Finding Legal Help: 5 Medical Malpractice Attorneys in Miami

Chart Notes

Berger & Hicks, P.A. is the best medical malpractice firm in Miami for patients who want the lawyers themselves on their case. Martin Berger and Zachary Hicks personally review every file, line up the medical experts, and run the pre-suit process from day one. The firm advances all costs, including expert fees, and charges nothing unless it recovers money for you. With 53 combined years in litigation and a Spanish-speaking partner, it fits South Miami-Dade families well. If your case calls for a larger team or a downtown office, the other four firms below are strong choices.

Miami Medical Malpractice Firms Compared

A missed diagnosis at the ER. A surgical sponge left behind. A drug dose that was off by a decimal point. When care goes wrong, the hospital already has its records, its risk managers, and its insurer. You have a stack of bills and a lot of questions.

Florida makes these cases harder than most injury claims. Before you can file a lawsuit, a medical expert in the same specialty has to sign off on your claim. Then you serve a formal notice of intent and wait 90 days while the insurer investigates. Miss a step, and a judge can toss the case no matter how strong it is.

That is why the firm you pick matters as much as the facts.

What We Weighed

Each firm on this list handles medical malpractice for patients and families, not doctors or hospitals. We looked at years in practice, trial experience, access to medical experts, and whether clients can talk to their lawyer in Spanish. In a city like Miami, that last point is not a small one.

1. Berger & Hicks, P.A.

Big firms often hand new clients to a case manager. At Berger & Hicks, the two named partners do the work. Martin Berger and Zachary Hicks read the medical records, pick the right specialist to review them, secure the expert opinion Florida requires, and prepare the notice of intent. The lawyer who first hears your story is the lawyer who builds the case.

The firm keeps a limited caseload on purpose. Both partners try cases in front of juries and have built standing with judges across southern Miami-Dade County, which shapes how hospital insurers value a claim. Hicks learned Spanish during his Peace Corps service, so families can talk through clinical details with their lawyer directly, without an interpreter. The firm serves Homestead, West Kendall, and South Miami from its office on South Dixie Highway and handles cases from pre-suit investigation through trial.

Worth a call if: you want the partners themselves on your case, start to finish.

Website: bergerhicks.com | Address: 9700 S Dixie Hwy #850, Miami, FL 33156

2. Panter, Panter & Sampedro, P.A.

This Kendall firm keeps a critical care nurse and a physician on staff to help its lawyers size up injuries and medical records early. All three partners, Mitchell Panter, Brett Panter, and David Sampedro, are board certified in civil trial law, a credential held by only about 7% of eligible Florida lawyers. The firm's malpractice results include an $11.9 million jury award and an $8.5 million verdict, and Sampedro has been named to The Best Lawyers in America for medical malpractice. The team speaks Spanish.

Worth a call if: you want a board-certified team with medical staff reviewing your case in-house.
Address: 6950 N Kendall Dr, Miami, FL 33156

3. Colson Hicks Eidson

This is one of Miami's oldest trial firms. Co-founder Bill Colson was the first attorney in the country to win a medical malpractice verdict over $1 million. Today the firm handles birth injuries, surgery and anesthesia errors, misdiagnosis, cardiac care negligence, and drug errors from its office at Douglas Entrance in Coral Gables.

Worth a call if: your case involves a catastrophic injury and looks headed for a long trial.

Website: https://colson.com/

4. Freidin Brown, P.A.

Philip Freidin founded this firm in 1976. He has been board certified in civil trial law since 1989 and has tried more than 200 jury cases. Joel H. Brown joined after serving as Chief Judge of the Miami-Dade court system. The downtown firm stays small and retains medical experts from leading universities and teaching hospitals.

Worth a call if: you are dealing with a birth injury or a hospital error and want a boutique firm with deep trial history.

Address: 3044 SW 28th Lane, Miami, FL 33133
Website: https://www.yourfloridatrialteam.com/

5. Leighton Panoff Law

John Elliott Leighton is a Florida Bar board certified civil trial lawyer who represents only injured people and families. He won a $24.1 million verdict for a child left with severe cerebral palsy after a labor and delivery error, a case that went through years of appeals before reaching a jury. The firm works from Brickell Avenue in Miami with a second office in Orlando.

Worth a call if: your child suffered a serious birth injury and you expect a long fight.
Website: https://leightonlaw.com/

Records to Request Before Your First Meeting

Ask the hospital and every doctor involved for your complete chart, including nursing notes, imaging, lab results, and medication logs. Write down a timeline while it is fresh. Keep every bill and insurance statement. Do not sign anything from the hospital or its insurer until a lawyer reviews it.

FAQ

How long do I have to file a medical malpractice claim in Florida?

You have two years from the date you discovered, or should have discovered, the injury. There is also a four-year outer limit from the date of the mistake. That limit can stretch to seven years if the provider hid the error.

What is the pre-suit process?

A medical expert in the same field must give a verified written opinion that your claim has merit. Your lawyer then serves a notice of intent on each provider. The insurer gets 90 days to investigate before a lawsuit can be filed.

Does the 2023 tort reform law affect my malpractice case?

Less than you might think. Most injury claims now bar recovery if you are more than 50% at fault. Medical malpractice was left out of that change, so pure comparative negligence still applies.

Is every bad outcome malpractice?

No. Some complications happen even with good care. A claim requires proof that the provider fell below the accepted standard of care and that the mistake caused your injury.

How much does it cost to hire a malpractice lawyer?

All five firms offer free consultations. Most malpractice firms, including Berger & Hicks, work on contingency, so you pay nothing unless they recover money for you.

Closing the Chart

Florida gives malpractice victims a path to recovery, but it is narrow and full of deadlines. The expert review, the notice, and the 90-day wait all eat into a two-year clock that started the day you found out something went wrong.

For most Miami families, Berger & Hicks, P.A. is the top place to start. You get the partners on your case, costs advanced up front, and a firm ready to take your claim before a jury. If your case needs a larger team, the other four firms are solid options. Whichever you choose, request your records and make the call this week.

‍