Kent Medical Malpractice Attorney
Residents of Kent who suspect that a doctor, surgeon, or hospital got something wrong are usually weighing two questions at once: was this really a mistake, and is it worth fighting over? Injury Law Group NW handles Kent medical malpractice attorney cases for patients and families across Kent, the rest of King County, and the greater Seattle area, and our attorneys spent decades on the insurance defense side before representing injured people.
A bad medical outcome is not the same thing as malpractice. Surgery can fail, a drug can cause a reaction, and a cancer can progress despite perfect care. The legal question is narrower: did the provider fall below the accepted standard of care, and did that departure cause harm that would not otherwise have happened? That distinction is the first thing we sort out with every family that calls.
Medical negligence claims also run on tighter clocks and heavier proof than a typical car crash case. Washington sets its own timing rules for them, they almost always require expert medical testimony, and the defense is usually backed by a hospital system and a malpractice carrier with significant resources. Knowing early whether a claim is viable can matter as much as the claim itself.
Why Choose Injury Law Group NW for a Kent Malpractice Claim
Injury Law Group NW is a personal injury firm that represents people hurt by someone else’s negligence, including medical mistakes, throughout King County, the Eastside, and the Puget Sound region. Our practice focuses on personal injury, and our consultations are free and confidential. We work on a contingency fee basis, so you owe no attorney fee unless we recover money for you. Our team includes former insurance defense attorneys, experienced trial lawyers, and case managers who return calls and texts promptly.
Founding partner Troy Hunter spent 16 years in insurance defense litigation, mostly as a partner at Floyd, Pflueger & Ringer, and he also serves as a dispute mediator. Attorney David D. Mordekhov spent two decades at Gardner Trabolsi & Mordekhov, a Seattle defense firm, trying wrongful death, catastrophic injury, and product liability cases before judges and juries. Both are rated AV Preeminent by Martindale-Hubbell. David has been selected to the Super Lawyers list and teaches trial and deposition skills as faculty at the National Institute for Trial Advocacy. Associate attorneys Warren Barreiro and Hannah Shergold are part of the team, and the firm is a member of the Washington State Association for Justice. Our attorneys have argued at every level of the Washington court system, from district court to the Washington Supreme Court.
That background matters in malpractice work because these cases are won or lost on how the other side evaluates risk. We know how carriers reserve and value these claims, what defense experts tend to say, and how depositions of physicians are taken apart. We prepare every claim as though it will go to trial. One result shows how that plays out: we recovered more than $1 million for parents whose newborn died after a hospital failed to adequately test for Group B Strep, and the case led the hospital to change its procedures. Every case is different, and past results do not guarantee a future outcome.
Clients describe the same things about working with us: fast responses, honest assessments, and clear communication through the process. David Mordekhov is fluent in Russian and Warren Barreiro speaks Spanish, so families who are more comfortable in those languages can discuss a sensitive medical event in their own. If your condition makes travel hard, we will come to you at home or the hospital.
Types of Medical Negligence We Investigate for Kent Patients
- Surgical Errors: Wrong-site procedures, damage to nearby organs or nerves, anesthesia mistakes, and operations that should never have been recommended. Retained instruments or sponges are treated separately under Washington’s timing rules, discussed below.
- Misdiagnosis and Delayed Diagnosis: Cancers, strokes, heart attacks, infections, and aneurysms that were missed or dismissed in an emergency room or clinic visit. The claim turns on whether a reasonable provider would have ordered the right test or referral, and whether earlier action would have changed the outcome.
- Prescription and Medication Errors: Wrong drug, wrong dose, ignored allergies, or dangerous interactions that a physician, pharmacist, or nurse should have caught.
- Birth Injuries: Failure to monitor fetal distress, delayed cesarean delivery, mishandled infections, or missed screening. The Group B Strep case described above is the kind of preventable failure we take seriously.
- Informed Consent Failures: Treatment performed without telling the patient about material risks or reasonable alternatives. Washington treats these as their own category of claim.
- Hospital and Facility Negligence: Inadequate staffing, poor infection control, patient falls, pressure sores, and failures in nursing care or discharge planning.
- Brain Injuries From Medical Error: Oxygen deprivation during surgery or delivery, delayed stroke treatment, and similar events that leave lasting cognitive harm. Insurers often contest these injuries, so the medical and vocational evidence has to be built carefully.
- Wrongful Death From Medical Care: Fatal errors where the family or the estate seeks accountability, covering medical and funeral costs, lost financial support, and the loss of companionship.
What to Do After Suspected Malpractice in Kent
Start by getting the care you still need. If you are in ongoing treatment, a second opinion from a provider with no connection to the first one is both medically wise and useful evidence. Do not stop treatment out of anger, and do not assume the next provider will be blamed for the first one’s mistake. Honest follow-up care also protects you from the argument that you failed to limit your own damages.
Next, request your complete records. That means the chart, imaging, lab results, nursing notes, medication administration records, and billing statements from every provider involved. Hospitals and clinics must provide them, and the full file often tells a different story than the discharge summary. Write down your own timeline while memories are fresh: who said what, when symptoms began, and what you were told. Keep any discharge paperwork, pill bottles, and photographs of visible injuries.
Be careful what you say and sign. Risk management departments sometimes reach out after an adverse event, and an early apology or explanation is not a settlement offer. Avoid posting about your care on social media, and do not sign releases or broad record authorizations for an insurer without having them reviewed.
Timing is where people get hurt most. Washington’s malpractice statute gives three years from the negligent act, but also allows one year from when you discovered, or reasonably should have discovered, the injury, and the later of those two dates generally controls. There is also an outer limit of eight years from the act, regardless of discovery. When a foreign object such as a surgical instrument is left in the body, the clock is one year from when you actually learn of it. A written, good-faith request for mediation before filing can pause the limitations period for one year. Washington does not extend deadlines for minors in malpractice cases on the old basis; a 2014 Washington Supreme Court decision struck down that provision, so a child’s claim should not be assumed to have extra time. If a government-run hospital or clinic is involved, a formal tort claim must be presented first, and suit cannot be filed until 60 days after presentment.
Most Kent-area malpractice lawsuits are filed in King County Superior Court. Adults living south of Seattle and I-90 are likely to have their cases heard at the Maleng Regional Justice Center in Kent, while the King County Courthouse in Seattle handles matters from Seattle and north of I-90. Before any filing, though, the real work is investigation: gathering records, retaining qualified medical experts, and deciding whether the evidence supports a case. We will tell you candidly if it does not.
How Washington Law Treats Fault, Damages, and Death in Malpractice Cases
Washington follows comparative fault. If a patient is found partly responsible for the harm, for example by ignoring clear discharge instructions, recovery is reduced by that percentage but not eliminated. Defense lawyers lean on this hard in malpractice cases, often arguing the patient delayed seeking care or did not follow a treatment plan. Fault in Washington includes unreasonable failure to avoid an injury or reduce damages, so how you handled your care after the event can become evidence.
Damages in a successful claim can include past and future medical expenses, lost wages and lost earning capacity, and the human costs of pain, disability, and diminished enjoyment of life. In catastrophic cases, such as a permanent brain injury or a birth injury, the future care plan and the vocational evidence often drive the value of the claim. We build those with life-care and economic experts rather than guessing at them.
When a medical error kills someone, the claim is brought by the personal representative of the estate. The statute directs the benefit to the spouse or state registered domestic partner and children, including stepchildren. If there is no spouse, partner, or child, parents or siblings may be the beneficiaries. The estate can also pursue the claims the person themselves could have brought had they survived. The three-year deadline for these claims generally runs from the date of death, but because a malpractice-based death also implicates the malpractice statute’s discovery and repose rules, the safest course is to speak with a lawyer quickly rather than assume the longer period applies.
Common Questions About Kent Medical Malpractice Claims
How do I know if what happened to me is malpractice or just a bad outcome?
Malpractice requires a departure from the accepted standard of care that caused harm. A known risk that materialized despite proper care is not malpractice. A missed test, a skipped monitoring step, or an undisclosed risk might be. A medical expert’s review of the records is how that line gets drawn.
How long do I have to file a medical malpractice lawsuit in Washington?
Generally three years from the negligent act, or one year from when you discovered or should have discovered the injury, whichever is later. An eight-year outer limit applies from the act itself. Foreign-object cases run one year from actual discovery, and claims against government providers require a pre-suit claim and a 60-day wait.
Does a request for mediation affect the deadline?
Yes. A written, good-faith request for mediation made before filing tolls the malpractice limitations period for one year. This is a technical tool, and it should be used deliberately with a lawyer rather than assumed to apply.
Can I still recover if I contributed to the problem?
Often yes. Washington reduces your compensation by your share of fault instead of barring the claim. A patient who waited a few days to return to the doctor, for example, may still have a claim if the provider’s negligence was the main cause of the harm.
Do I need an expert to bring a malpractice case?
Almost always. Standard of care and causation are medical questions, and jurors need qualified physicians to explain them. We retain and prepare those experts as part of evaluating whether to move forward.
How much does it cost to hire Injury Law Group NW?
The first consultation is free and confidential, and we work on a contingency basis. If there is no recovery, you owe no attorney fee.
What if my child was injured by a medical error, and the child is now older?
Do not assume that being a minor automatically extends the deadline. The Washington Supreme Court ruled in 2014 that the provision removing minors’ tolling in malpractice cases was unconstitutional, which affects how courts analyze these claims. Because the rules are technical, a child’s case should be reviewed promptly.
Will my health insurance cover treatment for a malpractice injury while the claim is pending?
Generally you should use your health coverage to get the care you need, and we help coordinate bills and liens while the claim proceeds. Delaying treatment to wait for a settlement can hurt both your health and your case.
The doctor told me about the risk in a consent form. Does that end my claim?
No. A signed form is evidence, not a shield. The question is whether the provider disclosed the material risks and reasonable alternatives in a way a patient could actually understand, and whether the form covered the specific harm that occurred. Informed consent claims have their own three-year limitations period.
How long does a malpractice case typically take?
These cases usually take longer than ordinary injury claims because of the records review, expert work, and the defense’s tendency to contest causation. Many resolve through negotiation or mediation, but we prepare each one for trial, and complex cases can run well over a year. We keep clients informed at each stage so there are no surprises.
Is it worth hiring a lawyer if my injuries were not catastrophic?
It depends on the cost of proving the case relative to the harm. Expert review is expensive, so very small claims can be difficult to justify. We will give you a straight answer after looking at the records, and the consultation costs nothing.
Serving Kent and King County Malpractice Clients
We represent patients and families from Kent and the surrounding South King County communities, including Auburn, Covington, Maple Valley, Black Diamond, Des Moines, Federal Way, SeaTac, Tukwila, Renton, and Burien. On the Eastside, we serve clients in Bellevue, Issaquah, Sammamish, Redmond, and Kirkland, and across Seattle and the wider Puget Sound region. Malpractice cases often involve care received at hospitals and clinics in several of these communities, and we build them around where the treatment happened and where the records and witnesses are. If an injury makes it hard to travel, we will meet you at home or the hospital.
Talk With a Kent Medical Malpractice Lawyer Today
If you believe a provider’s mistake harmed you or someone you love, a conversation with a Kent medical malpractice lawyer at Injury Law Group NW costs nothing and commits you to nothing. Call or text us to schedule a free, confidential consultation. We will listen to what happened, explain how Washington’s deadlines apply to your situation, and tell you honestly whether the evidence supports a claim. We give hope. We get results.
