Advocating For Justice After Birth Injuries
A Chicago birth injury attorney can help if injuries to infants or mothers during the delivery process have upended your family’s life. Medical mistakes, inattention to signs of fetal distress, and inadequate resolution of birth complications can all lead to serious and even life-threatening conditions.
Adverse outcomes from birth can negatively impact the lives of mothers and their infants. Attorney James D. Montgomery Jr. of Montgomery Law Firm LLC uses his skill and experience to vigilantly pursue medical malpractice justice for mothers and their children affected by birth injuries.
Mr. Montgomery has represented many mothers whose health was harmed during pregnancy and delivery, including cases involving:
He understands that nothing is more devastating for a new parent than seeing your baby’s health suffer. Pursuing a claim for an infant’s birth injury cannot undo the damage, but it can provide for your child’s needs today and into the future. He has helped families whose babies have suffered from a wide range of injuries, including:
Often, poor management of the birthing process or rough handling of the infant during the birth is to blame for these injuries. Mr. Montgomery believes that medical professionals should be held responsible for their negligence in the delivery room.
Not every difficult birth gives rise to a legal claim. Many complications occur even when a care team follows every accepted protocol. A birth injury becomes the basis for a medical malpractice claim when a qualified medical reviewer can establish that a provider’s conduct fell below the accepted standard of care and that this failure directly caused the harm your child or you suffered.
Under Illinois law, proving a birth injury malpractice claim generally requires showing four things: that a doctor-patient relationship existed, that the provider breached the applicable standard of care, that the breach caused the injury, and that measurable damages resulted. Illinois also requires that a licensed specialist, such as an OB-GYN or neonatologist, review the case and provide a written opinion before a lawsuit may be filed. This procedural requirement makes contacting a lawyer early essential, so that the right experts can be retained and the necessary documentation preserved.
For additional background on birth injuries and how they are classified medically, the birth injury overview published by MedlinePlus offers a useful reference. Families seeking broader context on patient rights and care standards may also find patient safety information from the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality helpful.
Birth injuries can result from a range of errors committed before, during, or immediately after delivery. Common situations that may support a claim include:
The Illinois Department of Public Health maintains oversight of hospital standards and patient safety reporting across the state, which can be a relevant resource when evaluating the care provided at a specific facility.
Mr. Montgomery reviews the full record of care, from prenatal visits through delivery and post-delivery notes, to assess whether the providers involved met their obligations to mother and child at every stage.
Among the most serious birth injury claims are those involving oxygen deprivation, which can result in hypoxic-ischemic encephalopathy (HIE), cerebral palsy, or permanent brain damage. These injuries often trace back to a failure to detect or act on signs of fetal distress, a delayed decision to perform a Caesarean section, or mismanagement of umbilical cord complications during labor.
Providers have a duty to monitor fetal heart rate and other indicators throughout labor. When changes in those readings signal that the baby is in distress, the medical team is expected to respond promptly, including by performing an emergency C-section when the situation requires it. A delay of even a short period in these circumstances can result in irreversible harm. If the care team failed to recognize warning signs or acted too slowly once those signs were present, that failure may form the basis of a claim.
These cases are among the most complex in birth injury litigation because they require detailed analysis of fetal monitoring strips, delivery room records, and the opinions of qualified obstetric and neurological experts. Mr. Montgomery, an experienced birth injury attorney, has the experience to build and present that kind of case effectively.
Liability in a birth injury case can extend beyond the delivering physician. Depending on the circumstances, nurses, anesthesiologists, other specialists, and the hospital itself may all bear responsibility. Hospitals can be held liable for the negligent acts of their employed staff, for inadequate staffing, or for systemic failures in policies and procedures that contributed to the harm. Cases involving errors by anesthesiology providers during labor or delivery may also implicate the principles addressed in Mr. Montgomery’s broader practice handling surgery and anesthesiology errors.
Identifying every potentially liable party is a critical step a lawyer takes in building a complete claim. Mr. Montgomery evaluates the roles of all providers involved, reviews institutional policies, and works with medical experts to establish a clear and well-supported theory of liability before any case moves forward.
Illinois does not cap damages in medical malpractice cases, which means that a jury may award compensation based on the full scope of the harm suffered. This makes the quality of the legal work and the strength of the medical evidence especially important in achieving a fair result for your family.
Pursuing a medical malpractice claim can provide compensation for life-long care and medical services. For families dealing with a serious birth injury, the financial needs can extend for decades and may include:
A settlement or verdict that appears substantial today must be evaluated against the full arc of your child’s life. Mr. Montgomery works to ensure that any recovery sought accounts for your family’s realistic long-term needs, not only the immediate expenses you face today.
Families whose losses involve a death may also have rights under Illinois wrongful death law.
Birth injury cases are among the most document-intensive and expert-driven matters in civil litigation. Hospitals and their insurers defend these claims aggressively, often arguing that an injury was unavoidable or that the care provided met the applicable standard. Countering those arguments requires more than a general understanding of medicine. It requires attorneys who know how to retain, prepare, and present qualified experts, how to navigate the specific procedural requirements Illinois imposes on medical malpractice cases, and how to try a case before a jury when settlement is not appropriate.
Cases involving diagnostic imaging errors or procedural errors in the context of obstetric care may also intersect with the issues Mr. Montgomery handles in matters involving angiogram errors and related diagnostic failures, reflecting the breadth of medical knowledge his practice brings to bear on complex cases.
Illinois law imposes filing deadlines that vary depending on whether the injured party is the mother or the child. For claims brought on behalf of a minor, the deadline may extend up to eight years from the date of injury, with an absolute cutoff before the child turns 22. However, the parents’ own claims are generally subject to a two-year statute of limitations. Because these timelines can differ and because building a strong case takes time, families are encouraged to seek legal counsel as early as possible after a suspected birth injury.
Pursuing a medical malpractice claim can provide compensation for lifelong care and medical services. Call our Chicago law office to schedule a free consultation. You may also contact our office online. As your lawyer, he will thoroughly evaluate your case and explain all your options. He wants to help you make the right choice for your family.
