A bad medical outcome is not automatically malpractice.

Medical malpractice insurance may help pay a covered claim, but insurance alone does not establish that malpractice occurred. A Delaware medical malpractice case generally requires a fact-specific review of the care, the injury, causation, records, and applicable legal requirements. Preserve your records and seek prompt, case-specific advice.

Talk with Murphy & Landon or call 302-472-8100 for a free case review.

How do I know if I have a medical malpractice case in Delaware?

Medicine can carry risk even when care is appropriate, so a disappointing or serious result is not, by itself, a claim. A potential case requires a specific departure from the standard of care, a connection between that departure and the injury, and provable loss. Lawyers review the care provided, whether it may have contributed to the injury, and the harm caused by it — that review is fact-specific and does not guarantee an outcome. Delaware also requires a sworn statement from a qualified medical expert (an affidavit of merit) to be filed with a malpractice complaint, which is one reason an early records review matters.

Does malpractice insurance mean a doctor is liable?

No. Most Delaware physicians, practices, and hospitals carry medical malpractice insurance, and a provider’s insurer is typically who a claim and any settlement discussion is directed to once a case is pursued. But the existence of insurance says nothing about whether the underlying care was negligent — it is simply how a covered claim, if one is established, would generally be paid. We do not speculate about a specific provider’s coverage, policy limits, or how a particular claim will be handled; those details are fact-specific and come out during a case review, not from a general guide. Do not sign anything an insurer sends you, and do not assume a claim number or adjuster call means fault has been decided, before someone who represents you has looked at it.

What should I do if I suspect medical malpractice?

Preserve what you have rather than trying to build a legal case yourself:

• Request your complete medical records from every provider and facility involved — not a summary. Keep the originals; do not alter, annotate, or discard anything.
• Write down the timeline while it is fresh: dates, who said what, when symptoms started or changed.
• Keep the paper: discharge instructions, bills, prescription labels, and any correspondence from a provider or insurer.
• A second medical opinion can be useful for your ongoing care, but it answers a clinical question, not the legal one — a malpractice case is assessed separately, by a qualified medical expert reviewing the records.
• Do not sign releases, settlement paperwork, or broad authorizations before someone who represents you has reviewed them.

Our guide to what to do if you suspect medical malpractice walks through each step in more depth.

How long do I have to file medical malpractice in Delaware?

Generally two years from the date of the injury, under 18 Del. C. § 6856. There is a narrow allowance for injuries that could not reasonably have been discovered within that period, but not beyond three years from the injury, and a different rule for children injured before age six. Delaware also requires an affidavit of merit from a qualified medical expert under 18 Del. C. § 6853, which takes time to obtain — so the practical deadline for getting advice is earlier than the statutory one.

These rules are technical, fact-specific, and can vary with the circumstances; this is general information about Delaware law, not a calculation of your deadline. Confirm the timing that applies to you with a lawyer promptly rather than assuming it from this guide.

What records do I need for a malpractice lawyer?

A useful starting file generally includes:

• Complete medical records — not a summary — from every provider and facility, including imaging and nursing notes
• A written chronology of what happened, in your own words, with dates
• Provider and facility names, including anyone whose role you are unsure of
• Bills and insurance statements related to the treatment in question
• Correspondence — anything in writing from a provider, hospital, or insurer
• Your questions for counsel — what you most need answered before deciding anything

You do not need a complete file before you call. Family members can help keep track of changes, questions, and conversations in the meantime.

What are the damages worth?

There is no formula, and no honest lawyer will give you a number before reviewing the records. What Delaware law generally allows a jury to consider falls into a few categories: economic losses like medical expenses and lost income, non-economic losses like pain and the effect on daily life, and — in a death case — damages governed by Delaware’s wrongful death and survival statutes. Valuation is fact-specific and depends on the records, the experts, and the jury. Our guide to how damages are calculated in a Delaware medical malpractice case covers each category in more depth.

How do I choose a Delaware medical malpractice attorney?

Look for a firm that handles malpractice specifically — not general injury work with malpractice on the list — since Delaware’s affidavit-of-merit requirement means the firm needs real relationships with physicians willing to review records. Ask how the firm works with medical experts, who will actually handle your file, and what happens if they decide you don’t have a case. Our guide to how to choose a medical malpractice attorney in Delaware sets out the questions worth asking before you hire anyone.

What happens in a Delaware medical malpractice case review?

We start by listening and gathering the basic timeline. We may ask for records or identify information that could be useful to obtain. We then explain whether Murphy & Landon may be able to investigate further and what the next step could be. A first conversation is free and does not require you to move forward.

When a family member has died

Families often need answers while also handling immediate responsibilities. A conversation can help identify what information to preserve and whether there may be a path for further review. Legal rules and deadlines can be important and depend on the facts; they should be discussed with an attorney rather than assumed from a general guide.

Care-facility concerns and serious injuries

If the concern arose in a nursing home or other care facility, see our nursing home neglect guide. If a major injury is changing day-to-day life or future care, our serious injuries guide may help you organize what to protect.

Get a straight answer about what comes next

You do not have to decide whether it is a case before you call. Contact Murphy & Landon or read more about our Delaware medical malpractice practice to explain what happened and ask the questions that matter to you.

This guide is general information about Delaware law, not legal advice about your situation. Reading it does not create an attorney-client relationship, and no result is ever guaranteed.