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Medical Malpractice Help in Laramie
If you or someone you love was hurt by a doctor, nurse or hospital in Laramie, 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.
Medical Malpractice Under Wyoming Law
Under W.S. § 1-3-107, the claims it governs are those arising from an act, error or omission in the rendering of licensed or certified professional or health care services in Wyoming.
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 Laramie departed from accepted practice and whether that departure caused the harm.
Common Medical Malpractice Claims
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.
Failure to diagnose
Diagnostic claims turn on timing: what was known when, what a careful provider would have done with the same symptoms, and what an earlier diagnosis would have changed.
Surgical mistakes
Surgery claims may involve an operation on the wrong site or patient, an instrument or object left in the body, damage to nearby structures, or a failure in anesthesia or aftercare. Each is looked at for whether it departed from accepted practice and caused the harm.
Wrong drug or wrong dose
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.
Childbirth injuries
Claims about harm at birth look at the care given and ask whether a departure from accepted practice caused the injury, which is why complete records matter.
How Long You Have to File in Wyoming
Wyoming gives two years from the date of the alleged act, error or omission to bring a claim against a health care provider (W.S. § 1-3-107), which makes the date of the care the first thing to pin down.
There is a discovery exception: a case may be started up to two years after the act, error or omission is discovered if the claimant can establish that it was not reasonably discoverable within the two year period, or that the claimant failed to discover it despite due diligence (W.S. § 1-3-107).
A discovery in the second year adds time: W.S. § 1-3-107 extends the period for commencing a lawsuit by six months in that case.
For an injury to the rights of a minor, the deadline is the minor’s eighth birthday or two years from the act, error or omission, whichever is greater, with the same discovery exception; for a plaintiff with a legal disability other than minority, it is one year after the disability is removed (W.S. § 1-3-107).
Wrongful Death Claims in Wyoming
If a patient dies because of care that would have supported a claim during the patient’s life, W.S. § 1-38-101 provides a wrongful death action.
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).
Two years after the death is the limit for a wrongful death action (W.S. § 1-38-102), and W.S. § 1-38-103 tolls the period from the filing of a proper action to appoint the representative until thirty days after the order.
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
Wyoming does not allow the legislature to cap what an injured person may recover. Wyo. Const. art. 10, § 4 states that no law shall be enacted limiting the amount of damages for injury or death.
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.
That does not set the value of any claim. What can be recovered still depends on the injury, the proof and the share of fault found against each defendant.
The Fifty Percent Rule
Under W.S. § 1-1-109, a patient whose own fault is fifty percent or less of the total can still recover, with damages reduced by that share.
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.
Records that show every provider involved in the care help an attorney see how fault may be shared.
If the Provider Is a Public Entity
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.
Before suing a governmental entity, the claim has to be presented as an itemized statement in writing within two years of the act, error or omission, stating the time, place and circumstances, the claimant, and the amount demanded (W.S. § 1-39-113).
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.
Where an Albany County Malpractice Case Is Filed
W.S. § 1-5-109 gives two places to file: the county where the cause of action arose, or the county where the defendant resides or may be summoned. Care in Laramie points to Albany County as one option.
Courts and Hospitals Near Laramie
Albany County is the county the Census Bureau assigns to Laramie. The Second Judicial District Court for Albany County is listed by the Wyoming Judicial Branch in Laramie, at 525 Grand Avenue, Suite 305, Laramie, WY 82070. In Laramie, the state trauma program lists Ivinson Memorial Hospital 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.
Start Your Laramie Medical Malpractice Claim
People often start with a simple timeline of the care they received in Laramie, along with discharge papers, test results and any letters from the provider or the insurer.
Use the form on this page to be matched with an attorney in our network who handles Wyoming medical malpractice claims. Asking early leaves more time for records and expert review.
Frequently Asked Questions
Where is a malpractice lawsuit from Laramie filed?
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 Laramie that can be Albany County.
Does the deadline change for a child injured by medical care?
For a minor the deadline is the eighth birthday or two years from the act, error or omission, whichever is greater, with the same discovery exception (W.S. § 1-3-107).
How does shared fault affect a Wyoming claim?
Shared fault reduces the award in proportion but does not bar recovery while your fault is fifty percent or less of the total fault (W.S. § 1-1-109).
How long does a family have after a death caused by malpractice?
Two years after the death (W.S. § 1-38-102), and the action is brought by the wrongful death representative for the beneficiaries.
Can the legislature cap 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.
How is fault divided among several providers?
Each defendant is liable only for its own proportion of the total fault, and fault can be assigned to an actor who is not a party (W.S. § 1-1-109).
Is there a different process for public hospitals in Wyoming?
A written, itemized claim has to be presented within two years of the act, error or omission (W.S. § 1-39-113), and suit must be started within one year after the claim is filed (W.S. § 1-39-114).
More Medical Malpractice Pages
These pages cover other communities in Wyoming, in case the care you received was somewhere else.
