Legal Question in Medical Malpractice in Georgia
after discovering misdiagnosis,how long do you have to file suit?
My father just discovered the oncologist and the hospital where he had surgery,misdiagnosed his type of cancer,& he received the wrong cancer treatment.He's been a patient& seen this doctor every 3-4months a little over two years.He left the services of this doctor in July 2003 after discovering the wrong diagnosis&treatment.He's been to two other oncologists.Both told him he should have gotten high dose chemo instead of just radiation to the site.Now the cancer has spread to other areas of his body.Told prognosis would have been better if he'd been treated with chemo.He discovered this July 2003.How long do you have after discovery of medical malpractice to file suit in Georgia?
2 Answers from Attorneys
Re: after discovering misdiagnosis,how long do you have to file suit?
The law in Georgia is fuzzy on when the statute begins to run. Some case have said at the time of the misdiagnosis and others have allowed some deviation based on the ongoing care and continued misdiagnosis.
To accurately answer your question you need to immediately confer with an attorney to see if the limitations period vitiates any claim you wish to make. A brief perusal of the case law shows that this issue has arisen frequently over the past 10-15 years and cases such as Ford v. Dove and Ezor v. Thompson have discussed this issue.
Please do not hesitate to get an informed opinion on this issue. If the statutory period commenced over two years ago you might be in legal limbo.
If you wish to call me or email we would be glad to confer to see if you have a viable case.
Re: after discovering misdiagnosis,how long do you have to file suit?
I believe that I recently responded to this situation in a posting by the wife of the misdiagnosed patient. I am very sorry to here about your father's diagnosis, or apparent misdiagnosis.
To answer your question, in Georgia the basic statute of limitations for medical malpractice is two years from the date on which an injury or death arising from a negligent or wrongful act or omission occurred. O.C.G.A. section 9-3-71(a). Georgia also has something called a statute of repose, which provides that even if the patient or family did not know about the malpractice, unless there is fraud, concealment, or misrepresentation, under no circumstances may a healthcare provider be sued for medical malpractice more than five years after the actual incident of malpractice. O.C.G.A.section 9-3-71(b). Foreign object cases, however, may be brought any time within one year of discovering the object. Ga. Code Ann. section 9-3-72 (Supp. 1997). These limits apply to minors, except that the statute of limitations will never run prior to the minor's seventh birthday and the statute of repose will never run prior to the minor's tenth birthday. Ga. Code Ann. section 9-3-73 (1997). As with adults, if the negligent act involves a foreign object, the action must be brought within one year of discovering the object. Keep in mind that if a minor is seriously hurt his parents may have a claim for some damages. The parents' claim may be cut-off by the standard statute of limitations, even if the minor's claim may be extended because he is under age 7, or under age 10.
I would be more than happy to discuss this matter with you further. Please call or email.
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