San Diego Birth Injury Lawyer

When your baby is injured during pregnancy, labor, or delivery, you may be left trying to understand what happened and whether the medical care you received contributed to the injury.

Birth injuries can affect a child’s movement, development, communication, and ability to live independently. Treatment can continue for years and involve specialists, therapy, medical equipment, and daily assistance.

For more than four decades, Thorsnes Bartolotta McGuire has represented San Diego families after serious injuries caused by negligence. Our attorneys have recovered over $2 billion in verdicts and settlements for our clients.

If you have questions about the medical care you or your baby received, talk with a San Diego birth injury lawyer about what happened and your legal options. Contact us online or call (619) 236-9363 to schedule a consultation.

“Welcoming a child into the world should be a time of excitement, not worry and devastation. We understand how heartbreaking it is to learn that a birth injury will compromise your child’s health and future. Our firm’s job is to help families through these tough times, making sure your child gets the care they need and those that are responsible are brought to justice.”

— Founding Partner, Vincent J. Bartolotta, Jr.

What Is a Birth Injury?

A birth injury is physical or neurological damage sustained by a baby before, during, or shortly after birth. These injuries range from minor and treatable conditions to severe injuries requiring lifelong care.

Medical negligence is one potential cause. A birth injury claim may arise when the care provided during pregnancy, labor, delivery, or immediately after birth falls below the accepted medical standard and harms the baby.

According to a research study, significant birth injuries occur in approximately six to eight per 1,000 live births.

What Is the Difference Between a Birth Injury and a Birth Defect?

A birth injury occurs before, during, or shortly after delivery. In a medical malpractice case, the question is whether preventable errors in medical care caused or worsened the baby’s condition. Oxygen deprivation, delivery trauma, delayed treatment, and improper use of forceps or vacuum extraction are examples.

A birth defect, also called a congenital condition, develops before birth and can result from genetic, chromosomal, environmental, or other factors unrelated to medical negligence.

Determining when a child’s condition developed can require a detailed medical review. Prenatal records, fetal monitoring strips, delivery records, imaging, laboratory results, and newborn care can help establish when an injury occurred.

For families speaking with a San Diego birth injury attorney, this medical review is often central to determining when the injury occurred and if failures in care contributed to it.

Common Types of Birth Injuries

Birth injuries affect babies in different ways based on the area of the body injured and the severity of the damage.

Brachial Plexus Injuries

Brachial plexus injuries occur when the group of nerves controlling movement in the arm, shoulder, and hand is damaged.

According to Children’s Hospital Los Angeles, brachial plexus injuries occur in up to four in 1,000 live births. Shoulder dystocia, high birth weight, forceps or vacuum extraction, prolonged labor, and gestational diabetes are associated with these injuries.

Cerebral Palsy

Cerebral palsy is a neurological disorder affecting movement, muscle tone, and coordination. Certain cases are associated with oxygen deprivation to the brain before, during, or shortly after birth.

Medical care can come under scrutiny when providers delay a necessary C-section, fail to respond appropriately to fetal distress, or cause trauma during delivery.

Caput Succedaneum

Caput succedaneum is temporary scalp swelling caused by pressure during birth. It usually resolves independently within a few days and is more common following vacuum-assisted delivery.

Cephalohematoma

Cephalohematoma is a collection of blood between the skull and scalp. It often resolves without treatment within several weeks. A larger area of bleeding can increase the risk of jaundice as the baby’s body breaks down and reabsorbs the blood.

Fractures

Broken bones can occur during a difficult delivery, including when a baby’s shoulder becomes stuck. The clavicle is among the bones most commonly fractured during childbirth. Skull fractures can also occur, including in deliveries involving instruments.

Hypoxic-Ischemic Encephalopathy (HIE)

HIE is a brain injury caused by inadequate oxygen and blood flow to the brain. It can result in cerebral palsy, seizures, developmental impairment, and other neurological problems.

Medical errors associated with an HIE claim can involve delaying a necessary C-section, failing to respond to abnormal fetal monitoring, failing to manage maternal blood pressure, or failing to identify an umbilical cord emergency.

Prenatal care can also become relevant when providers fail to diagnose or appropriately treat conditions that threaten blood or oxygen delivery to the baby.

Causes of Birth Injuries

Birth injuries have numerous causes. Medical malpractice is one possibility when a healthcare provider’s actions or failures contribute to the harm.

Examples of medical negligence include:

• Failing to monitor the fetal heart rate appropriately
• Failing to respond to signs of fetal distress
• Using excessive force during delivery
• Medication errors
• Improper use of forceps or vacuum extraction
• Failing to order a timely C-section
• Failing to diagnose or treat maternal complications
• Failing to identify an umbilical cord emergency
• Failing to provide accurate information or appropriate medical options

Premature birth, maternal infection, multiple pregnancies, placental complications, and other medical conditions can also contribute to problems before or during delivery.

According to the CDC, babies born prematurely face increased risks of serious health complications.

Signs and Symptoms of a Birth Injury

A birth injury may be identified in the delivery room or NICU. Other problems become easier to recognize as a child grows and begins reaching developmental milestones.

Signs Immediately After Birth

Doctors and parents may notice:

• Seizures
• Difficulty breathing
• Problems feeding or swallowing
• Abnormal muscle tone
• A limp or weak arm
• Limited movement on one side of the body
• Excessive sleepiness or difficulty waking
• Unusual irritability
• Abnormal reflexes
• Low Apgar scores
• Need for resuscitation or prolonged respiratory support

A baby who experienced oxygen deprivation may require treatment in a NICU. In qualifying cases, doctors may use therapeutic hypothermia to lower the baby’s body temperature and reduce further brain injury.

Signs That Become Apparent Later

As your baby grows, you may notice:

• Delayed sitting, crawling, standing, or walking
• Poor head control
• Difficulty grasping objects
• Muscle stiffness or unusual floppiness
• Favoring one arm or side of the body
• Speech or communication delays
• Vision or hearing problems
• Difficulty with balance or coordination
• Learning or cognitive delays

Developmental concerns can prompt further testing to determine if a neurological or physical injury occurred during pregnancy, labor, or delivery.

If you are concerned about your child’s development, seek medical care first. Once your child’s immediate medical needs are addressed, you can also begin looking for answers about the care you received. San Diego birth injury lawyers often start with the prenatal, labor and delivery, and newborn records to see what was documented before the injury was diagnosed.

Steps to Take If You Suspect a Birth Injury

If something about your child’s birth or development concerns you, start asking questions. Parents are often the first to notice that their child’s condition differs from what they were told to expect.

Start with your child’s medical care. Ask the pediatrician or appropriate specialist about symptoms, developmental concerns, testing, treatment, and referrals.

You can also:

1. Request medical records. Prenatal records, fetal monitoring strips, labor and delivery records, medication records, operative reports, NICU records, imaging, and newborn testing can provide important information.
2. Write down what you remember. Record complications during labor, conversations with providers, changes in the baby’s heart rate that were discussed with you, when a C-section was recommended or performed, and what doctors told you after delivery.
3. Keep information about your child’s care. Save bills, therapy evaluations, specialist reports, prescriptions, equipment expenses, and information about services your child receives.
4. Follow through with specialist evaluations. Neurologists, developmental pediatricians, orthopedists, physical therapists, and other specialists can help identify the nature and extent of the injury.
5. Speak with an attorney promptly. California imposes specific deadlines on medical malpractice claims involving children.

Medical experts can then review the records to evaluate what happened and if the care provided contributed to the injury.

The Impact of Birth Injuries

A serious birth injury can affect a child’s health, development, education, and independence for years. Medical care can involve:

• Hospitalization
• Physical, occupational, or speech therapy
• Medications
• Medical equipment
• Mobility devices
• Specialized education
• Home modifications
• In-home assistance

Parents may also reduce their work hours or leave employment to manage appointments and provide daily care.

A child’s long-term challenges may involve:

• Mobility
• Muscle control
• Coordination
• Speech and communication
• Vision or hearing
• Learning
• Memory and concentration
• Independent living

Lifetime care costs are a major part of severe birth injury claims. For a San Diego birth injury attorney, evaluating those losses may involve input from medical, vocational, and financial experts on future treatment, therapy, equipment, home care, and lost earning capacity.

San Diego Hospitals and Healthcare Providers Involved in Birth Injury Claims

Families throughout San Diego County receive prenatal, labor and delivery, high-risk pregnancy, and neonatal care through numerous hospitals and healthcare systems.

Major local facilities providing maternity or newborn care include:

• Sharp Mary Birch Hospital for Women & Newborns
• Scripps Mercy Hospital San Diego
• Scripps Memorial Hospital La Jolla
• UC San Diego Health
• Kaiser Permanente San Diego Medical Center

A birth injury investigation may involve several healthcare providers who participated in the mother’s or baby’s care, including:

• Obstetricians
• Maternal-fetal medicine specialists
• Labor and delivery nurses
• Certified nurse-midwives
• Anesthesiologists
• Neonatologists
• Pediatricians
• Radiologists
• Other specialists involved before or after delivery

For example, a labor and delivery nurse may be responsible for monitoring fetal heart rate and communicating changes to the physician. An obstetrician may make decisions about when to perform a C-section, while a neonatologist may become involved immediately after delivery if the baby requires resuscitation or intensive care.

Reviewing the complete medical record helps identify who made critical decisions during pregnancy, labor, delivery, and newborn care and if those decisions met accepted medical standards.

How Does California MICRA Affect a Birth Injury Claim?

California’s Medical Injury Compensation Reform Act, commonly called MICRA, governs important parts of medical malpractice litigation.

MICRA treats economic and noneconomic damages differently. Economic damages can account for substantial lifetime expenses associated with a severe birth injury, including medical treatment, rehabilitation, specialized equipment, home care, and lost earning capacity.

Noneconomic damages address losses such as pain, suffering, inconvenience, physical impairment, and disfigurement. California places statutory limits on noneconomic damages in medical malpractice cases. Those limits began increasing under reforms that took effect in 2023 and continue to increase under a statutory schedule.

California’s MICRA cap applies to noneconomic damages. Economic losses, including medical treatment and future care costs, are addressed separately.

The rules governing medical malpractice damages are technical, including how the statutory limits apply when multiple healthcare providers are involved. A San Diego birth injury law firm handling these cases should account for MICRA when evaluating the child’s current losses and projected lifetime needs.

Questions About Your Child’s Medical Care?

If you believe a medical error contributed to your child’s injury, Thorsnes Bartolotta McGuire can review the medical records, consult qualified experts, and investigate the care provided to you and your baby.

Contact us online or call (619) 236-9363 for a free consultation.

What Type of Compensation Can a Birth Injury Attorney in San Diego Help Me Get?

California law allows families to pursue damages when medical negligence injures a child. The child’s condition, expected medical needs, and losses caused by the injury all factor into the compensation sought.

Medical Expenses

Compensation can address medical expenses already incurred as well as projected costs for:

• Hospital care
• Surgeries
• Physician and specialist visits
• Medications
• Physical and occupational therapy
• Speech therapy
• Medical equipment
• Future treatment

Pain and Suffering

A child may also have noneconomic damages associated with physical pain, suffering, emotional distress, impairment, or disfigurement. California’s MICRA rules affect the amount recoverable for these losses.

Loss of Future Earnings

A permanent disability may affect the child’s future ability to work. Economic experts can evaluate projected loss of earning capacity based on the nature and severity of the impairment.

Rehabilitation and Assistive Devices

A child may require years of physical, occupational, behavioral, or speech therapy. Wheelchairs, braces, communication technology, adaptive equipment, and replacement equipment can also represent significant long-term expenses.

Special Education Needs

A claim can account for specialized educational services associated with the injury when those expenses are recoverable under California law.

Home Care and Modifications

Permanent physical or neurological disabilities may require accessible bathrooms, ramps, widened doorways, lifts, modified vehicles, or paid assistance with daily activities.

Punitive Damages

Punitive damages have separate legal requirements and are reserved for conduct meeting California’s heightened standard. Medical negligence by itself is insufficient. California also imposes procedural requirements for seeking punitive damages against a healthcare provider.

Factors Affecting Compensation Amounts

Factors used to evaluate a birth injury claim include:

• Severity and permanence of the injury
• Past medical expenses
• Projected lifetime medical and therapy costs
• Need for attendant or home care
• Assistive equipment and home modifications
• Effect on future earning capacity
• Pain, impairment, and other noneconomic losses
• Healthcare providers legally responsible for the injury

For a child with profound neurological injuries, projecting future needs can involve a life-care planner, physicians, rehabilitation specialists, economists, and other experts.

How Long Do You Have to File a Birth Injury Lawsuit in California?

California has special statutes of limitations for medical malpractice cases involving children.

Under California law, an action involving a minor generally must be filed within three years from the date of the alleged wrongful act. For a child under age six, the claim generally must be filed within three years or before the child’s eighth birthday, whichever provides the longer filing period. The statute contains exceptions that can alter these deadlines.

California also generally requires written notice to a healthcare provider at least 90 days before filing a medical malpractice lawsuit.

Claims involving public hospitals or government healthcare providers can trigger additional claim-presentation requirements and shorter deadlines. The filing deadline should be calculated using the date of the alleged malpractice, the child’s age, the healthcare providers involved, and any rules or exceptions that apply to the claim.

Settlements and Verdicts We Have Won for Birth Injury Clients

Finding out that your baby suffered a preventable injury raises questions that compensation alone cannot answer. A financial recovery can help pay for medical treatment, therapy, equipment, care, and other resources associated with the injury.

Our birth injury results include:

• $2.8 Million Verdict won against the U.S. for a baby who suffered brain damage.
• $2.6 Million Settlement in a case where a doctor missed signs of trouble with the baby and failed to perform a necessary C-section in time, leaving the child with severe disabilities requiring continuous care.

How a Birth Injury Attorney in San Diego Can Help

Birth injury litigation requires a detailed review of the medical care provided before, during, and after delivery. Attorneys must determine what happened, which providers were responsible for critical decisions, and how those decisions affected the baby.

Our team can help by:

• Obtaining medical records: We review prenatal, labor and delivery, fetal monitoring, operative, newborn, and NICU records.
• Consulting medical experts: Qualified healthcare professionals can evaluate the cause of the injury and the care provided.
• Reviewing hospital procedures: We examine decisions made by doctors, nurses, and other providers during critical points in the pregnancy and delivery.
• Identifying responsible parties: Several healthcare providers can be involved in the mother’s or baby’s care.
• Establishing medical negligence: We work to establish the applicable standard of care, how the provider failed to meet it, and how that failure harmed the child.
• Calculating long-term damages: Medical and financial experts can project treatment, therapy, equipment, care, and lost earning capacity.
• Preparing for trial: Our attorneys prepare cases for litigation and trial when a fair resolution cannot be reached.
• Keeping your family informed: We explain developments and answer questions throughout the case.

A San Diego birth injury lawyer at Thorsnes Bartolotta McGuire can coordinate the legal and expert investigation while your family focuses on your child’s medical care.

“I was fortunate enough to be recommended to Thorsnes Bartolotta McGuire LLP for a medical malpractice case. I made the call and was immediately impressed by their professionalism, sincerity, and genuine concern for my circumstances. They handled my case the same way and did an amazing job. I highly recommend them!”

— Laura Wallace | Client

Why Hire Thorsnes Bartolotta McGuire for a San Diego Birth Injury Case?

Since 1978, Thorsnes Bartolotta McGuire has represented injured people and families throughout San Diego. Our attorneys have recovered more than $2 billion in verdicts and settlements across our practice.

Our San Diego birth injury attorneys investigate questions such as:

• What did the fetal monitoring show during labor?
• Did providers respond appropriately to signs of fetal distress?
• Should a C-section have occurred sooner?
• Were forceps or vacuum extraction used properly?
• Were maternal complications diagnosed and treated appropriately?
• Did the baby receive prompt treatment after birth?
• What medical care, therapy, equipment, and assistance will the child require in the years ahead?

Our attorneys work with medical and other qualified experts to answer these questions and prepare claims involving preventable birth injuries.

Contact Thorsnes Bartolotta McGuire online or call (619) 236-9363 for a free case evaluation.

Proudly Representing San Diego Residents