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Medical Malpractice Attorneys for Glenrock, WY
Finding out that care in Glenrock fell short can be painful, and sorting out whether it amounts to medical malpractice is a separate question from how you feel about it.
Below you will find the Wyoming rules that shape a malpractice claim, from the filing deadline to wrongful death and public providers, and a way to reach an attorney in our network through needanattorney.net.
Medical Malpractice Under Wyoming Law
A medical malpractice claim in Wyoming is one that arises from an act, error or omission in the rendering of licensed or certified professional or health care services, the wording used by W.S. § 1-3-107 for the filing deadline.
The comparative fault statute, W.S. § 1-1-109, describes fault as acts or omissions, in any measure negligent, that are a proximate cause of the injury, and that is the link a malpractice claim has to show.
An unexpected outcome does not prove a mistake. What matters is whether care in Glenrock departed from accepted practice and whether that departure caused the harm.
Types of Medical Malpractice Cases
These are among the kinds of care that lead to claims. Each depends on showing that the care departed from accepted medical practice and that the departure caused the harm.
Diagnostic errors
When a provider fails to order the right test, misreads a result or dismisses symptoms, the harm may come from lost time. A claim asks whether an earlier diagnosis was reasonably available and what difference it would have made to treatment.
Errors in the operating room
Operating room claims examine whether the surgeon and the team followed accepted practice for the procedure, and whether a departure from it, rather than a known risk, caused the harm.
Errors with medications
Medication claims often start with a mistake in ordering, dispensing or giving a drug. The question is where in the process the care departed from accepted practice and whether the error caused the harm.
Harm to a mother or baby at birth
Birth injury claims examine monitoring, decisions about delivery and care after the baby is born, and ask whether any departure from accepted practice caused the harm.
The Wyoming Filing Deadline
Under W.S. § 1-3-107, the general rule is two years from the alleged act, error or omission in the rendering of health care services, and the time runs whether or not the patient has yet seen a lawyer.
If the problem could not reasonably have been found within the first two years, or was missed despite due diligence, W.S. § 1-3-107 allows a claim up to two years after discovery, but the claimant has to establish that.
If the act, error or omission is discovered during the second year of the two year period, the time to start the lawsuit is extended by six months (W.S. § 1-3-107).
W.S. § 1-3-107 sets a longer period for a minor, the eighth birthday or two years from the act, error or omission if that is later, and a period of one year after removal of the disability for a plaintiff with a legal disability other than minority.
Wrongful Death After a Medical Error
W.S. § 1-38-101 makes a person liable in a wrongful death action when the death was caused by a wrongful act, neglect or default that would have entitled the injured person to sue.
A wrongful death representative, not the family members individually, brings the action (W.S. § 1-38-102).
The period for a wrongful death claim is measured from the death, not from the care, and is two years (W.S. § 1-38-102), tolled while a properly filed appointment action is pending (W.S. § 1-38-103).
Damages in a wrongful death case can include pecuniary and exemplary damages, and each beneficiary may prove loss of probable future companionship, society and comfort (W.S. § 1-38-102).
Damages in Wyoming Malpractice Claims
Under Wyo. Const. art. 10, § 4, the amount of damages recoverable for causing injury or death cannot be limited by law, and that applies to a claim against a provider.
The same section lets the legislature, by general law, require alternative dispute resolution or review by a medical review panel before a civil action is filed against a health care provider (Wyo. Const. art. 10, § 4). An attorney can tell you whether any such step applies to your claim.
What a claim is worth depends on the injury, the proof and the allocation of fault, not on a statutory ceiling.
The Fifty Percent Rule
A claimant is not barred from recovering if the claimant’s own fault is not more than fifty percent of the total fault of all actors, and any damages are reduced in proportion to the claimant’s share (W.S. § 1-1-109).
When a hospital and a physician are both involved, W.S. § 1-1-109 has the fault divided among all actors, each defendant paying only its proportion.
Knowing who treated the patient, and when, helps an attorney decide whom to name and how fault may be divided.
Claims Against Public Hospitals and Government Providers
When care came from a public employee, W.S. § 1-39-110 allows a claim against the governmental entity for medical malpractice by its employed health care providers.
A written, itemized claim is required first: W.S. § 1-39-113 asks for it within two years of the act, error or omission, with the time, place and circumstances of the injury, the claimant’s name and address, and the amount demanded.
Two clocks apply to a public provider: the written claim (W.S. § 1-39-113) and then one year from filing it to sue (W.S. § 1-39-114). The liability limit for employed providers named in W.S. § 1-39-110 is $1,000,000 for acts on or after May 1, 1988.
Venue for a Claim From Glenrock
Where to file depends on the facts. W.S. § 1-5-109 allows the county where the claim arose or where the defendant resides or may be summoned, and for a Glenrock claim Converse County is often one of them.
Local Courts and Hospitals in Glenrock
Converse County is the county the Census Bureau assigns to Glenrock. The Wyoming Judicial Branch court locator lists the district court for Converse County in Douglas, at 1201 Mesa Drive Suite F, Douglas, WY 82633; it belongs to the Eighth Judicial District. In Converse County, the state trauma program lists Memorial Hospital of Converse County in Douglas as a Community Trauma Hospital. Ask the hospital’s records office for your complete chart and itemized bill, and note which doctors and nurses were involved.
Speak With a Glenrock Malpractice Attorney
If you believe medical care in Glenrock caused you or a family member harm, a good first step is to write down what happened, when it happened and who was involved, and to gather the records and bills you already have.
Submit the form on this page and we will work to connect you with an attorney in our network who handles medical malpractice claims in Wyoming. Because filing deadlines are measured in years, not decades, it helps to ask early.
Frequently Asked Questions
What if I was partly at fault?
Wyoming allows recovery when the claimant’s fault is not more than fifty percent of the total, with damages diminished by that share (W.S. § 1-1-109).
In what county would a Glenrock claim be brought?
W.S. § 1-5-109 allows either county, the one where the claim arose or the one where the defendant resides or may be summoned. Converse County is often one of them for a Glenrock claim.
Does the deadline change for a child injured by medical care?
A minor has until the eighth birthday or two years from the care if that is later (W.S. § 1-3-107).
What is the filing deadline for a malpractice claim in Wyoming?
The general period is two years from the alleged act, error or omission (W.S. § 1-3-107); a claim may be started up to two years after discovery if the problem was not reasonably discoverable.
What if I did not find out about the mistake until later?
A claim may be instituted not more than two years after discovery if the claimant can establish the error was not reasonably discoverable within two years, or was missed despite due diligence (W.S. § 1-3-107).
Is there a wrongful death claim for malpractice in Wyoming?
The wrongful death representative brings the action for the beneficiaries (W.S. § 1-38-102), within two years after the death.
Is there a cap on malpractice damages in Wyoming?
There is no statutory cap: Wyo. Const. art. 10, § 4 bars a law limiting the amount of damages for injury or death.
Nearby Communities We Serve
If the care happened elsewhere in Wyoming, these pages may be a better starting point.
