Let me tell you the story of an Alabama man who was almost killed by a healthcare professional. His doctor prescribed a drug, but the pharmacist gave the man a different drug. If taken, that drug would have probably sent him into cardiac arrest and most likely killed him. The man noticed that the shape of the pill was not like the drug he usually took. He did not ingest it.
The man goes to an Alabama lawyer and wants to sue. The lawyer tells him he will lose since he was not injured.
“What?” the man says. “But I could have died.” The man did not like the answer and, as it turned out, he had been to 3 other attorneys who gave him the same advice.
Now, if you were on a jury, what would you decide?
It might be fun to speculate, but it doesn’t really matter since the case would never get to a jury. In Alabama, if you are not injured, you have no case. Let me say it another way: something that ALMOST injured you has no value.
The purpose of a lawsuit is to get you the money you need to get back to where you were before the injury. In this case, you are already there.
It might surprise you how often I have to explain this to someone. This legal fact is true if you find a sharp object in a hamburger that you did not eat or when a fellow shopper almost hit you while parking a car.
One other thing I want to tell you about medical malpractice cases is they are among the toughest to win—only a small percentage of those cases brought in Alabama result in the injured person receiving any money.
However, I strongly believe in knowing your rights before making any serious decision. I suggest you talk to an attorney … but, may I add, listen to what they say.
If you are injured in a traffic accident or suffer any other personal injury like an on-the-job injury, nursing home neglect incident, slip and fall, or boating accident, you can talk to us at the law firm of Steele Ritchie for free. We genuinely want to help. We are local attorneys with decades of experience helping people, especially in the southwest Mobile area. Give us a call at (251) 666-1212.
Allen Ritchie
Alabama Personal Injury Lawyer