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Lander Medical Malpractice Legal Help
If you or someone you love was hurt by a doctor, nurse or hospital in Lander, you may be dealing with new medical bills, lost work and worry about what comes next.
The sections below set out the Wyoming law that applies to malpractice claims and explain how to reach, through needanattorney.net, an attorney in our network who handles them.
When a Provider's Care Becomes a Malpractice Claim
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.
To recover, a patient connects the provider’s conduct to the harm. Wyoming treats an act or omission as fault when it is negligent in any measure and a proximate cause of the injury (W.S. § 1-1-109).
Not every complication is malpractice. A claim needs both a failure in the care and proof that the failure caused the injury.
Common Medical Malpractice Claims
The examples that follow are not a complete list, but they show how a claim connects what the provider did or failed to do to 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.
Surgical errors
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.
Prescription and dosing mistakes
Giving the wrong medication, the wrong amount or a drug that conflicts with something the patient already takes can cause serious harm. A claim looks at where in the process the care fell short.
Childbirth injuries
A delivery that goes wrong can leave lasting harm. A claim looks at what the providers knew, what they did and whether that caused the injury.
Filing Deadlines Under Wyoming Law
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.
W.S. § 1-3-107 lets a claim be filed not more than two years after discovery when the act, error or omission was not reasonably discoverable in the first two years or was missed despite due diligence. The burden of showing that is on the claimant.
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).
Under W.S. § 1-3-107, an injured minor has until the eighth birthday or two years from the act, error or omission, whichever is greater, and a plaintiff under another legal disability has one year after the disability ends.
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.
The action is brought by and in the name of the decedent’s wrongful death representative, for the exclusive benefit of the beneficiaries who sustained damage (W.S. § 1-38-102).
An action for wrongful death must be commenced within two years after the death of the decedent (W.S. § 1-38-102). If an action to appoint the representative is properly filed, the limitation periods are tolled from that filing until thirty days after the order appointing the representative (W.S. § 1-38-103).
W.S. § 1-38-102 allows pecuniary and exemplary damages that are fair and just, and lets each beneficiary prove their own damages, including loss of probable future companionship, society and comfort.
No Statutory Cap on Damages
The Wyoming Constitution says no law shall be enacted limiting the amount of damages to be recovered for causing the injury or death of any person (Wyo. Const. art. 10, § 4), so there is no statutory cap on a malpractice verdict.
One more point in Wyo. Const. art. 10, § 4: the legislature may by general law mandate alternative dispute resolution or medical review panel review before a health care claim is filed, so it is worth confirming early whether anything of that kind applies.
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
Recovery survives a patient’s share of fault only up to fifty percent of the total (W.S. § 1-1-109); within that limit, damages are reduced in proportion.
Under W.S. § 1-1-109, a defendant pays in proportion to its fault, and the fact finder considers every actor whose fault was a proximate cause of the injury, party or not.
Because fault can be assigned to providers who are not defendants, identifying every provider involved in the care early matters.
Claims Against Government Health Care Providers
If the provider is employed by a governmental entity, W.S. § 1-39-110 provides for liability for the provider’s medical malpractice within the scope of the provider’s duties.
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.
The lawsuit is then barred unless commenced within one year after the claim is filed (W.S. § 1-39-114). For claims against an employed physician, physician assistant, nurse, optometrist or dentist based on care on or after May 1, 1988, liability is limited to $1,000,000 for any claimant (W.S. § 1-39-110).
Venue for a Claim From Lander
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 Lander claim Fremont County is often one of them.
Local Courts and Hospitals in Lander
Fremont County is the county the Census Bureau assigns to Lander. The Wyoming Judicial Branch court locator lists the district court for Fremont County in Lander, at 450 North 2nd Street, Room 235, Lander, WY 82520; it belongs to the Ninth Judicial District. The Wyoming Department of Health trauma center list shows Sage West Health Care in Lander as a Community Trauma Hospital. If your care took place at a hospital like this, ask for the complete chart and an itemized bill, and write down every provider who treated you.
Start Your Lander Medical Malpractice Claim
A short written account of what happened, with the names of the providers and the dates, gives an attorney a useful starting point, even if you are missing some records.
Fill out the form above and we will work to put you in touch with an attorney in our network who handles malpractice claims in Wyoming. Starting sooner gives you more room to gather records.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can the legislature cap malpractice damages in Wyoming?
No. The Wyoming Constitution provides that no law shall be enacted limiting the amount of damages for causing injury or death (Wyo. Const. art. 10, § 4).
Is there a different process for public hospitals in Wyoming?
Two steps: the itemized written claim within two years (W.S. § 1-39-113), then the lawsuit within one year after the claim is filed (W.S. § 1-39-114).
Can I still file if the error was found after two years?
W.S. § 1-3-107 has a discovery exception, and a discovery in the second year adds six months to the period.
In what county would a Lander claim be brought?
In the county where the cause of action arose or where the defendant resides or may be summoned (W.S. § 1-5-109); for care in Lander that can be Fremont County.
What is the filing deadline for a malpractice claim in Wyoming?
Two years from the date of the care, extended in some cases by the discovery rule (W.S. § 1-3-107).
Is the deadline different if the patient was a child?
A minor has until the eighth birthday or two years from the care if that is later (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.
Other Pages That May Help
These pages cover other communities in Wyoming, in case the care you received was somewhere else.
