Medical negligence claims arise when a healthcare provider breaches the duty of care owed to a patient, causing harm. The test is well-settled: what a reasonable practitioner in that specialty would have done. Claims require expert medical witnesses. The 3-year prescription runs from when the harm manifests (not necessarily from when the treatment occurred). Claims can reach millions of rands for severe injuries like birth injuries or missed diagnoses.
When to hire a medical negligence attorney
- You or a loved one suffered injury from medical treatment.
- A birth injury (cerebral palsy, Erb's palsy) may have been preventable.
- A surgical error or misdiagnosis has caused lasting harm.
- A public hospital has mismanaged your treatment.
- Prescription is approaching the 3-year deadline.
What to expect
Your attorney obtains medical records, engages specialist medical experts, and quantifies damages (past/future medical, loss of income, general damages). Most matters are against the relevant MEC for Health (public hospitals) or the RMPO (private practitioners). Claims typically take 3-7 years from instruction to settlement. Complex birth-injury claims can settle for R15M-R50M+.
Typical fees
Most medical-negligence attorneys work on contingency - 25% of the award, capped by the Contingency Fees Act. Disbursements (medical experts, hospital records, court fees) can run R100,000-R500,000+ and are typically recoverable from the defendant.
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