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Your Shoshoni Medical Malpractice Attorney
If you or someone you love was hurt by a doctor, nurse or hospital in Shoshoni, you may be dealing with new medical bills, lost work and worry about what comes next.
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.
How Wyoming Law Defines Medical Malpractice
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.
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).
Medical care does not always succeed, and an unhappy outcome is not by itself malpractice; the claim has to connect a failure in care to the injury.
Kinds of Cases That Need a Malpractice Attorney
Whatever the kind of mistake, a claim comes back to two questions: did the care depart from accepted practice, and did that cause the injury?
Diagnostic errors
A late or missed diagnosis can allow an illness to progress. These claims look at what the provider did, what was reasonably available to do, and what an earlier diagnosis would have changed.
Surgical mistakes
Problems before, during or after an operation can all lead to claims: planning, the procedure itself, anesthesia and follow up care. The question is whether the care departed from accepted practice and caused the injury.
Medication errors
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
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.
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.
When a Patient Dies
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.
W.S. § 1-38-102 requires the wrongful death action to be brought by and in the name of the wrongful death representative.
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.
Compensation Limits Under Wyoming Law
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.
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.
How Wyoming Divides Fault Among the Parties
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.
W.S. § 1-1-109 makes each defendant responsible only for its own share of fault, and the shares are determined for every actor, including one who is not a party.
Records that show every provider involved in the care help an attorney see how fault may be shared.
Government Employed Providers in Wyoming
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.
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).
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 Shoshoni
An action for personal injuries or wrongful death may be brought in the county where the cause of action arose or in the county where the defendant resides or may be summoned (W.S. § 1-5-109). For care received in Shoshoni, the county where the claim arose may well be Fremont County.
The Court and Hospitals Behind a Shoshoni Claim
Shoshoni lies in Fremont County, according to Census Bureau place and county names. For Fremont County, the Wyoming Judicial Branch lists a district court in Lander, part of the Ninth Judicial District, at 450 North 2nd Street, Room 235, Lander, WY 82520. In Fremont County, the state trauma program lists Sage West Health Care in Lander 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 Shoshoni Medical Malpractice Claim
If you believe medical care in Shoshoni 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
How does shared fault affect a Wyoming claim?
Yes, up to a point: recovery is not barred while your fault is fifty percent or less of the total fault, and the award is reduced in proportion (W.S. § 1-1-109).
Which county would a Shoshoni malpractice case be filed in?
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. Fremont County is often one of them for a Shoshoni 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).
How long do I have to file a medical malpractice claim in Wyoming?
Two years from the date of the act, error or omission, with a discovery exception (W.S. § 1-3-107).
Does Wyoming have a discovery rule for malpractice?
Possibly: W.S. § 1-3-107 allows up to two years after discovery in those circumstances, and the claimant must establish them.
How long does a family have after a death caused by malpractice?
Yes. W.S. § 1-38-101 provides the action, which must be commenced within two years after the death (W.S. § 1-38-102).
Can the legislature cap malpractice damages in Wyoming?
Not by law. Wyo. Const. art. 10, § 4 says no law shall limit the damages recoverable for causing injury or death.
More Medical Malpractice Pages
If the care happened elsewhere in Wyoming, these pages may be a better starting point.
