What are my rights if I had an open-lung biopsy 3 years ago and have just learned that staples were left in my right lung?
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What are my rights if I had an open-lung biopsy 3 years ago and have just learned that staples were left in my right lung?
Do I have any legal case in this matter, especially in the potentiality that I need additional surgery to remove them?
Asked on December 7, 2013 under Malpractice Law, California
Answers:
S.L,. Member, California Bar / FreeAdvice Contributing Attorney
Answered 10 years ago | Contributor
Medical malpractice is negligence. Negligence is the failure to exercise due care (that degree of care that a reasonable medical practitioner in the community would have exercised under the same or similar circumstances to prevent foreseeable harm).
In CA, the statute of limitations for filing a lawsuit in a medical malpractice case is three years from the date of injury or one year from the date of discovery of the injury whichever occurs first. If your lawsuit for negligence is not filed prior to the expiration of the applicable statute of limitations, you have lost your rights forever in the matter.
If it has not been exactly three years since the date of your surgery, yoiu need to contact a medical malpractice attorney immediately to file your lawsuit for negligence against the doctor.
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