If problems arise following a procedure, you may be wondering, when is failed plastic surgery considered malpractice? Since many plastic surgeries are considered elective procedures, legal rights can be confusing, and filing a medical malpractice lawsuit can be challenging to obtain a successful outcome.
When the doctor does the procedure on the wrong side, as is the case in the OP, that's malpractice. There were no medical problems resulting, just the fact that it has to needlessly be redone. This is 100% doctor error.
This is true but have you ever spoken with a medical malpractice attorney about a case? I have. Establishing damages is key. If there's no potential for a big payout, most attorneys won't take the case on contingency. So the plaintiff has to pay out of pocket for attorney's fees and expert witnesses, which are expensive. In my case the surgeon nicked a nerve in my lower leg during knee surgery, and some of my calf muscles were (temporarily as it turned out) 100% paralyzed.
This caused me to walk with a limp and wear a brace on my lower leg. But the attorney advised me that since I could still walk and do my job, the amount of damages I could prove and get awarded by a jury here would likely be less than I'd spend on legal fees and expert witness fees. The expert witness alone would've cost $20-30K. Compare a guy who has to wear a brace on his leg and walk with a limp to a woman with one boob bigger than the other after she elected to get them enlarged. What are her actual damages?
My attorney advised me to drop the idea, and I did.
