Birth Injury Claims In South Carolina: The Procedural Maze Before The Lawsuit Even Starts
What should have been one of the happiest days of a family’s life turns into a lifetime of appointments, therapy, and unanswered questions. Was it simply an unfortunate complication, or did someone in that delivery room miss something they should have caught? South Carolina law offers a path to find out, though that path comes with procedural hurdles that catch a lot of families off guard.
You Cannot Just File This Kind of Lawsuit
Most personal injury cases can be filed the moment someone decides to pursue one. Medical malpractice claims in South Carolina work differently. Under South Carolina Code Section 15-79-125, a Notice of Intent to File Suit has to be served on every defendant, paired with an affidavit from a qualified medical expert identifying at least one specific act of negligence, at least 90 days before a lawsuit can even be filed. Mediation generally has to happen before the case can move to trial. Skip any of these steps, and a court can dismiss the case before it ever gets heard on the merits.
Why the Clock Works Differently for a Newborn
Most South Carolina malpractice claims must be filed within three years of the negligent act, or of when the injury was discovered or reasonably should have been discovered, under South Carolina Code Section 15-3-545. Birth injury cases do not follow this timeline in the same way, for an obvious reason: a newborn cannot file anything. When the injured party was a minor at the time of the alleged negligence, the statute of limitations is generally tolled, though the deadline still cannot stretch beyond seven years from the negligent act, or more than one year past the child’s eighteenth birthday, whichever comes first.
The Errors Behind Most of These Claims
A recurring set of circumstances tends to show up in birth injury cases:
- Failure to properly monitor fetal distress during labor
- A delayed or improperly performed cesarean section
- Misuse of forceps, vacuum extractors, or other delivery instruments
- Failure to diagnose or treat a maternal infection that later affects the baby
- Medication errors given to the mother or the newborn
A Lifetime of Care Means a Complicated Damages Picture
Birth injury claims often involve some of the largest damages seen in malpractice law, precisely because a lifetime of care may be needed. Past and future medical costs, ongoing therapy, assistive devices, home modifications, and lost future earning capacity for the child can all factor into a case, which is exactly why thorough documentation and expert analysis matter from day one.
If your child suffered a birth injury and you suspect negligence played a role, understanding South Carolina’s notice requirements, mediation step, and extended filing deadlines is where things need to start. Our Columbia personal injury attorneys at The Stanley Law Group have decades of experience investigating exactly these kinds of cases throughout South Carolina, and we would welcome the chance to talk through what happened and what your options look like.
Source:
law.justia.com/codes/south-carolina/title-15/chapter-3/section-15-3-545/