Forceps Delivery Injuries in San Antonio

Three Generations of Trial Attorneys Fighting for San Antonio Families

Forceps are curved metal instruments placed around a baby’s head during vaginal delivery to help guide the baby out when labor stalls or fetal distress demands a faster delivery. Used correctly, they can prevent harm. Used with improper placement or excessive force, they can cause skull fractures, nerve damage, and neurological injuries that follow a child for life. When that happens, a medical malpractice claim may be the family’s path to accountability and recovery.

Maloney Law Group, P.L.L.C. is a boutique personal injury firm in San Antonio with decades of service to local families. Our practice focuses on medical malpractice, birth injuries, catastrophic injuries, and wrongful death. Three generations of trial attorneys lead our team: Erica Maloney, Dennis Maloney, and Michael Maloney.

The Attorneys Handling Your Case

Michael Maloney is board-certified in personal injury law, a distinction held by a small percentage of Texas attorneys, and brings more than 30 years of litigation experience to complex birth injury cases. He has secured multi-million-dollar verdicts and settlements in high-stakes cases that required thorough preparation and courtroom credibility.

Erica Maloney serves on the Board of Directors of the Texas Trial Lawyers Association. She is active in the San Antonio Trial Lawyers Association and the William S. Sessions American Inn of Court. Her advocacy inside and outside the courtroom reflects both professional commitment and personal investment as a mother of four. Dennis Maloney rounds out the team with a generational perspective on what skilled representation actually means for families navigating serious injury claims. The firm has been recognized by Scene in S.A., the Multi-Million Dollar Advocates Forum, and Avvo. As a boutique practice, we work closely with each client rather than cycling cases through a high-volume pipeline.

Injuries Linked to Forceps Deliveries

Forceps delivery injuries range from surface-level bruising to permanent neurological damage, with the most serious outcomes tied to cranial trauma and oxygen disruption during delivery.

Injuries associated with improper forceps use include:

• Skull fractures caused by compression or misaligned blade placement
• Intracranial hemorrhage, bleeding inside the skull that can cause permanent brain damage
• Facial nerve damage or paralysis, resulting in asymmetry or loss of muscle control
• Brachial plexus injury, damage to the nerve network controlling arm and hand movement, which can present as Erb’s palsy
• Scalp bruising and lacerations from blade contact
• Cerebral palsy and other neurological conditions in cases involving brain trauma or oxygen deprivation

Not every injury is apparent at birth. Developmental delays connected to brachial plexus damage or intracranial hemorrhage may not surface until a child begins missing motor or cognitive milestones months or years later.

When Does a Forceps Delivery Cross into Negligence?

Not every difficult delivery is malpractice. The legal question centers on whether the provider met the standard of care in obstetrics: the level of skill and judgment a reasonably competent obstetrician would apply under the same circumstances.

Blade Placement & Fetal Positioning

Proper forceps application requires precise blade placement aligned with the baby’s head and the mother’s anatomy. Misaligned blades and excessive traction force are among the most common drivers of preventable birth trauma. Before applying forceps, the provider must also confirm fetal positioning. A malposition such as occiput posterior presentation, where the baby faces upward instead of downward, requires identification before the instrument is used. Skipping that step increases injury risk substantially.

Delivery Classification & the Cesarean Alternative

Forceps deliveries are classified by how far the baby has descended in the birth canal. Outlet and low-forceps carry less technical difficulty; mid-forceps procedures are more demanding and carry greater risk. High forceps are a historical technique no longer used in modern obstetrics. Using vacuum extraction and forceps sequentially in the same delivery is considered a significant risk factor for trauma. Central questions in these claims often include whether a cesarean section was the safer choice and whether the provider had a sound clinical reason for proceeding with forceps instead.

Texas Law & Forceps Injury Claims

Forceps injury cases fall under Texas Civil Practice and Remedies Code Chapter 74, which governs health care liability claims and sets procedural rules that differ from standard personal injury litigation.

Key rules families need to understand:

• Two-year filing deadline: Most claims must be filed within two years of the negligent act or the completion of treatment. Children under 12 at the time of the incident generally have until their 14th birthday to file.
• Ten-year statute of repose: Section 74.251(b) bars any claim filed more than 10 years after the act or omission, regardless of when the injury was discovered.
• Pre-litigation medical report: Texas law requires claimants to serve a report from a medical professional addressing the standard of care, the alleged breach, and causation within 120 days of each defendant filing their original answer. Missing this deadline results in mandatory dismissal.
• Damages caps: Non-economic damages against a physician or other non-institutional health care provider are capped at $250,000 per claimant, regardless of how many physician defendants are named. Health care institutions face a separate cap, which can raise the total possible non-economic damages recovery to $750,000 per claimant when multiple institutions are involved. Economic damages, including medical costs and future care expenses, aren’t capped.
• Government-facility exceptions: If the delivering provider was employed by a government-funded facility, different notice requirements and shorter filing windows may apply.

Liable parties can include the delivering obstetrician, attending nurses or midwives, and the hospital or birthing facility itself when institutional failures in staffing, training, or policy contributed to the harm.

Talk to Our Team About What Happened

Forceps injury claims are procedurally demanding and hinge on medical evidence gathered early. The sooner a family consults an attorney, the better the chance of preserving fetal monitoring records and other documentation that may otherwise be lost.