Cerebral Palsy

Cerebral palsy, or CP, is a condition that affects a person's ability to move, balance, and maintain posture. It's caused by damage to the developing brain — damage that most often happens during or just before birth.

When parents hear the words "cerebral palsy" from a doctor, the first question many ask is: Could this have been prevented? The honest answer, for many families, is yes.

During labor and delivery, a baby's brain is extremely vulnerable to oxygen deprivation. If a baby goes without adequate oxygen — even for just a few minutes — brain cells can die. This is called hypoxic-ischemic injury, and it is one of the leading causes of cerebral palsy.

Doctors and hospitals have a legal and professional duty to closely monitor both mother and baby during labor. They must watch fetal heart rate monitors, recognize signs of distress, and act quickly — including performing an emergency C-section when necessary. When they don't, the consequences can be permanent.

Common forms of hospital negligence that lead to cerebral palsy include:

• Failure to recognize or respond to fetal distress on heart rate monitoring strips
• Delayed or improperly performed emergency C-section
• Misuse of forceps or vacuum extractors during delivery
• Mismanagement of a delivery complication like shoulder dystocia or cord prolapse
• Failure to treat a maternal infection during pregnancy (chorioamnionitis)
• Failure to manage umbilical cord compression

Many families don't learn that their child's CP may have been preventable until years after birth — often only when a licensed attorney reviews the medical records with an independent medical expert.

If your child has cerebral palsy, you deserve to know what the records actually say. A free, independent case review costs you nothing. A licensed attorney can read the chart, explain the findings in plain language, and tell you whether the care your child received met the standard.

Filing deadlines vary by state. In many states, the deadline is tolled while the child is a minor. We can tell you what applies in your specific situation — at no cost.