In small claims court for vet bills caused by their malpractice and inadequate sterilization during a surgical procedure that almost resulted in death. My new ver bills total at 3395.28, for a sterilization done for 220 flat.
I have both vet files, I have pictures of the infection left inside by dog, and I have reports stating my dog was anemic, dehydrated, severely infected (Blood tests), and the biopsy report from the 3 masses of infection that glued my dogs organs together.
The second vet says I have an extremely good case against the first, and the board for the vets say I need to sue them.
How do I go about suing them? I'm 20, and have no clue how to get started.
From quebec, not the states,
and I asked Both here, and in the legal section as I'm sure, one of the dog members has had to sue a vet...it's not like this is the first case EVER of malpractice.
Thanks for the advice, only I don't think I can afford a vet :P I don't know if you saw the price from the surgery or not XD but at 20 it's hard to find someone with 3500 in the bank :D
Dreamer
Where are you from? That would be helpful in telling you where to start.
Edit: It matters because every country has a different legal system, and this is not a strictly USA website.
In the US, malpractice suits are typically only won if the dog died. In most cases, you would then be awarded only the "market value" of the animal. Some courts will award you for emotional distress, but it's rare.
Hiring a lawyer would probably not help you at this point, even if you won, the costs of the lawyer would far outweigh what you would probably be awarded by the judge. Small claims is the way to go if you want to pursue this.
Honestly, you probably will not win. My dog got horribly ill after a neutering gone awry, I spent over $ 1k in emergency vet fees, and kept accurate records and photos of the entire thing. I filed a complaint with the vet board, and the vet in question wrote an unsympathetic letter saying she'd done nothing wrong. The vet board did nothing about the complaint, and I was advised that suing would probably get me nowhere.
Animals are not considered citizens with rights- they are legally classified as property. It's sad, but it's true.
Good luck.
Roar Shack
You would really be better served by asking this in the legal section as most people here haven't studied law and your question is more of a legal question anyway, not a dog specific question.
Reality Check
The board said to sue?
you need a lawyer..not asking on here
Bobbie L
Contact an attorney.
DREAMER: why does it matter where this person is from?
Night_owl
Asking a lawyer or posting in the legal section would be better. The only thing I know is that you would probably wind up (in the U.S. anyway since you don't state where you are) wind up in small claims court- you would have to file against either the hospital or the owner of the hospital depending on the laws involving litigation.
Felicia Q
Find out the upper limit of your states "small claims" suits. I think it could be pushing $ 4,000 now.
File in "small claims" court. It keeps the attorney's out of it. If you get attorney's involved you'll see nothing...and they'll see it all.
Sorry for your mess, but if you have another vet willing to speak up on your behalf.. you have a good chance of winning the case. Otherwise it's just your word against theirs. Sounds like you have all your records, If you end up in small claims makes 3 copies of everything. One for the judge, one for the other party...and one for yourself. Show up prepared and stick to the facts....and be precise about the failure. Try not to slam the vet... just address the failure of his/her treatment of the dog.
I would however let the vet KNOW you are going to sue them. Perhaps you can reach a financial agreement without any legal action at all. If they dig their heels in...then forge ahead.
.
.
DeeDawg
first step- contact your family attorney for a referral- a litigation attorney can help you (or find someone who will take the case)
UHave2BeKiddingMe- Gobble Gobble
Due to the amount this is something that would be handled in Small Claims Court.
Typically you can even file small claims Online without even having to go to the courthouse. It is very inexpensive to file.
You could certainly consult a lawyer, but in many states you are not allowed to have a lawyer in Small Claims, are not entitled then to legal fees either, which typically run about $ 375 an hour+
What you will need to do though is have another veterinarian lined up to testify as an expert that the vet was negligent in your case. Otherwise the court is going to be inclined to believe the other side since he is an expert and you are just a layperson.
papaw
Go to your county Clerk of Court and tell them what you want to do...they will give you the paperwork and instruct you on how to fill them out, and will set you a court date after the Vet is served the small claim complaint. Or you can get a lawyer and pay him what you would otherwise recover and let him do the work.
Papaw
A.
"Several factors must be proven under a traditional malpractice claim to recover damages for injury to an animal under a veterinarian's care. First, the defendant must be under a duty of care toward the animal in question. This means that the veterinarian had accepted responsibility to treat the animal that the owner brought to his or her office. Second, the actions or inaction of the veterinarian must have fallen below the professional standard of care. Expert testimony from other veterinarians is often used to establish that the defendant-veterinarian's conduct fell below the professional standard. This varies according to the state, but generally it means that the veterinarian did not act with reasonable skill, diligence, and attention as would ordinarily be expected of other veterinarians in the community. Third, this deviation from the standard of care must have been the cause or proximate cause of the animal's injury. In the first example above, the veterinarian's inaction with Fido caused the dog to die. Similarly, the veterinarian's inoculation of Fifi also caused injury to her. With proximate cause a malpractice plaintiff must show that the veterinarian's actions set in motion a train of events that brought about the injury to the animal without the intervention of any other independent source. Finally, the injury or harm resulted in damages to the plaintiff, meaning not just to the animal in question. While this may seem odd at first blush, it stems from the fact the animal injured is not a party to the lawsuit. Thus, the owner must show that he or she suffered some loss (monetary and infrequently on an emotional level)."
To continue reading, visit:
visit http://www.animallaw.info/articles/qvusvetmal.htm
"Because animals are considered property, if your pet is injured or killed, you must file a lawsuit to recover damages. This is true even if it's your veterinarian who caused the harm.
Veterinarian malpractice lawsuits aren't common, though, because the measure of damages for the loss of a pet in most states is the market value of the pet. In other words, what someone else would pay for an identical pet of the same age, breed and condition."
To continue reading, visit:
http://animal-law.lawyers.com/Veterinarian-Malpractice---Is-it-Worth-Suing.html
For additional information, visit:
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC1680430/pdf/canvetj00600-0054.pdf
http://www.avvo.com/legal-guides/ugc/can-i-sue-my-vet-for-malpractice
http://www.associatedcontent.com/article/170691/can_you_sue_your_veterinarian_for_malpractice.html
Orignal From: How to go about suing a vet?
Post a Comment