Hawaii Medical Malpractice Lawyers Helping You And Your Family After Medical Negligence
You trust your doctor, clinic or hospital to protect you and your quality of life. Unfortunately, doctors, nurses and other medical professionals make errors that can harm your health and even cause fatal complications. A recent study estimates that medical errors are the third leading cause of death in the United States – responsible for more than 250,000 deaths. Of the medical malpractice cases that go to trial, the injured patients lose approximately 80-90% of jury trials, and win only 50% of cases with strong evidence of negligence.
How We Hold Negligent Parties Accountable For Their Errors
Despite the low results of winning cases, our firm has a much higher success rate representing clients who have been injured due to medical negligence. We are committed to helping victims of medical negligence at Trecker Fritz & Williams and take on a smaller number of cases so that we can put all our resources towards winning for you. Our lawyers have successfully represented individuals and families in Honolulu, Kauai and throughout Hawaii in medical malpractice claims. We will fight to protect your rights and work hard to find a creative solution to help you get your life back on track.
Our goal is to help you receive fair compensation and to make sure the person or hospital liable for your injuries takes responsibility for their errors.
Was Your Medical Mistake Preventable?
Medical mistakes are often preventable. They are often attributed to carelessness, lack of training and overall negligence. Our lawyers successfully represent victims and families harmed by all types of medical negligence in Hawaii, including:
- Birth injuries, including cerebral palsy and Erb’s palsy
- Emergency room failures
- Failure to diagnose, misdiagnosis or delayed diagnosis, including cancer
- Surgical errors
- Medication errors
- Anesthesia errors
- Brain injuries
- Spinal cord injuries
- Neck and back injuries
- Infections, including bacterial meningitis
- Defective medical devices
- Lack of informed consent
Victims who survive may be left with a lifelong disability, chronic pain, costly medical bills and a loss of earning potential. Our lawyers have decades of experience protecting patients and their families. We will stand by your side and guide you through this process to help you get the best outcome in your case.
We have the resources available to enlist the efforts of medical experts in Hawaii and on the mainland who will analyze the evidence in your case and help us determine who was at fault for your medical mistake and why it occurred.
Who Can File A Medical Malpractice Lawsuit In Hawaii?
We represent full-time residents, part-time residents, visitors, international tourists and those serving in the military and their families. Do not let your location status stop you from finding out more about your malpractice case. We have experience handling complex medical malpractice claims.
Understanding Hawaii’s Negligence Laws
Demonstrating negligence is pivotal to winning a medical malpractice claim. To establish negligence, you must prove these elements:
- Duty of care: The provider had a responsibility to care for you.
- Violation of duty: They did not meet the standard of care expected.
- Direct causation: Your harm was a direct consequence of the duty breach.
- Predictable outcome: The injury was an expected outcome of the care provider’s negligent action or inaction.
- Sustained damages: You suffered harm or injury because of the breach.
Hawaii employs a modified comparative negligence rule in all personal injury cases. You must be 50% or less at fault for the injury to recover damages, though this is reduced by your percentage of fault. You cannot recover compensation if you are found to be more than 50% at fault.
In real life, this means you must demonstrate that you carry less than half of the blame for your injuries. Our medical malpractice attorneys can help you gather evidence (health care records, consent forms, etc.) to prove medical negligence and show you played little or no role in your injuries.
What Is Informed Consent, And How Does It Affect My Medical Malpractice Claim?
Health care providers must ensure patients know of any significant risks before providing treatment. This process, known as informed consent, is rooted in the principle of respecting personal boundaries and autonomy. It involves ensuring physical interaction in a medical context is preceded by clear and voluntary agreement from a well-informed patient.
Informed consent claims do not require a medical professional to deviate from accepted care standards or cause physical harm. They address inadequate risk disclosure and compromised patient autonomy, regardless of a physician’s good faith.
A lack of informed consent can have a positive effect on an existing medical malpractice claim. Showing that your providers failed to adequately warn you about the risks of a treatment or procedure can strengthen your position and credibility. Informed consent failures can also be grounds for a claim, even without suffering physical injury.
Bring your story to our Hawaii medical malpractice lawyers for a thorough assessment and to brainstorm your next steps.
Hawaii’s Statute Of Limitations For Medical Malpractice Lawsuits
In Hawaii, most, but not all, medical malpractice cases have a two-year statute of limitations. Due to this time frame, it is imperative to discuss your case with our lawyers right away. We offer free, confidential meetings to learn about what happened and if you have a claim. However, each statute of limitations is different. You should discuss the statute of limitations in your case with a lawyer to ensure you have the correct date.
Why Work With Trecker Fritz & Williams
Our firm works differently than other established legal firms in Hawaii. We are involved in the cases we take on from day one to ensure you are supported in your recovery. Some of the reasons we work the way we do include:
- Commitment to success: Approximately 20% of medical malpractice cases nationally are successful for injured patients. We want to make sure that we can make your case a success and commit the resources necessary to fight the hospitals and health care system.
- Resource availability: The costs for filing a successful medical malpractice claim in Hawaii are astronomical. Our firm is strategic about the cases we take so that we can financially support your recovery.
- Valuing your recovery: We value your recovery. You have access to the human and financial resources needed to reach a successful outcome from the time we start investigating your case until we win.
Aside from what value we bring to your case, the testimonials from our clients speak to what it is like working with us:
“My wife and I are professionals. Our infant child was catastrophically injured by a medical error. Other lawyers turned our case down as being too difficult. The lawyers at Trecker Fritz & Williams obtained a recovery that has totally changed our lives and that of our family, allowing us to rest assured that our child will be taken care of in the future.”
Award-Winning Honolulu Medical Malpractice Attorneys With A History Of Success
Our commitment to you is sincere. We care about helping you and your family after an injury or death caused by medical negligence and have the results that represent our experience. Learn more about your legal options by scheduling a free consultation. Call 808-797-3363 or fill out our online form. We are able to visit you in the hospital or on a neighbor island under certain circumstances.
$6,175,000 For Medical Malpractice
Medical malpractice resulting in delivery and birth injuries
$5,000,000 Verdict For Improper Medical Treatment
Severe injury to a teenage girl for improper treatment – Jury Verdict in Hawaii Circuit Court
$4,500,000 Settlement For Birth Injuries
Medical malpractice resulting in birth injuries – Settlement with US Government Tripler Army Medical center
$4,000,000+ Judgment For OBGYN Malpractice
Medical malpractice resulting from obstetric errors – Judgment for more than $4M