By Hendrickson Law | Medical Malpractice Attorneys for Missouri Patients
If you believe you or a loved one has been harmed by medical negligence, one of the most important decisions you'll make is choosing the right attorney. Not all lawyers are the same — and in a field as demanding and specialized as medical malpractice, that difference can have a direct impact on the outcome of your case.
Before you hire anyone, here are five questions worth asking.
This is the first and most important question. Medical malpractice is not general personal injury work. It requires a deep understanding of medical standards of care, the ability to retain and work with qualified expert witnesses, and experience navigating the specific procedural requirements Missouri law imposes on malpractice cases before a lawsuit can even be filed.
A lawyer who handles car accidents, slip-and-falls, and the occasional malpractice case is not the same as an attorney who has spent a career working exclusively on these cases.
Ask directly: What percentage of your practice is medical malpractice? If the answer is anything other than the clear majority — or if the attorney seems to treat it as just another type of personal injury — keep looking.
At Hendrickson Law, medical malpractice is all we do. It's not a sideline.
Medical malpractice is a broad field. A surgical error case is fundamentally different from a delayed cancer diagnosis, which is different again from a birth injury or an emergency room failure. The medicine is different, the experts are different, and the legal strategy is different.
You want an attorney who has not just handled malpractice cases generally, but who has experience with cases that are factually similar to yours — and who can speak knowledgeably about the medicine involved.
Don't be shy about asking for specifics. An experienced malpractice attorney should be able to speak to the types of cases they've handled and their results, within the limits of client confidentiality.
At many larger firms, you meet a senior partner — and then your file is handed off to a junior associate or a paralegal. That's not inherently wrong, but you deserve to know how your case will actually be handled and who will be your primary point of contact.
Ask: Will you personally be working on my case? Who else will be involved, and what will their roles be?
At Hendrickson Law, Todd Hendrickson personally handles every case. You won't be passed around.
Virtually all medical malpractice attorneys work on a contingency fee basis — meaning you pay nothing upfront, and the attorney receives a percentage of the recovery only if you win. If the case is not successful, you owe no attorney's fees.
That said, contingency percentages vary, and there are also case costs — expert witness fees, medical record retrieval, court filing fees — that can add up in complex litigation. You should understand clearly:
A trustworthy attorney will walk you through this plainly and put it in writing before you sign anything.
This may be the most telling question of all — not because of the answer, but because of how the attorney answers it.
A good malpractice attorney will not promise you a result. They will tell you what they see as the strengths and weaknesses of your case, what would need to be established through expert review, what the realistic range of outcomes might look like, and what the path forward would involve.
Be wary of anyone who tells you what you want to hear without first reviewing your records. And be equally wary of anyone who dismisses your concerns without a thoughtful explanation of why. You deserve a straight answer from someone who has actually looked at your situation.
Missouri has a statute of limitations for medical malpractice claims — a deadline by which your case must be filed, or you lose the right to pursue it entirely. That window is generally two years from the date of the injury or the date you discovered it, though the specifics depend on the facts of your case.
The earlier you consult with an attorney, the better. Evidence is preserved, records are obtained, and your options remain open. There is no downside to calling sooner rather than later — and potentially a very significant downside to waiting.
Call Hendrickson Law today at (314) 721-8833 or visit www.hendricksonlaw.com for a free, confidential consultation.
We'll give you honest answers, a real assessment of your case, and a clear explanation of what working with us would look like. No pressure, no obligation — just information.
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