Practice Areas
- Medical Malpractice
- Car / Truck Accidents
- Birth Injuries
- Brain Injuries
- Spinal Cord Injuries
- Catastrophic Personal Injuries
Blog 
- Another Frivilous Lawsuit Myth Debunked
- Website Allows Patients To Compare Hospital Ratings
- Patient Advocacy: A Growing Business
- Is Insurance Company Greed The Reason For Higher Premiums?
- Shevlin Smith's Praise for "A Call To Action For Doctors"
- How Can A Medical Malpractice Case Be Called Frivolous When Expert Medical Testimony Is Required Before A Lawsuit Can Even Be Filed?
- Three Virginia Nursing Homes Listed Among Nation's Worst
- New Harvard Study Deals Another Blow To Tort Reform Advocates
- Frivilous Lawsuits Myth Debunked
- Is there too much medical malpractice litigation or is there too much medical malpractice?
News
- World Health Organization Issues a Checklist to Make Operations Safer
- Brain injuries cause half of seniors' fall deaths
- Experts Worry About Rise in C-Section Births
- FDA Believes That Heparin Contamination Was Likely Intentional
- Tom Smith Named Washington D.C. Metro "Super Lawyer"
- Virginia Supreme Court Denies Charitable Immunity For Doctors
- FDA Cautions Use of the Blood Thinning Drug Heparin
- Two Northern Virginia Obstetricians Formally Reprimanded
- Mass General Hospital study finds gaps between doctors' standards and actions
- Rhode Island Hospital Makes Third Brain Injury Mistake This Year
Library
Car / Truck Accidents
Firm News
- The Best Lawyers in America recognizes all three Shevlin Smith attorneys
- Virginia's Largest Verdicts of 2006
- Virginia's Largest Verdicts of 2005
- Shevlin Smith Moves Office
- Tom Smith Named Super Lawyer
Medical Articles
Significant Court Decisions
- Virginia Supreme Court clarifies the foundational requirements for the admissibility of medical literature
- Virginia Supreme Court reaffirms mother's right to recover for her own emotional distress suffered as a result of an in utero injury to her fetus
- Virginia Supreme Court agrees with trial court's decision to fine defense attorney who raised groundless legal defenses
- Trial Court Order Awarding Plaintiff Costs and Attorney's Fees As A Result Of Defendant's Refusal To Admit An Uncontested Fact
- Massachusetts Supreme Court Holds That A Doctor's Responsibility Goes Beyond Patients
Car / Truck Accidents
Tort Reform News
- "The Fairness of Malpractice Settlements"
- Financial Statements From 15 Largest Medical Malpractice Insurers Show Increase In Doctor's Insurance Premiums Not The Result Of Medical Malpractice Lawsuits
- "To Err Is Human: Building A Safer Health System"
- Harvard School of Public Health study: "Claims, Errors, and Compensation Payments in Medical Malpractice Litigation"
General
Medical Malpractice
You probably have heard the phrase "medical malpractice" before today. Medical malpractice cases have recently been in the forefront of media coverage as politicians and insurance companies push for "tort reform." You have undoubtedly heard that there are too many "frivolous" or "junk" lawsuits; that medical malpractice cases "will put good doctors out of business" and that the current justice system is "costly for patients."
Ironically, in their pursuit of "tort reform," politicians and insurance companies have not sought to limit frivolous cases. What they have done is attempt to limit the constitutional rights of the most severely injured by proposing artificial caps on recoveries. They have sought such caps despite the fact that many states, including Virginia, already have caps in place.
Often lost in the tort reform debate is the fact that medical malpractice is occurring at alarming rates. Research by the Institute of Medicine has shown that as many as 98,000 people die each year in the United States because of mistakes made by medical professionals -- that is more than the number of people who die as a result of highway accidents, breast cancer or AIDS. Moreover, this figure does not include the hundreds of thousands of people who are injured each year due to medical malpractice. Additional research by the Institute of Medicine shows that at least 1.5 million patients are harmed every year from being given the wrong drugs -- that's an average of one person per U.S. hospital per day. About 2 million people a year contract hospital-related infections, and about 90,000 of those patients die, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
The harsh reality is that medical malpractice happens, and that it happens too often. Preventable mistakes are inflicting tragic injuries on victims and their families. The costs to these victims and their families are immense and often immeasurable.
At Shevlin Smith, we have decades of experience handling medical malpractice cases. We have learned that the key ingredient to any successful medical malpractice case is the careful investigation of the case before filing a lawsuit. The reality is that a frivolous lawsuit serves no one's interests. Frivolous lawsuits are never settled by the insurance companies of doctors and hospitals, and in the end frivolous lawsuits cost plaintiffs and plaintiffs' attorneys too much money to bring. As any experienced medical malpractice attorney will attest, each and every medical malpractice case that is brought is hotly contested. Sure, some cases do settle, but those cases are undeniably strong and even then do not customarily settle until shortly before trial. Frivolous lawsuits are always defended aggressively, and are always unsuccessful. We diligently try never to file a frivolous lawsuit.
At Shevlin Smith, we believe that the model for success in your case involves a four-step process. First, obtain all relevant medical records so that we can focus properly on the specific issues of negligence and on the specific health care providers who were negligent. Second, have your case reviewed by our nurse consultant who has over ten years experience in providing medical care to patients and over ten years in evaluating the merits of medical malpractice cases. Third, have your case reviewed by an expert who is experienced in treating the specific medical condition at issue in your case and who is trained in the same medical specialty as the potential defendants. Fourth, assess the damage aspect of your case in an effort to ensure that any verdict or settlement that you receive will offset the costs associated with bringing your case and provide you reasonable compensation for the injuries you sustained.
Our model for succes is proven. While we wish we could represent that we have won all of the cases that we have filed, unfortunately we cannot. However, we have lost few cases over the twenty years that the firm has been in existence. As our Case Results demonstrate, we have had tremendous success resolving cases in all areas of medical malpractice through settlements and verdicts.
At Shevlin Smith, we have extensive experience handling medical malpractice cases involving birth injuries; surgical errors; delay in the diagnosis and treatment of cancer, heart disease, diabetes, infection, and strokes; anesthesia errors; and brain injuries.
We promise you direct contact with our attorneys; we promise you thorough investigation of your case; we promise you a candid evaluation; and we promise you aggressive representation.
So if you think you might have a medical malpractice case, call or email us for a free consultation. We handle cases in the District of Columbia and in all parts of Virginia (particularly in the counties of Fairfax, Arlington, Loudoun, Prince William and Stafford or in the cities of Fairfax, Alexandria, Fredericksburg, Leesburg, Manassas, and Richmond).
Case Results for Medical Malpractice:
- District of Columbia Court of Appeals Upholds $4 Million Verdict For Wrongful Death of 40-year-old Woman from an Undiagnosed Blood Clot - $4,000,000.00
- Jury Awards $3.4 Million for Wrongful Death from Drug Reaction - $3,400,000.00
- Jury Awards $3 Million For Wrongful Death From Cervical Cancer - $3,000,000.00
- Breast Cancer Case Settles For $2.4 Million - $2,400,000.00
- Verdict for $2.3 Million Against Hospital Whose Physician Engaged In Sexual Relationship With His Patient - $2,300,000.00
- Settlement of $1.475 Million for Failure To Diagnose Heart Disease - $1,475,000.00
- $1.25 Million Settlement For Wrongful Death From Acute Pancreatitis - $1,250,000.00
- Misread Mammogram Leads to $1.05 Million Settlement - $1,050,000.00
- $1.05 Million Settlement In Bacterial Endocarditis Case - $1,050,000.00
- Shevlin Smith Client's Case Settles and Defendant Doctor's Medical License Suspended - Confidential
Web Resources for Medical Malpractice:
- Mayo Clinic Health Information System
Description: MayoClinic.com gives users access to the experience and knowledge of the more than 3,000 physicians and scientists from the Mayo Clinic for fast answers about health conditions ranging from common to complex.
- Cleveland Clinic Health Information System
Description: This Web site is produced by the Cleveland Clinic Department of Patient Education and Health Information. It is our goal to promote education, inquiry and the well-being of our patients and visitors by providing the most timely, appropriate and useful health information available.
- PubMed Central
Description: NIH's free digital archive of biomedical and life sciences journal literature.
Let Us Help You
Shevlin Smith
3975 University Drive, Suite 405
Fairfax, VA 22030
Phone: (703) 591-0067
Fax: (703) 591-1877
FAQs
Car / Truck Accidents
- I have been injured in a car or truck accident and I am now receiving calls or letters from the insurance company of the other person(s), what should I do?
- What information can I provide to an attorney to assist the attorney in the review process of my case?
General Questions
- What are the expenses for bringing a medical malpractice or personal injury case?
- What is the likelihood of my case settling without having to go to trial?
- What should I do if I believe that I have been injured due to medical malpractice or the negligence of another person?
- What fee does an attorney charge for representing a client in a medical malpractice or personal injury claim?
Medical Malpractice
- How does one know if he or she is a victim of medical malpractice or negligence?
- What experience should I look for in a medical malpractice attorney?
- Is a misdiagnosis or the failure to make diagnosis always medical malpractice?
- How is failure to treat infection can become a medical malpractice?
- Will health care providers tell me if a mistake has been?
Birth Injuries
- What if I suspect that my child’s injury was caused by medical negligence at birth?
- What are the main types of birth injuries?
- How is negligence proved in cases of birth injuries?
Brain Injuries
- What are the symptoms of a subtle or mild brain injury?
- How is a brain injury diagnosed?
- What is the frequency of traumatic brain injuries in the United States?
- What is the prognosis for a person who has suffered a traumatic brain injury?