What is Malpractice?

Reviewed by one of New Jersey’s top malpractice attorneys [David A. Mazie – Managing Partner of Mazie Slater Katz & Freeman]

Professional malpractice occurs when a professional, such as a doctor, nurse, lawyer, accountant, or financial advisor, deviates from the accepted standard of care for their respective profession and, as a result, causes personal or financial injuries.  

Malpractice can happen across many professions, but two of the most common — and most consequential — are medical malpractice and legal malpractice. Below, we break down what each one looks like, how New Jersey law treats them, and why having the right attorney matters.

In the medical context, we expect health practitioners to perform their duties with a certain level of skill and professionalism. In other words, we anticipate that they will provide care that follows the standards within the medical community. Generally, if a health practitioner fails to act according to the accepted standard of care, and that failure causes harm, he or she may be liable for medical malpractice.

Our firm has extensive experience successfully litigating complex malpractice cases for our clients. In one medical malpractice case that was subject to worldwide media attention, we secured a $5.5 million settlement for our client, who tragically died while donating his bone marrow to help a teenager he had never met. Although our client’s oxygen plummeted, the anesthesiologist failed to closely monitor his vital signs or take timely action.

Medical malpractice can take many forms. Circumstances that may lead to a patient suffering harm and filing a claim of medical malpractice include:

For example, we obtained a $13 million settlement for a birth injury that caused cerebral palsy. Although this case is confidential, the birth injury was the result of a delayed C-section. Additionally, we obtained a $4.75 million settlement in a case where a pathologist failed to properly diagnose our client’s cancer. The error went undetected for 16 months, during which the cancer progressed from Stage 1 to Stage 4, ultimately resulting in our client’s death.

The period in which a person must file a personal injury lawsuit is governed by the “statute of limitations.” In New Jersey, adults generally must file within two years of the date they knew, or reasonably should have known, that the injury occurred. For minors, however, the lawsuit must be filed within two years of the child’s 18th birthday, unless the injury occurred at birth, in which case the lawsuit must be filed by the child’s 13th birthday.

However, there are exceptions to these general rules. For instance, if an injury is not immediately obvious, or the victim is not aware of his or her injuries, the statute of limitations can be “tolled.”  For example, when a patient discovers that a surgical instrument, such as a sponge, was left inside his or her body years after a medical procedure. Whether the statute of limitations has run in a case is a legal issue that depends on the type of case, when the incident giving rise to the injury occurred, and when an injured party becomes aware of it.

Our firm has a long history of achieving substantial results for our clients. For instance, our New Jersey law firm was able to secure a $18.5 million verdict, after a four-week jury trial, for our client who was experiencing fetal distress during labor. However, the physicians failed to call for a timely C-section and, as a result, the child was born with cerebral palsy.  This is believed to be one of the largest delayed C-section malpractice recoveries in New Jersey history.

Legal malpractice refers to an action brought against an attorney alleging negligence in the practice of law. Much like medical malpractice, it occurs when a professional — in this case, a lawyer — deviates from the accepted standard of care and causes harm to the client as a result.

In one legal malpractice case, our firm’s managing partner, David Mazie, secured a $1.4 million settlement after two New Jersey lawyers wrongfully claimed they had been hired solely for ministerial tasks in what was actually a mishandled real estate matter.

Common examples of legal malpractice include:

To prove a legal malpractice claim, you must be able to show that the attorney’s mistakes changed the likely outcome of the case, often meaning the entire case must effectively be re-litigated in court. For this reason, legal malpractice lawsuits are especially complex and require significant resources and experience to pursue successfully.

Our firm has a long history of successfully representing our clients in legal malpractice matters. For example, our firm’s managing partner, David Mazie, obtained a $2.5 million verdict in a legal malpractice lawsuit after a six-week jury trial.  We have numerous other New Jersey legal malpractice recoveries beyond these examples, including a $25 million trial victory against Cooley for legal malpractice.

The period in which a person must file a legal malpractice lawsuit in New Jersey is governed by N.J.S.A. 2A:14-1, which sets a general six-year statute of limitations. The New Jersey Supreme Court confirmed in McGrogan v. Till that this six-year period applies to all legal malpractice claims, regardless of whether the harm suffered is financial, personal, or both. The clock does not necessarily start on the date of the attorney’s error; New Jersey applies a “discovery rule,” meaning the six-year period generally begins once the client has suffered actual damage and has discovered, or reasonably should have discovered, the facts underlying the legal malpractice. This is why it is always important to work with an experienced legal malpractice attorney to determine whether your case is eligible. 

A malpractice attorney represents clients in cases where a professional, such as a doctor, nurse, lawyer, or accountant, deviates from the accepted standard of care for their profession and causes personal or financial harm as a result. Malpractice cases are often both factually and legally complex, and typically require the testimony of experts to prove that a professional engaged in conduct that fell below the standard within their profession. 

Legal malpractice and medical malpractice each come with their own unique challenges. In a legal malpractice case, one of the most difficult tasks is proving the “case within a case” — showing that the outcome would have been different had the case been handled correctly. In a medical malpractice case, by contrast, each side typically retains medical experts to explain what was required of the treating doctor or nurse and how their negligence caused the patient’s damages.

Because of these complexities, having experienced legal representation matters. Our firm has a wide breadth of experience handling and successfully litigating both legal and medical malpractice matters — even when the lines between them blur. In one case, we obtained a $1.6 million settlement for a client, herself a New Jersey attorney, who developed corneal ectasia and permanent visual distortion after an eye surgeon performed a procedure despite her being contraindicated for it.

Whether malpractice occurs in a hospital or a law office, the impact on the person harmed can be lasting, physically, financially, or both. Because these cases hinge on proving that a professional fell below the standard of care required by their field, having an attorney who understands both the medicine and the law involved, and how to build a case around it, makes a meaningful difference. Mazie Slater Katz & Freeman has spent decades securing significant verdicts and settlements for clients harmed by medical and legal malpractice in New Jersey. If you believe you or a loved one has been affected by malpractice, contact our firm today for a free consultation.

The information provided on this website does not, and is not intended to, constitute legal advice. Instead, all information, content, and materials available are for general informational purposes only. Readers should contact an attorney to obtain advice with respect to any legal matter. No reader, user, or browser of this website should act or refrain from acting based on information on this website without first seeking legal advice from counsel.