Most births go well, and some injuries happen despite excellent care. Some newborns face conditions that no one could have prevented. A birth injury becomes a concern when warning signs during pregnancy, labor, or delivery were missed or not acted on in time.
Parents often describe a few common situations. The fetal heart rate tracing shows signs of distress, and hours pass before the team responds or moves to a cesarean delivery. The baby is born not breathing well, needs resuscitation, and is later diagnosed with hypoxic-ischemic encephalopathy (HIE), a brain injury from reduced oxygen or blood flow. A shoulder becomes stuck during delivery and the baby is left with weakness in one arm from a brachial plexus injury. A forceps or vacuum delivery causes bleeding in or around the skull. Newborn jaundice or low blood sugar is not treated in time. Mothers can be injured too, through untreated preeclampsia, a missed infection, or heavy bleeding after delivery that is not controlled quickly.
Some effects are clear at birth. Others, such as developmental delays or seizures, appear over months. Either way, the steps below help protect your family's options while you focus on your child.
1. Focus on your child's care and early services
Follow the care plan from the neonatal team and your pediatrician. Ask about early intervention, therapy, and follow-up imaging. Keep every appointment and the paperwork from each one. These records show both what your child needs and how the injury has affected development.
2. Request the mother's records and the baby's records separately
These are two separate charts, and you need both. For the mother, request prenatal records, labor and delivery records, nursing notes, medication records, anesthesia records, and the delivery summary. For the baby, request delivery room and resuscitation records, Apgar scores, cord blood gas results, newborn nursery or NICU records, imaging such as head ultrasound or MRI, and discharge summaries. Licensed hospitals must furnish copies after discharge on written request "in a timely manner, without delays for legal review" (§ 395.3025(1), Fla. Stat.), and physicians must provide records "in a timely manner" without conditioning release on payment for services (§ 456.057(6), (17)).
“in a timely manner, without delays for legal review”
§ 395.3025(1), Florida Statutes
3. Ask specifically for the fetal monitoring strips
The electronic fetal heart rate and contraction tracing is often the most important record in a birth case. It may be stored separately from the chart. Ask for the complete tracing from admission through delivery in its original format, along with the nursing notes that reference it.
4. Ask about the placenta and pathology
If the placenta was sent to pathology, request the report. Ask whether any tissue or slides are still held. Placental findings can help explain when and why an injury occurred.
5. Keep a journal and the papers you were given
Write down what happened during labor and delivery from your own memory and from your partner's, including times, who was present, and what you were told. Keep the admission papers you signed, including any notice about Florida's birth injury compensation plan.
6. Speak with a lawyer early
Birth injury cases involve two systems in Florida, described below, and the choice between them can depend on facts in the records. Early review helps preserve every option.
Florida deadlines, NICA, and the presuit process
Florida has a no-fault program for certain severe birth injuries, the Florida Birth-Related Neurological Injury Compensation Plan, often called NICA (§§ 766.301-766.316). The statute defines a "birth-related neurological injury" as "injury to the brain or spinal cord of a live infant weighing at least 2,500 grams for a single gestation" (or at least 2,000 grams in a multiple gestation) "caused by oxygen deprivation or mechanical injury occurring in the course of labor," delivery, or immediate postdelivery resuscitation in a hospital, "which renders the infant permanently and substantially mentally and physically impaired" (§ 766.302(4)). The definition excludes disability or death caused by genetic or congenital abnormality.
“which renders the infant permanently and substantially mentally and physically impaired”
§ 766.302(4), Florida Statutes
When NICA applies, its benefits generally replace a medical negligence lawsuit against "any person or entity directly involved with the labor, delivery, or immediate postdelivery resuscitation," with a narrow exception where there is "clear and convincing evidence of bad faith or malicious purpose" or willful and wanton disregard (§ 766.303(2)). A NICA claim begins with a petition filed with the Division of Administrative Hearings (§§ 766.302(6), 766.305(1)), and an administrative law judge decides whether the injury qualifies (§ 766.309(1)). A NICA claim filed more than 5 years after the birth is barred (§ 766.313). Participating hospitals and physicians must give obstetrical patients notice of the plan, subject to exceptions such as an emergency (§ 766.316).
“clear and convincing evidence of bad faith or malicious purpose”
§ 766.303(2), Florida Statutes
Injuries outside NICA, including many maternal injuries and injuries that do not meet the definition, follow Florida's medical negligence rules. Care is measured against "that level of care, skill, and treatment which, in light of all relevant surrounding circumstances, is recognized as acceptable and appropriate by reasonably prudent similar health care providers" (§ 766.102(1)). A claim generally must be brought within 2 years from the incident or its discovery and no later than 4 years from the incident, but the 4-year limit does not bar a claim brought for a child on or before the child's eighth birthday (§ 95.11(5)(c)). Before suit, the claimant must obtain a verified written medical opinion from a qualified physician (§ 766.203(2)) and serve a notice of intent, which starts a 90-day presuit period that tolls the limitations period (§ 766.106).
“that level of care, skill, and treatment which, in light of all relevant surrounding circumstances, is recognized as acceptable and appropriate by reasonably prudent similar health care providers”
§ 766.102(1), Florida Statutes
Our guide, How Florida Medical Malpractice Claims Work, explains the presuit process in more detail.
Your checklist
- Keep up with your child's care, therapy, and early intervention services.
- Request the mother's chart and the baby's chart separately.
- Ask for the complete fetal monitoring strips from admission to delivery.
- Request placental pathology and cord blood gas results.
- Write down your memory of labor and delivery, and keep every paper you signed.
- Note the 5-year NICA date and the medical negligence deadlines.
- Speak with a lawyer early so both paths stay open.
How we review these cases
We begin with the mother's and the baby's records, side by side, and build a timeline of labor and delivery from the monitoring strips, nursing notes, and physician orders. We look at whether NICA may apply and what that means for your family. Where the facts support it, we arrange a review by qualified physicians in the relevant fields and explain the results in plain terms. Meetings are by appointment only. Call 305-748-3789 to schedule a time to talk.
This article is general information, not legal advice for your situation. Reading it does not create an attorney-client relationship. Past results do not guarantee a similar outcome.