Wilkes-Barre Medical Malpractice Lawyers

Generally, you have two years from the date you discovered (or should have discovered) the injury caused by medical negligence. However, there are exceptions for minors and cases involving foreign objects. It's critical to consult with a medical malpractice attorney as soon as possible to protect your rights.

Pennsylvania law requires that within 60 days of filing a medical malpractice complaint, the plaintiff must file a Certificate of Merit. This certificate, signed by a qualified medical professional, confirms that there is a reasonable probability that the healthcare provider's care fell below professional standards and caused the harm. Our attorneys handle this requirement as part of building your case.

We work on a contingency fee basis — you pay nothing upfront and nothing unless we win your case. Our fee is a percentage of the compensation recovered, which means our interests are fully aligned with yours. The initial consultation is completely free.

Compensation may include economic damages (medical bills, lost wages, future care costs), non-economic damages (pain and suffering, emotional distress, loss of enjoyment of life), and in rare cases, punitive damages. Pennsylvania does not cap non-economic damages in medical malpractice cases, meaning there's no artificial limit on what you can recover for your suffering.

Yes. Hospitals can be held liable for medical malpractice under theories including negligent hiring, supervision, or credentialing of staff, as well as through vicarious liability for the actions of their employees. If a hospital's systemic failures contributed to your injury, they can be held accountable alongside the individual healthcare providers. That includes the hospitals our clients use most: Wilkes-Barre General, Geisinger Wyoming Valley, Geisinger Community Medical Center, Moses Taylor, Regional Hospital of Scranton, UPMC Harrisburg and Hershey Medical Center.

If a provider's error caused a serious, lasting injury — a missed cancer diagnosis, a surgical mistake, a birth injury — it is worth a free review. Pennsylvania cases require a Certificate of Merit from a qualified physician, so we screen every potential claim with a medical expert before anything is filed, at no cost to you. Minor or short-lived harm rarely justifies the expense of expert testimony, and we will tell you that honestly.

These are the most demanding personal injury cases: you must prove through expert testimony that the provider fell below the accepted standard of care and that the deviation caused the harm, and hospitals defend them aggressively. Well-documented cases with clear causation still settle regularly, and Pennsylvania's MCARE Fund provides an additional layer of coverage above the provider's primary policy. The strength of the medical records is everything.