
Do not assume that a bad result proves malpractice. Equally, do not assume nothing can be done because a provider eventually reached the correct diagnosis. The records and qualified medical review are what allow a claim to be evaluated.
Because New York imposes specific time limits on these claims, a legal review sooner rather than later prevents timing issues from being overlooked. We are available 24/7.
FAQs: Brooklyn Medical Malpractice Lawyer
Here are answers to common questions about medical malpractice claims in Brooklyn.
Can I sue a Brooklyn hospital for a doctor’s mistake?
A hospital may be included in a Brooklyn medical malpractice claim depending on the doctor’s relationship with the hospital and the care provided. Determining whether the hospital itself may be responsible requires an examination of the provider’s status, the treatment records, and the facts of the incident.
What happens if I file a claim without a certificate of merit?
The certificate normally accompanies the complaint, and a case filed without one can face dismissal on procedural grounds. The statute allows it to be filed within 90 days after service of the complaint where the deadline made consultation impossible, but that is an exception rather than the plan. This is one reason early medical consultation matters.
Can I still bring a claim if the doctor who treated me has retired?
A doctor’s retirement or departure from a hospital does not by itself prevent a medical malpractice claim. The claim is evaluated on the care provided at the time of treatment and whether it departed from the applicable standard and caused an injury. Records and other evidence can establish that conduct, even if the doctor is no longer practicing.
What if my case involves both a doctor and a hospital?
Many malpractice claims name more than one defendant, since hospitals can be responsible for their own staffing and policy decisions in addition to a specific provider’s individual conduct. We can help you sort out who is responsible for what as part of our early investigation.
What if the malpractice happened years ago?
Older claims are harder but not automatically closed off. Given the two-and-a-half-year deadline, the shorter 90-day window for claims against public hospitals, and the discovery rule that applies to cancer misdiagnosis, the only way to know your options is to have a Brooklyn med mal attorney review the specific dates involved.
Talk to One of Our Brooklyn Medical Malpractice Lawyers Today
If a diagnosis was missed, a procedure went wrong, or a hospital’s own documentation raises questions, the details matter more than the general outline of what happened. What decides the case is whether the medical care fell below the applicable standard and whether that departure caused the injury.
At Finz & Finz P.C., we handle significant medical negligence litigation, and we will tell you plainly what the records show. Call us at 718-946-2273 to go through the specifics with our Brooklyn team.
