Broward County is home to two major public hospital systems — Broward Health and Memorial Healthcare System — as well as Holy Cross Health, Cleveland Clinic Florida, and a network of community hospitals and specialty centers. These institutions deliver thousands of babies every year. When a birth injury results from preventable medical error at any of these facilities, Florida law gives families the right to seek justice.

Birth injuries — including hypoxic-ischemic encephalopathy (HIE), cerebral palsy, brachial plexus injuries, and neonatal brain bleeds — are among the most devastating outcomes a family can face. They are also among the most legally complex cases in Florida personal injury law. At Juan Cordero Lawyers, we represent Broward County families in birth injury and HIE cases from our offices in Miami, with the experience and resources to take on large hospital systems and their insurers.

HIE is brain damage caused by oxygen and blood flow deprivation to the baby's brain around the time of birth. It is one of the most serious and most preventable birth injuries. Common causes of HIE include:

• Failure to recognize and respond to abnormal fetal heart rate patterns
• Delayed emergency cesarean section when fetal distress is identified
• Umbilical cord prolapse or compression that is not promptly managed
• Placental abruption that is not recognized and treated in time
• Uterine rupture, particularly in VBAC (vaginal birth after cesarean) deliveries

HIE can cause cerebral palsy, intellectual disabilities, epilepsy, vision and hearing impairment, and death. The severity of the outcome depends in part on how quickly the oxygen deprivation is recognized and treated — including whether therapeutic hypothermia (cooling therapy) is initiated within six hours of birth.

Cerebral palsy is a group of permanent movement disorders caused by brain damage before, during, or shortly after birth. Children with cerebral palsy may require lifelong physical therapy, occupational therapy, speech therapy, adaptive equipment, and personal care assistance. The lifetime cost of care for a child with severe cerebral palsy can exceed $10 million.

Brachial plexus injuries occur when the nerves controlling the arm and hand are stretched or torn during delivery, typically in shoulder dystocia cases. Erb's palsy — weakness or paralysis of the arm — is the most common result. These injuries are often caused by excessive traction applied by the delivering physician.

Intracranial hemorrhage — bleeding in or around the brain — can result from birth trauma, including improper use of forceps or vacuum extractors, or from oxygen deprivation. Depending on the location and extent of the bleed, the consequences can range from mild developmental delays to severe permanent disability.

Broward Health operates four hospitals in Broward County: Broward Health Medical Center (Fort Lauderdale), Broward Health North (Deerfield Beach), Broward Health Imperial Point (Fort Lauderdale), and Broward Health Coral Springs. As a public hospital district, Broward Health is subject to Florida's sovereign immunity statute (§768.28, Fla. Stat.), which caps damages at $200,000 per claimant / $300,000 per incident unless the Florida Legislature grants a claims bill for additional compensation.

Families pursuing birth injury claims against Broward Health must serve a pre-suit notice on the hospital district and comply with the sovereign immunity claims process in addition to the medical malpractice pre-suit requirements. The interaction between sovereign immunity and the NICA program adds additional complexity to these cases.

Memorial Healthcare System operates Memorial Regional Hospital (Hollywood), Joe DiMaggio Children's Hospital, Memorial Hospital West (Pembroke Pines), Memorial Hospital Miramar, and Memorial Hospital Pembroke. As a special taxing district, Memorial Healthcare is also subject to sovereign immunity under §768.28.

Joe DiMaggio Children's Hospital provides neonatal intensive care for critically ill newborns and is a major referral center for birth injury cases in South Florida. Birth injury claims involving Joe DiMaggio often arise from NICU care failures — delayed diagnosis of HIE, failure to initiate cooling therapy within the required window, or errors in neonatal resuscitation.

Holy Cross Health in Fort Lauderdale is a private, faith-based hospital. As a private institution, Holy Cross is not subject to sovereign immunity. Birth injury claims against Holy Cross proceed under standard Florida medical malpractice law.

Cleveland Clinic Florida operates a hospital and specialty centers in Weston and other Broward County locations. As a private institution, Cleveland Clinic Florida is not subject to sovereign immunity.

Florida's medical malpractice statute (§766.106, Fla. Stat.) imposes mandatory pre-suit requirements before a birth injury lawsuit can be filed:

1. Notice of intent to initiate litigation — served on all prospective defendants, including the hospital and all treating physicians
2. 90-day investigation period — during which the defendant's insurer investigates the claim and may make a settlement offer
3. Verified written medical expert opinion — a qualified expert in the relevant specialty must review the medical records and provide a written opinion that the standard of care was breached

Failure to comply with pre-suit requirements can result in dismissal of the case. The pre-suit process must be initiated before the statute of limitations expires.

Florida's medical malpractice statute of limitations is two years from the date the injury was discovered or should have been discovered, with an absolute four-year cap from the date of the incident. For birth injuries to minors, the statute of limitations is tolled until the child's eighth birthday, but the four-year absolute cap still applies in most cases.

Florida's NICA program (§766.301–766.316, Fla. Stat.) provides no-fault compensation for certain birth-related neurological injuries at participating hospitals. Broward Health and Memorial Healthcare are NICA-participating hospital systems. Whether a birth injury qualifies for NICA — and whether NICA is the exclusive remedy — is a complex legal question that must be evaluated by an experienced birth injury attorney. In many cases, families have the right to pursue a civil lawsuit even when NICA is involved.

Therapeutic hypothermia (cooling therapy) is the standard of care for newborns with moderate to severe HIE. To be effective, cooling must be initiated within six hours of birth. Failure to initiate cooling therapy within the required window — or failure to maintain the correct temperature protocol — is a form of medical negligence that can worsen the outcome for a baby with HIE.

If your baby was diagnosed with HIE at a Broward County hospital and cooling therapy was delayed or not offered, contact an attorney immediately to evaluate whether the delay constitutes medical negligence.

Birth injury cases involve the largest damages of any personal injury claim because the injured child requires care for an entire lifetime. Recoverable damages include:

• Past and future medical expenses — NICU care, surgeries, therapies, medications, adaptive equipment
• Future care costs — personal care attendants, residential facility costs, lifetime medical management
• Lost earning capacity — the child's projected lifetime earnings, reduced or eliminated by the disability
• Pain and suffering — the child's physical pain and emotional distress
• Loss of enjoyment of life
• Parental damages — in wrongful death cases, mental pain and suffering of the parents

In cases against public hospital systems subject to sovereign immunity, the $200,000/$300,000 cap limits initial recovery. However, families can petition the Florida Legislature for a claims bill to obtain additional compensation beyond the cap.

Juan Cordero Lawyers represents Broward County families in birth injury and HIE cases on a contingency fee basis — you pay nothing unless we win. If your baby suffered a birth injury at a Broward County hospital, call 305-525-8957 for a free consultation. Time limits apply — the pre-suit investigation process must begin before the statute of limitations expires.

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• Florida Statutes of Limitations for Injury Claims

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