St. Louis Birth Injury Lawyers
The Midwest's Most Effective Injury Law Firm
This page has been written, edited, and reviewed by a team of legal writers following our comprehensive editorial guidelines. This page was approved by Founding Partner, Terry Crouppen who has more than 40 years of legal experience as a personal injury attorney. Our last modified date shows when this page was last reviewed.
This page has been written, edited, and reviewed by a team of legal writers following our comprehensive editorial guidelines. This page was approved by Founding Partner, Terry Crouppen who has more than 40 years of legal experience as a personal injury attorney. Our last modified date shows when this page was last reviewed.
- Last Modified:
- November 19, 2024
As expectant parents look forward to bringing their newborns into this world, they often dream of the future and what it might hold. Most parents don’t imagine their children might suffer birth injuries before, during, or after birth. Unfortunately, this is the case for many parents. When this happens, seeking legal counsel from experienced St. Louis birth injury lawyers is advisable.
At Brown & Crouppen, we are particularly equipped to handle birth injury claims. Our skilled attorneys have a deep understanding of both the legal and medical issues in these cases. We understand your pain and are ready to fight by your side to protect your family’s future. Let us walk you through the claims process and help you understand your legal rights.
Key Takeaways:
- Birth injury lawsuits normally require proving that a breach of the medical standard of care harmed you or your baby, resulting in compensable damages.
- Though birth injury claims are normally governed by Missouri’s medical malpractice statute of limitations, the standard two-year filing deadline can be extended for up to ten years after the malpractice or two years after a minor plaintiff turns eighteen, whichever is later.
- Our skilled legal team, recognized for its expertise, tenacity, and successful track record, offers personalized legal representation in birth injury claims and navigates the intricacies of medical malpractice laws in Missouri.
- Operating on a contingency fee basis, we offer free consultations and focus on securing comprehensive legal compensation for clients, including for medical expenses, pain and suffering, and punitive damages in cases involving egregious medical negligence.
- Why Work With Brown & Crouppen’s Missouri Birth Injury Attorneys?
- Our Glowing Client Testimonials
- What Can I Expect During the Birth Injury Claims Process in Missouri?
- What Kinds of Birth Injury Cases Does Brown & Crouppen Accept?
- Who Can Be Held Liable for Birth Injuries?
- What Types of Compensation Can You Receive Through a Missouri Birth Injury Claim?
- Damage Caps in Missouri Medical Malpractice Lawsuits
- How Much Does It Cost to Hire a Birth Injury Attorney in Missouri?
- What Can Cause Birth Injuries?
- Missouri Birth Injury Statistics
- Birth Injury Statute of Limitations in Missouri
- Get a Free Consultation With Our St. Louis & Kansas City Birth Injury Attorneys
Why Work With Brown & Crouppen’s Missouri Birth Injury Attorneys?
Birth injury claims can be legally and factually complex. When you work with the seasoned legal team at Brown & Crouppen, we will help you navigate the law governing birth injury cases. We are a full-service personal injury law firm, and our award-winning birth injury attorneys are fully dedicated to helping mothers, babies, and their families obtain the justice, accountability, and compensation they deserve in the aftermath of a birth injury.
We believe everyone deserves access to the best representation possible and are committed to providing top-tier legal services each and every time. We have been recognized as the Best Law Firm in St. Louis by the St. Louis Post-Dispatch. Among other things, here’s what we bring to the table:
- Decades of experience representing injury victims throughout Missouri and beyond.
- A team of over 250 legal professionals who provide high-quality counsel and representation tailored to the unique needs of your case.
- A strong reputation for success, including securing over $1 billion in settlements and verdicts for our clients.
- An extensive network of attorneys around the U.S. to ensure you get the best possible representation.
- In-depth knowledge of Missouri medical malpractice laws and the local court systems to help you navigate the claims process.
- Access to invaluable resources that will strengthen your case and put you in an excellent position to receive a favorable settlement or verdict.
- No upfront legal fees—we offer free consultations, and you pay nothing unless we win your case.
Our firm also strives to give back to the community we serve by donating to a wide variety of organizations, including the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation, United Cerebral Palsy, Habitat for Humanity, Mothers Against Drunk Driving, and Food Outreach. In the words of managing partner, Andy Crouppen: “We focus not on big cases, not on little cases, but on people because we need to do the best job we can for everyone.”
Our Glowing Client Testimonials
What Can I Expect During the Birth Injury Claims Process in Missouri?
If you believe your child has suffered a birth injury as a result of medical negligence, our St. Louis attorneys can evaluate your situation and gather the evidence needed to prove fault and build a compelling claim on your behalf. Important evidence for birth injury claims may include:
- Medical records of the mother and infant
- Prenatal care records
- Labor and delivery records
- Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU) records
- Diagnostic test results (blood tests, imaging tests, etc.)
- Expert medical testimony
- Witness statements from delivery room staff
- Mother’s obstetric history
- Fetal monitoring strips
- Medication and treatment records during pregnancy and labor
- Hospital policies and procedures
- Statements from the parents
- Video/audio recordings from the birth
- Follow-up medical evaluations of the child
- Developmental assessment records of the child
Once we have gathered all available evidence, our skilled attorneys will file all necessary paperwork with the responsible party, which could be the hospital, your doctor, or other medical professionals. We will also aggressively handle settlement negotiations on your behalf and file a lawsuit if a meaningful settlement isn’t feasible.
What Kinds of Birth Injury Cases Does Brown & Crouppen Accept?
The birth injury lawyers in our St. Louis, Kansas City, and other offices have experience handling various kinds of birth injury cases, including those involving:
Cerebral Palsy
Cerebral palsy is a neurological disorder affecting movement, muscle tone, and posture. It is caused by brain damage in developing infants. Symptoms vary from mild to severe and include spasticity and coordination issues. Cerebral palsy is a lifelong, non-progressive condition, and treatments aim to improve function and independence. It’s a common childhood motor disability.
Erb’s Palsy
Erb’s palsy is a birth injury affecting arm movement. It is caused by nerve damage or injury to the brachial plexus during delivery and leads to weakness, loss of motion, or paralysis in the affected arm. Treatment options for Erb’s palsy include physical therapy, and in some cases, surgery, to improve mobility and strength.
Shoulder Dystocia
Shoulder dystocia is a delivery complication where a baby’s shoulder gets trapped behind the mother’s pelvic bone. This can lead to a difficult and potentially dangerous birth, requiring immediate medical intervention to prevent injury to the baby’s brachial plexus nerves, oxygen deprivation, or other complications.
Surgical Instrument Injuries
Birth injuries caused by surgical instruments can occur during assisted deliveries using tools like forceps or vacuum extractors. These instruments, if improperly used, can lead to injuries such as skull fractures, brain damage, nerve damage, or facial paralysis in the newborn, requiring immediate and sometimes long-term medical intervention.
Cephalohematoma
Cephalohematoma is a birth injury characterized by a collection of blood under a newborn’s scalp. Typically caused by birth trauma or the use of delivery instruments, it appears as a raised bump on the baby’s head.
Cephalohematoma usually resolves itself over weeks to months.
Caput Succedaneum
Caput succedaneum is a birth injury where the newborn’s scalp swells due to pressure during a head-first delivery or from vacuum extraction. This swelling of soft tissues appears over the baby’s skull, often resolving within a few days.
Caput succedaneum is generally harmless but can indicate more severe underlying issues.
Birth Injuries Caused by Prescription Drugs
Birth injuries caused by prescription drugs occur when medications taken during pregnancy adversely affect the fetus, potentially leading to developmental issues, physical malformations, or neurological disorders. These injuries can result from prescribed drugs, underscoring the importance of careful medication management in pregnancy.
For example, The Journal of Research in Medical Sciences released a study indicating that certain anti-seizure medications are linked to a higher incidence of birth defects. These defects include cleft lips, organ malformations, and developmental delays. Risky drugs include Epival and Depakene.
Injuries to Mothers
Common injuries to mothers during childbirth include:
- Perineal tears
- Episiotomy complications
- Cesarean section complications
- Pelvic bone fractures
- Uterine rupture
- Excessive bleeding (postpartum hemorrhage)
- Nerve damage
- Infection
- Epidural-related injuries
- Blood clots (deep vein thrombosis)
- Anesthesia-related complications
- Psychological trauma (postpartum depression, PTSD)
Other Birth Injuries
Birth is a medically complex process and fraught with the risk of complications. Other risks involved in giving birth include:
- Bruising and soft tissue damage
- Bone breaks and fractures
- Subconjunctival hemorrhaging
- Meconium aspiration syndrome
- Fetal macrosomia
- Periventricular leukomalacia (PVL)
- Developmental delays
- Stillbirth malpractice
- Neonatal hypoglycemia
- Pitocin-related injuries
- Fetal lacerations
- Neonatal seizures
- Umbilical cord complications (i.e. marginal cord insertion complications)
- Respiratory distress syndrome
- Birth asphyxia
Who Can Be Held Liable for Birth Injuries?
Every piece of evidence collected in a birth injury case in Missouri serves the goal of proving medical negligence. Proving a healthcare professional had a duty to provide quality care to you and your baby is the first element of negligence in any birth injury case. Among other things, it may involve showing a doctor-patient relationship existed when they delivered the baby or treated you in prenatal care.
The second element your birth injury lawyer must establish is that the medical professional failed to uphold the normal standard of care. This normally involves showing that another practitioner in the same field would have made a different decision or performed more competently than the defendant.
Once your attorney has established a breach of duty by the defendant, they must prove a direct link between the breach and your baby’s injuries. The final element involves showing that the medical professional’s breach led to compensable damages, such as medical bills and lowered future earnings.
Here are examples of professionals and institutions that can be held liable for birth injuries:
- Hospitals and medical centers could be vicariously liable if their actions contributed to the birth injury. For example, if they hired an improperly trained staff member who was involved in the birthing process, they could be liable for damages.
- Medical doctors may be liable for your newborn’s injuries if they act in a way that fails to uphold the general standard of care required in their specialty. For example, a physician may apply excessive force while using forceps during delivery, causing the baby’s skull to fracture.
- Nurses can also be liable for birth injuries if they make mistakes during routine procedures, such as when preparing you for delivery.
- Anesthesiologists who incorrectly administer medication can cause complications, such as fetal distress or an allergic reaction in the mother.
If the injury occurred due to a prescription drug, your birth trauma attorney can file a claim against the pharmaceutical manufacturer. The drug manufacturer must guarantee their drugs are reasonably safe when used as intended. If they fail to warn physicians of a drug’s dangers, they could be liable under product liability law.
What Types of Compensation Can You Receive Through a Missouri Birth Injury Claim?
A birth injury is the last thing any parent expects when welcoming a newborn. Unfortunately, doctors and obstetrician-gynecologists can make mistakes or lapses in judgment that put babies’ lives at risk during pregnancy, labor, and delivery. While nothing can ever right this injustice, obtaining fair compensation from the defendant through a birth injury claim in St. Louis can make it easier for your family to move forward.
The compensation you receive is called damages, and some of the types of damages you can receive include:
- Medical expenses: Costs associated with the reimbursement of you and your baby’s treatment, surgeries, and medications.
- Future medical care: Expenses after a birth injury may be long-term or even last a lifetime, such as costs associated with hiring caregivers or buying specialized equipment.
- Lost wages: Compensation for missed work to care for your child.
- Lost earning capacity: Compensation that covers a mother’s long-term or permanent disability that affects their ability to work.
- Pain and suffering: Covers the child’s physical pain, psychological harm, loss of life enjoyment, and the parent’s emotional suffering.
- Special education expenses: Costs may cover tutoring and adaptive learning tools for a child with cerebral palsy or other developmental conditions, such as behavioral or speech disorders.
- Physical therapy and rehabilitation costs: Compensation may cover specialized services or in-home therapy to restore function and allow your child to gain independence.
- Home modification costs: Home improvements, such as specialized bathing facilities, lowered toilet seats, and wheelchair ramps, can reduce the risk of fall injuries.
- Counseling and psychological services: This covers mental health support for the child, their parents, and other family members impacted by the injury.
- Punitive damages: Although rarely awarded, these damages may be available if the defendant’s actions were not merely negligent but intentional.
- Wrongful death damages: Cover compensation for the tragic loss of a child or mother due to a birth injury.
Our skilled attorneys will conduct a comprehensive independent investigation to establish who is liable for your child’s injuries. You can count on us to leave no stone unturned as we work to calculate the full and fair value of your birth injury claim. Our track record speaks for itself—we have won over $1 billion in compensation for clients.
Get started with a free consultation with one of our skilled Personal Injury Lawyers today.
Damage Caps in Missouri Medical Malpractice Lawsuits
Importantly, Missouri limits the non-economic damages plaintiffs may receive in medical malpractice lawsuits. The cap for “non-catastrophic injuries” was originally set at $400,000, and the cap for “catastrophic injuries” was set at $700,000. These numbers are adjusted upward every year. Injuries are catastrophic if they result in:
- Quadriplegia
- Paraplegia
- Loss of two or more limbs
- An injury to the brain that results in permanent cognitive impairment resulting in the permanent inability to make independent decisions, eat, dress, bathe, go to the bathroom, transfer, and walk
- An injury that causes irreversible failure of one or more major organ systems
- Serious vision loss
How Much Does It Cost to Hire a Birth Injury Attorney in Missouri?
At Brown & Crouppen, we believe all injury victims, especially mothers and newborns, deserve the highest quality legal representation available without worrying about cost. That’s why our birth injury lawyers work on a contingency fee basis and offer free initial consultations, meaning you pay nothing unless we win your case. If you choose us as your attorneys, we will ensure you receive the personalized care you and your baby deserve.
"Brown & Crouppen provides personalized service to every individual. Some of the ways we do that: if we know someone is laid up and in bed and is not going to be able to get up for a while, we'll send them a blanket to keep them comfortable while they're sitting at home on the couch. If they have a new baby, we'll send them a baby gift. We send people birthday cards. We want them to know that they're not a number. There's somebody who matters to us. We know who they are as individuals, we recognize their individual needs, and we do everything we can to try to meet those needs as individuals, not as a group."
What Can Cause Birth Injuries?
Many factors can cause birth injuries, often related to complications during the labor and delivery process. Common factors our St. Louis attorneys see in the cases they handle include:
- Inadequate medical care: Errors by medical professionals can lead to improper handling of birth complications, such as when doctors incorrectly evaluate Apgar scores.
- Medication and anesthesia errors: Prescribing the wrong medication or incorrect doses can affect both the mother and newborn.
- Prolonged or difficult labor: When labor lasts for over 18 hours, pressure increases on the baby’s head. This can lead to fetal distress, brain damage, and elevated blood pressure.
- Premature birth: When a baby is born before 37 weeks of pregnancy, it may experience issues with its breathing, immune system, and metabolism due to underdeveloped organs.
- Size and position of the baby: Large babies or those in an abnormal birthing position can have complicated deliveries.
- Use of delivery instruments: Improper use of forceps and vacuum devices can cause skull fractures or intracranial hemorrhage.
- Oxygen deprivation: Placental abruptions can lead to cerebral palsy, brain damage, or hypoxic-ischemic encephalopathy.
- Cesarean section complications: Failing to perform a cesarean section on time can cause birth injuries.
- Maternal health issues: High blood pressure can cause delivery complications, while gestational diabetes can increase the risk of shoulder dystocia.
- Umbilical cord problems: Issues such as prolapse or entanglement can restrict a baby’s oxygen supply.
- Infections: Maternal infections can be transmitted to the baby during delivery.
- Induced labor: Medications used to induce labor can lead to overly strong and frequent contractions, potentially harming the baby.
Understanding and managing these factors is crucial for healthcare providers to minimize the risk of birth injuries. When they fail, they may be liable in a birth injury lawsuit.
Missouri Birth Injury Statistics
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), approximately 20,553 infant deaths occurred in the United States in 2022. The infant mortality rate in Missouri is 6.77 deaths for every 1,000 live births. Further, for every 1,000 hospital deliveries, about five babies are born with a major birth injury that could significantly impact their future.
In Missouri, unintentional injuries are among the leading causes of infant deaths, along with birth defects, preterm birth, low birth weight, pregnancy complications, and sudden infant death syndrome. In 2020, Missouri had 81 unintentional injuries per 1,000 live births. This number is more than double the average of 33 unintentional birth injuries in the United States that year.
With numbers like these in Missouri and across the country, it’s clear that birth injuries are far too common. Brown & Crouppen understands the seriousness of these types of cases and the impact they can have on victims and their loved ones. While our experienced attorneys focus on handling the legal issues of your case, you can focus on your recovery and caring for your newborn.
Birth Injury Statute of Limitations in Missouri
Again, birth injury claims are normally brought as medical malpractice lawsuits in Missouri. Therefore, Missouri’s statute of limitations for birth injuries sets a two-year deadline for these types of cases, and the statute of repose sets a once-and-for-all deadline of ten years. This means that birth injury victims must file their claim within two years and no later than ten years from the date of the incident giving rise to the case.
There may be exceptions to the two-year deadline. For instance, the statute of limitations is paused (“tolled”) for plaintiffs who are “within the age of twenty-one years or mentally incapacitated.” However, before relying on any potential exceptions, it is best to consult with a skilled Missouri birth injury lawyer in case they do not apply to your case.
Get a Free Consultation With Our St. Louis & Kansas City Birth Injury Attorneys
Birth injuries can change your and your child’s life forever. They can also be expensive to treat, especially if the injuries create life-long disabilities that require special education, equipment, or around-the-clock care. If you or a loved one has been affected by a birth injury to your child, Brown & Crouppen’s infant injury lawyers can help determine if you are entitled to compensation.
For more than 40 years, the skilled legal team at Brown & Crouppen has helped those suffering from birth injuries get the justice they deserve. Call 800-536-4357 or fill out our online contact form to schedule a free case evaluation at our St. Louis and Kansas City law offices.
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- Last Modified:
- November 19, 2024
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