When a birth injury occurs due to medical negligence, families often face significant challenges, both emotionally and financially. If your child suffered an injury during childbirth because of a medical professional’s mistake or failure to act, you may be eligible to work with a birth injury lawyer in Huntington Beach who understands these circumstances. DJA Injury Attorneys helps families seek the compensation they may need to cover medical care, rehabilitation, and your child’s future needs. We offer free consultations with no upfront costs, so you can discuss your case without financial pressure.
Why Choose DJA Injury Attorneys for Your Birth Injury Case
When your family faces a birth injury, it is important to have a lawyer who understands how insurance companies evaluate these claims. DJA Injury Attorneys is led by Jeff Schwalbach, a founder and principal attorney with 11 years of experience in personal injury law. Jeff previously worked as an insurance defense attorney, meaning he has seen how insurers operate and the methods they use to minimize payouts. This background is intended to provide your family with an advantage during the legal process.
Jeff earned his J.D. from Pepperdine University School of Law and has been recognized as a Super Lawyers Rising Star for multiple years. This honor is awarded to 2.5% of attorneys in California. He handles every case personally, so you work directly with an attorney, not a junior associate. DJA Injury Attorneys works on a contingency fee basis, meaning you pay nothing upfront and no fee unless we recover compensation for you. We’re available 24/7 to discuss your case, and our past results include settlements ranging from $600,000 to over $1.3 million for our clients.
Understanding Birth Injuries and Medical Negligence
A birth injury is harm that occurs to a baby during pregnancy, labor, or delivery. Unlike birth defects, which develop before birth, birth injuries result from medical negligence or errors during the birthing process. Medical negligence occurs when a healthcare provider fails to meet the standard of care that a reasonable professional would provide in the same situation.
Common scenarios that can lead to birth injuries include:
- Failure to monitor the baby’s heart rate or mother’s vital signs
- Delayed response to complications like cord prolapse or placental abruption
- Improper use of delivery instruments like forceps or vacuum extractors
- Failure to perform an emergency cesarean section when needed
- Inadequate management of labor progression
- Failure to diagnose and treat maternal conditions like preeclampsia
Birth injuries can affect different parts of the baby’s body and nervous system. Some injuries are temporary, while others cause lifelong disabilities requiring ongoing medical care and support. Traumatic brain injuries from oxygen deprivation during delivery represent one of the most serious outcomes requiring long-term care and rehabilitation services.
Types of Birth Injuries We Handle
Birth injuries can affect newborns in various ways. Some of the common injuries we handle include cerebral palsy, which affects movement and muscle tone; Erb’s palsy, which involves nerve damage to the arm; brachial plexus injuries affecting the shoulder and arm; hypoxic-ischemic encephalopathy (HIE), a brain injury from oxygen deprivation; spinal cord injuries; and facial paralysis from nerve damage during delivery.
Birth injuries don’t only affect babies. Mothers can also suffer serious injuries during childbirth due to medical negligence. These include excessive bleeding from uterine rupture, undetected preeclampsia leading to stroke or organ damage, anesthesia complications, injuries from surgical instruments during cesarean delivery, and severe infections. Both maternal and infant injuries require immediate medical attention and often result in long-term care needs. If you’ve experienced a wrongful death due to birth complications, we can help your family pursue justice.
How Medical Negligence Leads to Birth Injuries
Medical negligence during childbirth typically involves a failure to diagnose, monitor, or respond appropriately to complications. For example, doctors should screen for preeclampsia during pregnancy through blood pressure monitoring and urine tests. When a healthcare provider misses signs of preeclampsia, the mother and baby face risks, including seizures, organ failure, and fetal distress.
Improper labor management is another cause of birth injuries. Labor should progress at a reasonable pace. If labor stalls or becomes too prolonged, the baby may experience oxygen deprivation. A medical professional should recognize when labor isn’t progressing and take action, either by using medication to stimulate contractions or by performing an emergency cesarean section.
Delayed emergency intervention causes many preventable injuries. When a baby shows signs of distress, indicated by abnormal heart rate patterns on fetal monitoring, medical staff must act quickly. Waiting too long to perform a cesarean section can result in permanent brain damage from lack of oxygen. Understanding how to prove medical negligence is critical in these cases, as you must demonstrate that the healthcare provider’s actions fell below the accepted standard of care.
Improper use of delivery instruments also causes injuries. Forceps and vacuum extractors are tools that help guide the baby out during delivery, but they must be used correctly. Excessive force, incorrect placement, or prolonged use can cause nerve damage, fractures, and brain injuries. These types of medical malpractice require expert testimony to establish liability.
Your Path to Compensation
If your child suffered a birth injury due to medical negligence, you have the right to pursue compensation. The legal process begins with a free consultation where we review your medical records and discuss what happened during delivery. We listen to your story and explain your options without financial pressure.
California law provides specific provisions for minors in birth injury cases. For children injured when under six years old, families generally have until the child’s eighth birthday or three years from the date of injury, whichever provides more time. This means the actual timeframe varies based on the child’s age at injury. This timeline exists because birth injuries in minors are treated differently than other personal injury cases. However, it’s important to act promptly, as evidence can be lost and memories fade.
Once we take your case, we begin gathering medical records and professional opinions. Birth injury cases require testimony from medical professionals. Doctors who can review the medical records and explain how the healthcare provider’s actions fell below the standard of care. We work with doctors in obstetrics, pediatrics, and neurology to build a compelling case.
The discovery process allows us to request documents and take depositions from the doctors and nurses involved in your delivery. Our background in insurance defense is applied here to identify the information and documents to request. Many cases reach a settlement during this phase when the other side evaluates the strength of the evidence.
If the insurance company does not offer what we believe is a fair settlement, we prepare for trial. We’ve litigated cases to verdict and work to present medical information to a jury in a clear manner. Our case results demonstrate our ability to secure substantial compensation for families.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the statute of limitations for birth injury claims in California?
California law provides specific provisions for minors in birth injury cases under California Code of Civil Procedure section 340.5. For children injured when under six years old, families have until the child’s eighth birthday or three years from the date of injury, whichever provides more time. For children six years or older at the time of injury, the standard three-year limitation period applies. Additionally, the discovery rule allows one year from when the injury and its negligent cause are discovered, but no action can be commenced more than three years after the date of injury except in cases of fraud or intentional concealment.
How much does it cost to hire DJA Injury Attorneys?
There is no upfront cost to hire us. We offer free consultations to discuss your case, and we work on a contingency fee basis. This means you pay nothing upfront, and we only collect a fee if we recover compensation for you through settlement or verdict. While you pay no attorney fees unless we win, you may be responsible for case costs and expenses regardless of outcome, though we typically advance these costs during litigation.
What types of compensation can I recover?
Compensation in birth injury cases covers both economic and non-economic damages. Economic damages include medical expenses, past, present, and future, such as surgeries, therapy, medications, and specialized equipment. You can also seek to recover lost wages if a parent had to leave work to care for the injured child. Non-economic damages cover pain and suffering, emotional distress, and loss of enjoyment of life. Under California’s MICRA law as updated by Assembly Bill 35, non-economic damages in medical malpractice cases are capped at $470,000 for non-death cases as of 2026.
How long does a birth injury case take?
The timeline varies depending on the details of your case and whether it reaches a settlement or goes to trial. Many cases take between one and two years to resolve through settlement negotiations. If litigation becomes necessary, the process may take longer as we prepare for trial. We keep you informed throughout the process and aim to avoid rushing into an inadequate settlement.
Do I need to prove the doctor was negligent?
Yes, you must prove that the healthcare provider breached the standard of care and that this breach caused your child’s injury. This is why professional medical testimony is important. We work with medical professionals who can testify regarding whether the doctor’s actions fell below what a reasonable physician would have done in the same situation.
What if I’m partially at fault?
California follows a pure comparative negligence rule established in Li v. Yellow Cab Co., which means you can still seek recovery even if you bear some responsibility for what happened. For example, if a mother delayed seeking prenatal care but the doctor still failed to diagnose a condition, she might be found partially at fault. In such a case, she could still recover damages, which would be reduced by her percentage of fault.
Contact DJA Injury Attorneys for a Free Consultation
Your family deserves answers regarding the harm your child suffered. DJA Injury Attorneys is ready to work for you. Call (949) 229-7228 today to schedule your free consultation. We’re available 24/7 to take your call, and there’s no obligation to hire us. During your consultation, we’ll review your case, answer your questions, and explain your legal options.
Jeff Schwalbach and the team at DJA Injury Attorneys have helped families recover compensation for birth injuries. We understand the emotional and financial burden you’re carrying, and we work to hold negligent healthcare providers accountable. Contact us today to learn how we can help your family move forward.
