Georgia Cerebral Palsy Attorneys

At ABC Law Centers: Birth Injury Lawyers (Reiter & Walsh, P.C.), we understand that navigating a child’s cerebral palsy diagnosis can be difficult. Legal help is one avenue of support that parents and caregivers can turn to. Our Georgia cerebral palsy attorneys not only fight to obtain justice, but to provide lifetime care for children with cerebral palsy as a result of a birth injury.

Cerebral palsy is caused by an underlying brain injury that impacts the parts of the brain that control motor function. Brain injuries are not typically localized to a single lobe, meaning that individuals with cerebral palsy may also have other related behavioral, cognitive, orthopedic, developmental, sensory, visual or hearing-related conditions. While not an exhaustive list, the following complications and medical errors may cause or increase the risk of cerebral palsy:

• Abnormal fetal position/presentation
• Birth trauma
• Brain bleeds (intracranial hemorrhages)
• Delayed c-section
• Forceps and vacuum extractor injuries
• Low birth weight
• Maternal infections
• Meconium aspiration syndrome (MAS)
• Mismanaged fetal distress 
• Mismanaged high-risk pregnancy
• Periventricular leukomalacia (PVL)
• Placental abruption
• Premature birth
• Prolonged and arrested labor
• Umbilical cord problems
• Uterine tachysystole/hyperstimulation
• Uterine rupture

Cerebral palsy is often preventable. Preventing medical errors is a systemic endeavor and involves many moving parts, including clear communication between medical staff, proper training, and the development of accountable medical systems. In order to do so, doctors, nurses, midwives and other members of the medical care team are required to meet a certain standard of care in order to prevent injury or harm to an expectant mother and baby. 

Medical personnel are responsible for:

• Providing proper prenatal care and recognizing risk factors for birth injury/cerebral palsy
• Taking actions to prevent birth injury or cerebral palsy (special caution must be taken if risk factors are present)

When medical professionals deviate from those standards, it increases the risk that a child will be injured. Especially with birth injuries, deviations from the standards of care can cause permanent and often severe problems which can impact a child’s health throughout their lifespan.

If your child is not hitting their developmental milestones as expected, it may be worthwhile to speak to a Georgia birth injury attorney about investigating the care you and your child received during pregnancy, labor and delivery. Sometimes, there are events that occur that parents may not be able to identify as medical malpractice, but a well-trained birth injury attorney can. This means that parents can choose to file a lawsuit to obtain funds for their child’s future care and be secure in knowing that their child will have access to the care they need, no matter what.

Cerebral palsy resources available in each state can vary significantly, depending on geographic location, funding availability, the specific disability the child has, and how different programs are administered. One way to find services for CP and associated disabilities is to seek out larger national disability-related organizations or non-profit service providers that have national presences and find out if they have state or local branches in your area such as United Cerebral Palsy of Georgia. We’ve provided a short list to get you started:

• Georgia Disability Resource Guide: Your State and Local Services
• Georgia Council on Developmental Disabilities
• Parent to Parent of Georgia Resources Directory

Attorneys at ABC Law Centers: Birth Injury Lawyers (Reiter & Walsh, P.C.) focus solely on birth injury cases and have a network of renowned medical, economic and forensics experts at our side. Our attorneys are consistently recognized for their hard work in the birth injury arena and we have an extensive track record in providing services to families affected by birth injuries. Firm partner Rebecca Walsh is admitted to practice in Georgia, and she is devoted to ensuring that families who have experienced a birth injury get the justice they deserve. We provide personalized attention to our clients and keep them informed throughout each step of the legal process.