San Diego Medical Malpractice Lawyers

How a San Diego Medical Malpractice Claim Works

When a doctor, nurse, hospital, or other healthcare provider fails to meet the accepted standard of care and a patient is harmed, California law allows the patient, or the family in a wrongful death case, to seek compensation. These cases are decided on medical evidence, which is why it matters that Ken Sigelman is both a lawyer and a medical doctor.

Common Types of Medical Malpractice We Handle

• Diagnostic errors: missing symptoms, making the wrong diagnosis, or delaying a diagnosis
• Surgical errors: wrong-site surgery, removing the wrong body part, or leaving instruments or materials inside a patient
• Anesthesia errors: the wrong drug or dose, poor monitoring, or failing to explain the risks
• Birth injuries: missed fetal distress, untreated maternal infection, misuse of forceps, or a delayed C-section
• Medication errors: the wrong drug, the wrong dose, or a prescription that dangerously interacts with other medications
• Failure to treat: skipped tests, ignoring a patient’s history, discharging too early, or giving no follow-up instructions

See more examples of medical malpractice.

What You Have to Prove

To win a malpractice case, your attorney must show four things:

1. Duty: a doctor-patient relationship existed, so the provider owed you a duty of care.
2. Breach: the provider fell below the standard of care that a similarly trained provider would have followed.
3. Causation: that failure directly caused your injury. A bad outcome alone is not malpractice.
4. Damages: you suffered real losses as a result.

Learn more about how to prove medical malpractice in California.

California Deadlines Are Short

Under California Code of Civil Procedure §340.5, a malpractice case generally must be filed within three years of the injury or one year after you discovered (or reasonably should have discovered) it, whichever comes first. A few circumstances, such as fraud, intentional concealment, or a foreign object left in the body, can pause that deadline, and different rules apply to young children. Read more about California medical malpractice law.

Compensation You May Recover

• Economic damages: past and future medical care, lost income, and lost earning capacity. California does not cap these.
• Non-economic damages: pain and suffering, disability, disfigurement, and loss of enjoyment of life. California caps these under MICRA; the limits were raised in 2023 and increase each year.

See what affects the average medical malpractice settlement in California.

Medical Malpractice FAQs

What counts as medical malpractice in California?

Medical malpractice is a negligent act, or failure to act, by a licensed healthcare provider while providing professional services, within the scope of their license, that causes a patient’s injury or death.

Who can be held liable for medical malpractice in San Diego?

Any licensed healthcare provider or facility in California, including doctors, surgeons, nurses, anesthesiologists, physician assistants, dentists, pharmacists, physical therapists, chiropractors, and paramedics, as well as the hospitals, clinics, nursing homes, and laboratories that employ them.

How do I prove medical malpractice in California?

You must show the provider owed you a duty, failed to meet the standard of care, and that this failure caused your injury and losses. Your attorney builds that proof from medical records, depositions, witness and expert testimony, the provider’s training, and the facility’s own policies and guidelines.

Can I recover punitive damages in a medical malpractice case?

Only in limited cases. Punitive damages require clear and convincing evidence that the provider acted with oppression, malice, or fraud, meaning the conduct was intentional or showed willful disregard for your safety.

Contact us for a free consultation.