Florida has a law called the Statute of Limitations, which limits the time a person has to bring a medical malpractice lawsuit. How long do you have?
Two years.
Or maybe four years.
It depends.
The law says it’s two years from when you knew or SHOULD HAVE KNOWN about the malpractice in order to bring a lawsuit. Here’s the catch–you don’t have to know exactly what caused the injury, only that there is an injury. That’s when the clock starts ticking.
For example, if a doctor leaves an instrument in you after surgery (I’ve seen it happen), the two years starts running from when it starts giving you trouble., but no more than four years.
If a doctor misdiagnoses a cancer on a mammogram or x-ray, and you find out about it a couple of years down the line, as long as it’s no longer than four years, you have time to file a lawsuit. But once you find out about the mistake, the two year clock starts ticking.
Best bet–see a lawyer like Kip Sinclair who specializes in medical malpractice cases as soon as possible to preserve your rights.