An affirmative defense is a defense where the defendant bears the burden of proof. An example would be contributory negligence. The defendant bears the burden of proving by a preponderance of evidence that the plaintiff was contributorily negligent.
Experienced nursing home lawyers understand the nuances of the local regulations and the health code. As a result, they are going to be better situated to craft a coherent legal argument and present a competent case that deals with affirmative defenses to nursing home abuse cases in DC that the defense might assert.
Affirmative defenses to nursing home abuse cases in DC can be asserted by the nursing home in attempt to minimize the recovery of the patient alleging abuse. Failure to mitigate damages is a common affirmative defense used by nursing homes. For instance, if there is evidence of abuse and the family is alerted to the evidence of abuse but they do not seek medical care in a timely manner, then that is a failure to mitigate damages.
The defendant would bear by a burden of preponderance of the evidence that the failure to seek medical care in a timely manner was the reason the patient got worse, showing that the plaintiff failed to mitigate their damages. That is an example of when an affirmative defense would come into play in a D.C. nursing home case.
Failure to mitigate damages is one of the common affirmative defenses to nursing home abuse cases in DC used by defendants. Another one that could be shown is contributory negligence if perhaps the person contributed to their falling out of bed. Typically, in a D.C. nursing home case, the nursing home will defend by saying they complied with the standard of care. The plaintiff bears the burden of proving that the defendant violated the standard of care, so that is not considered an affirmative defense.
The possible parties can be the nursing home itself, the professionals at the nursing home, or if there is an intentional act, the person that committed the intentional act in addition to the nursing facility.
The defendant bears the burden of pleading an affirmative defense. A nursing home lawyer will address the purported affirmative defenses through discovery demands as well as depositions.
In cases of ongoing abuse, nursing home abuse attorneys could bring the case to the attention of the people who can make a difference immediately. A lawyer can help provide many remedies to a victim of nursing home abuse. A lawyer can help report violations to the Department of Health or begin to take legal action against someone responsible for nursing home neglect or abuse. Work with an experienced nursing home abuse lawyer that could challenge affirmative defenses to nursing home abuse cases in DC, and fight for you.
