Hundreds of Millions of Dollars Have Been Recovered for Injured Babies and Children
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This guide is designed for Arkansas families facing the challenges of a birth injury, explaining your legal options, the claims process, and how to secure the resources your child needs. Whether you are just beginning to seek answers or are ready to take legal action, this comprehensive resource covers everything from Arkansas birth injury laws and statutes of limitations, to understanding common injuries, finding specialized care, and choosing the right Arkansas birth injury lawyer for your case. The importance of legal guidance and compensation cannot be overstated—navigating the aftermath of a birth injury is complex, and securing the right support is essential for your child’s future.
Families in Arkansas are known for their resilience and deep-rooted community ties. But when a joyous arrival at the hospital turns into a medical crisis, that resilience is tested. Discovering that your child has suffered a birth injury due to medical negligence is a weight no parent should carry alone. Consulting our experienced birth injury lawyer team is crucial to help you navigate the legal process, pursue compensation, and ensure your rights are protected in Arkansas.
At The Child and Birth Injury Firm, our law firm understands the significant financial strain that birth injuries can place on families. Pursuing compensation can help alleviate these burdens and secure the best possible future and long-term care for your child. If you are searching for answers near me in Little Rock, Fayetteville, or anywhere across the Natural State, we are here to provide the clarity you deserve.
When a birth injury occurs, the hospital’s legal team is already working to protect its interests. You need a birth injury attorney at The Child and Birth Injury Firm who provides the legal expertise needed to pursue compensation for injuries caused by medical negligence. Our team of lawyers understands the legal landscape and the medical complexities of labor and delivery. We focus on uncovering the “why” behind the injury—whether it was a delayed C-section, improper fetal monitoring, or medication errors, and in cases involving surgical delivery, our C-section injury lawyers evaluate whether the timing and technique met the required standard of care.
Parents may need to file a birth injury lawsuit on their child's behalf to ensure their rights are protected. Pursuing compensation through a birth injury lawsuit is a key step in holding healthcare providers accountable and securing the financial resources needed for your child’s long-term care.
Understanding why legal representation is essential sets the stage for learning about the specific laws and deadlines that govern birth injury claims in Arkansas.
To understand the timeline for a birth injury claim in Arkansas, you need to look closely at Arkansas Code § 16-114-203. Arkansas has a specific and strict set of rules that differ in important ways from many other states — and understanding those differences can directly affect your family's ability to recover compensation.
The best way to protect your child's rights is to act well before any deadline approaches. Our team of lawyers at The Child and Birth Injury Firm has seen how quickly evidence disappears when families wait, and the legal rules in Arkansas make that risk especially real.
For most medical malpractice cases in Arkansas, you have two years from the date the negligent act occurred to file a lawsuit. The statute is explicit that the clock starts on "the date of the wrongful act complained of and no other time." In birth injury cases, this accrual date is almost always the day of the child's birth.
It is important to understand that Arkansas does not have a general discovery rule for medical malpractice. Unlike many states where the two-year clock starts when you knew or reasonably should have known about the injury, Arkansas starts the clock on the date of the act itself. The only exception to this for adult patients involves a foreign object left in the body — not the kind of injury typically at issue in a birth injury case.
Because infants and young children cannot speak for themselves or bring legal action on their own behalf, Arkansas law provides specific statute of limitations extensions for injured minors. However, with the passage of the Healthy Moms, Healthy Babies Act in 2025, a strict new deadline was introduced specifically targeting birth injuries.
It is vital to clearly understand exactly how these deadlines are calculated, as Arkansas courts enforce these timelines relentlessly. Here is exactly how the legal deadlines work under the updated framework of Arkansas Code § 16-114-203:
The most critical change from the 2025 legislation applies exclusively to labor and delivery. If an alleged medical injury occurred during childbirth, the minor or their representative now only has until the child's 5th birthday to file a medical malpractice lawsuit.
If a child is nine years of age or younger at the time of a negligent medical act (and the injury did not occur during childbirth), the lawsuit must be filed by whichever of the following dates comes later:
There is one additional exception that applies exclusively to children. If a non-birth medical injury is completely unknown and could not reasonably have been discovered before the child's 11th birthday, the law provides additional time to take legal action.
Under these specific circumstances, the lawsuit must be filed by whichever of the following dates comes first:
The child's 19th birthday.
A Critical Distinction: The 19th birthday is not an absolute, outer deadline that you can safely rely on in every case. Because the law mandates that the earlier of the two dates controls the deadline for discovered injuries, finding out about an injury later in adolescence shrinks your window. For example, if a hidden injury is finally discovered when the child is 16, the absolute deadline to file the lawsuit is the child's 18th birthday (exactly two years from discovery)—not their 19th.The Arkansas Supreme Court addressed an important limitation in Dachs v. Hendrix (2009 Ark. 542). Parents of a stillborn baby argued they had until the child would have reached her 11th birthday to file a malpractice suit. The Arkansas Supreme Court rejected this, holding that because the child would never have an 11th birthday, the standard two-year deadline from the date of the negligent act applied. If your case involves a stillbirth or neonatal death, different rules apply, and you should contact our attorneys immediately; our nationwide child and birth injury lawyers can help families understand their rights even when injuries occur outside Arkansas.
While Arkansas law provides statute of limitations extensions for injured minors, there is a critical legal distinction that many families unfortunately miss—and the 2025 passage of the Healthy Moms, Healthy Babies Act makes this distinction more dangerous than ever.
The Parents' Claim: Expenses that belong to the parents—primarily the significant medical bills incurred while the child is a minor—are generally bound by the standard two-year statute of limitations from the date of the negligent act. The minority tolling rules protect the child’s claim, not the parents' independent right to recover the out-of-pocket expenses they have personally paid.
The Child's Claim: The deadline extensions strictly protect the damages that belong directly to the child (future medical care, future pain and suffering, permanent disability, and loss of future earning capacity). Under the new 2025 laws, how long the child has depends on when the injury happened:
Situation
|
Legal Deadline
|
Legal Reference
|
|---|---|---|
| Standard Malpractice | 2 years from the negligent act | Ark. Code § 16-114-203(a) |
| Birth Injury (Child's Claim) | The child's 5th birthday | Ark. Code § 16-114-203(c)(3) (Added in 2025) |
| Non-Birth Injury (Child aged 0–9) | The latter of: 11th birthday OR 2 years from the act | Ark. Code § 16-114-203(c)(1) |
| Undiscovered Injury (Minor) | 2 years from discovery — capped at 19th birthday | Ark. Code § 16-114-203(c)(2) |
| Stillbirth / Fetal Death | 2 years from the negligent act | Dachs v. Hendrix, 2009 Ark. 542 |
| Wrongful Death (Med Mal) | 2 years from the act causing death | Ark. Code § 16-114-203 |
Important Note on Wrongful Death: While Arkansas’s general wrongful death statute provides three years to file, Arkansas courts have consistently held that when the underlying cause of death is medical malpractice, the strict two-year medical malpractice statute of limitations controls—not the three-year wrongful death statute.
Important Note on Stillbirth: In Dachs v. Hendrix (2009), the Arkansas Supreme Court held that the minority tolling provisions do not apply to a stillborn child. Because a stillborn child cannot reach a birthday, the standard two-year deadline applies from the date of the alleged malpractice. Families who have suffered a stillbirth must act within that strict two-year window.
Our team at The Child and Birth Injury Firm strongly advises against delaying legal action. Arkansas hospitals are only legally required to retain specific medical records for a limited number of years.
If you wait until your child is approaching their 11th birthday to file a claim, crucial evidence — such as the fetal monitoring strips from the delivery room, which are vital in oxygen deprivation and HIE cases — may have already been legally destroyed under standard hospital record-retention policies.
If you suspect a medical error occurred during your delivery in Little Rock, Jonesboro, Fort Smith, or anywhere else in Arkansas, contact our team today for a free case evaluation. The window for justice closes much faster than most families realize.
Arkansas faces significant challenges in maternal and infant health. According to the Arkansas Department of Health, the state consistently ranks among the highest for infant mortality and low birth weight. Most birth injuries occur due to medical mistakes made by healthcare professionals during the delivery process. Working with our experienced birth injury lawyer team can be critical in proving those errors and securing compensation for lifelong consequences for the child. Medical professionals are expected to provide a high standard of care, and their negligence can result in serious harm. Some birth injuries also occur during pregnancy due to negligence, such as improper medication prescribed to the mother or failure to inform parents about genetic disorders. Common birth injuries that happen during delivery include those caused by the use of extraction devices, which can lead to physical harm to newborn children if not used correctly, including serious conditions such as infant hematoma injuries when excessive force or improper technique is used. Additionally, defective medical devices used during childbirth can result in birth injuries, and in these cases, liability may fall on the manufacturer rather than the healthcare provider, particularly when errors contribute to spinal birth defect injuries that cause permanent mobility or neurological problems. These factors often intersect with medical errors.
Important Note on Wrongful Death: While Arkansas’s general wrongful death statute provides three years to file, Arkansas courts have consistently held that when the underlying cause of death is medical malpractice, the strict two-year medical malpractice statute of limitations controls—not the three-year wrongful death statute.
Important Note on Stillbirth: In Dachs v. Hendrix (2009), the Arkansas Supreme Court held that the minority tolling provisions do not apply to a stillborn child. Because a stillborn child cannot reach a birthday, the standard two-year deadline applies from the date of the alleged malpractice. Families who have suffered a stillbirth must act within that strict two-year window.
HIE occurs when a baby’s brain doesn’t receive enough oxygen or blood flow, often due to a disruption in the baby's oxygen supply during labor, and families may benefit from consulting a dedicated HIE birth injury lawyer like those on our team to investigate whether medical negligence played a role. In Arkansas, this often happens when medical staff fail to respond to fetal distress signals on the monitor—such as changes indicating the baby's oxygen supply is compromised—especially at rural clinics that may be understaffed.
While not all CP is caused by medical error, a significant portion results from preventable trauma or oxygen deprivation during birth, sometimes leading to a brain injury that causes cerebral palsy. Missed developmental milestones may be an early sign of cerebral palsy or other birth injuries, as delays can indicate underlying medical conditions that may not surface until months or years later. Families looking for the best therapeutic outcomes near me often find themselves traveling to Little Rock for specialized care. The average lifetime cost to care for a child with cerebral palsy can be millions of dollars, which can be pursued through compensation in a birth injury lawsuit.
These injuries, such as Erb's palsy, involve nerve damage in the shoulder and are frequently caused by shoulder dystocia during delivery. Erb's palsy is one of the most serious birth injuries, often resulting in lasting paralysis or weakness in the child’s arm. If a doctor pulls too hard during delivery, it can lead to permanent nerve damage affecting a child's future health.
While many focus on statewide averages, the local data reveals a more complex story:
If your child suffered a birth injury, they likely spent time in a Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU). These facilities are ranked by the level of care they can provide, and in some cases substandard treatment can lead to additional NICU-related birth injuries that require careful legal investigation.
Arkansas Children’s Hospital (Little Rock) - Level IV: This is the only Level IV NICU in the state, offering the highest level of specialty care for complex birth injuries. Visit Arkansas Children's.
UAMS Health (Little Rock) - Level III: Specializing in high-risk pregnancies and neonatal stabilization. Visit UAMS Health.
Mercy Hospital (Northwest Arkansas) - Level III: A critical hub for families in Rogers and Bentonville. Visit Mercy NWA.
Baptist Health Medical Center (Little Rock/North): Visit Baptist Health.
After understanding where to find specialized care, it’s important to know how and why birth injuries happen in Arkansas hospitals.
Through our decades of experience, the team of lawyers at The Child and Birth Injury Firm has identified patterns in healthcare that contribute to birth trauma:
Losing a child is an unimaginable tragedy. In Arkansas, if an infant passes away due to medical negligence, the law provides a path for the family to seek justice and accountability. Under Arkansas Code § 16-62-102, a wrongful death lawsuit must be filed by the personal representative of the child's estate (typically the parents) on behalf of both the estate and the surviving family members.
With the guidance of a seasoned birth malpractice lawyer, families can hold negligent healthcare providers accountable and seek compensation for their devastating losses. By statute, the claim can seek two distinct types of damages:
Our team of lawyers handles these heartbreaking cases with the utmost empathy, ensuring that the medical professionals responsible are held fully accountable for their failures.
Understanding where your case will be heard is also important—let’s review the Arkansas courts that handle birth injury and medical malpractice claims.
In Arkansas, medical malpractice and birth injury cases are often handled by the Circuit Courts. Because these are general jurisdiction trial courts, they are the only venues in the state where civil petitions seeking significant damages for a child’s future care can be filed.
While Arkansas is divided into 75 counties, there are actually 28 Judicial Circuit districts that manage the caseload across the state. This means that while every county has its own courthouse, several smaller counties often share the same judicial resources and judges within a single circuit.
If your child was injured in a large metropolitan hospital or a smaller regional clinic, your case will likely be heard in one of the following major venues. These courts handle the highest volume of medical litigation in the state:
There are 28 total Judicial Circuits in Arkansas. The Child and Birth Injury Firm is prepared to file petitions in any of the 75 county courthouses to ensure your local case receives the best possible representation near me.
For a full directory of every courthouse in the state, you can visit theArkansas Judiciary’s Official Circuit Court Map.
Navigating the 28 different judicial circuits can be overwhelming. Let the team of lawyers at The Child and Birth Injury Firm handle the filings while you focus on your child's recovery.
Finding support is the best way to begin the healing process. Here are local resources near me in Arkansas:
Unlike many neighboring states that have placed “caps” or artificial limits on what a jury can award, Arkansas currently allows for the full recovery of both economic and non-economic damages. This is rooted in Article 5, Section 32 of the Arkansas Constitution, which explicitly prohibits the General Assembly from enacting laws that limit the amount to be recovered for injuries or death.
When our team of lawyers at The Child and Birth Injury Firm builds a case, we don’t have to worry about a ceiling on your child’s future. Here is how this lack of caps specifically helps in a birth injury claim:
It is important to note that while “compensatory” damages (those meant to make you whole) are uncapped, Arkansas does have a statutory cap on punitive damages. These are damages meant to punish a defendant for particularly egregious or intentional misconduct.
As of August 2025, a new law (HB 1204) changed how past medical expenses are calculated. While there is still no “cap” on the total amount you can win, the law now limits the recovery for past medical bills to the amounts actually paid by or on behalf of the plaintiff, rather than the “sticker price” originally billed by the hospital.
This change makes it even more vital to have an experienced team of lawyers who know how to maximize the future care portion of your claim, which remains unaffected by this change and is often the largest part of a birth injury award.
Compensation in birth injury lawsuits can cover:
The process for a birth injury claim includes:
If your child is struggling with a birth injury, don’t wonder “what if.” Contact the team of lawyers at The Child and Birth Injury Firm today. We serve families throughout Arkansas, from the Ozarks to the Delta. Let us help you secure the resources your child needs to thrive.
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Catastrophic child and birth injuries can shatter the lives of not just the babies and children, but also their families. Families are left to navigate a complex maze of medical challenges, financial burdens, and emotional turmoil. But, this is where Jeffrey Killino and his team of dedicated lawyers can provide the support and guidance families need most.
For over 2 decades, Jeffrey Killino and his team have secured life-changing results for babies and children facing catastrophic injuries. Our clients gain access to the best medical care, financial security, and peace of mind, knowing their futures are protected.
Jeffrey Killino and his team of child and birth injury lawyers are committed to go beyond securing multi-million dollar settlements and verdicts. We measure our success by our positive impact on our clients’ lives. We’re dedicated to supporting them throughout their journey, even after their case is resolved.
Jeffrey Killino and his team of child and birth injury lawyers are committed to more than just securing multi-million dollar settlements and verdicts. We measure our success by our positive impact on our clients’ lives, helping them access the best medical care, achieve financial security, and find peace of mind. We also actively work to prevent injuries and promote safety for everyone.
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