How much time do I have to sue the doctor that performed an appendectomy on me for malpractice?

Question

He cut off a mole that was on my navel and left the site without a stitch so that my belly button is now disfigured..

Answer 1

You're going to sue him? That sounds pretty silly.

...You're lucky you got into get it cut off.

Answer 2

Why wait?  Get on that right away!

Answer 3

up to 1 year most of the time

Answer 4

First of all it doesn't sound like you had an appendectomy, which is the surgical resection of your appendix (a vestigial organ that is present on your colon).  Next, it sounds like he did a biopsy of the mole to determine if it was benign or malignant (meaning cancer).  Now as to why he didn't throw in a simple suture may have depended on the biopsy size.

Every state has a different statute of limitation on malpractice.  More important is the merit of the case.  If you have a little scar on your belly button as a result of the biopsy, your case will probably be thrown out.  If the site got infected due to the wound being open and it should have been closed with a suture ultimately leading to a horrible infection requiring surgical debridement and prolonged hospitalization, you may have a case.

Please do not proceed with legal action unless there has been actual malpractice.  Suing someone without a good reason is a contributing factor why healthcare costs in the US is outrageous and a large portion of the population are unable to afford it.  It is another reason why malpractice insurance for doctors is rising.  In some parts of the country for example, Ob/Gyn doctors are leaving certain areas to practice elsewhere due to outrageous malpractice insurance premiums, which sucks if you are a pregnant women who needs to deliver her baby.  Just my two cents.

Answer 5

For personal injury, two years.  Negligence might be a bit different.  Just find an attorney who will do some quick letter writing and ask for tons of money.  They all have insurance that covers this sort of thing.  Maybe you can actually get some reconstructive surgery, cuz you know how important belly buttons are to look just right.  (outies are nasty!)

Answer 6

In my neck of the woods it's three years.  In my neck of the woods a belly button dis-figuration would be laughed out of court.

Answer 7

Maybe he thought it looked like cancer and did a biopsy on it.