No one worries more than the parents of an injured or sick child. They are concerned not only about the child's health, but also about their ability to care for the child and to provide continued care for him or her if they should die.

If a child is injured because of someone's negligence, Missouri provides special rules to protect the child and to ensure that the young victim will be compensated.

One of these crucial special rules concerns the statute of limitations, or the time in which a lawsuit must be brought. While most suits citing negligence must be filed with the court within a few years of the occurrence, the time period is extended if a suit is filed on behalf of children while they are minors. For example, in Missouri, a medical malpractice claim usually must be filed within two years. However, in a child's malpractice injury claim, the two-year limitation does not begin until the child is 21. Thus the case can be filed until the victim is 23.

The longer time limits are needed because many medical consequences may not be recognized for years in developing children. In many cases, it is learned only years later that a child's cerebral palsy, hearing loss, retardation or other disability was caused by the DPT vaccine, by drugs the mother took while pregnant or by the negligence of medical personnel in monitoring a child before or after birth.

Special statutes allow these claims to be filed when they become apparent, long after the occurrence that caused the injury.

Despite the additional time to pursue a child's malpractice claim, there is always a great advantage in preparing a case soon after the occurrence, instead of waiting and risking the loss of witnesses or documents.

For this reason, the law also allows parents to proceed for the child during his minority. The court will appoint a parent as the child's guardian or next friend and the lawsuit on the child's behalf can begin immediately. The parents also have a claim on their own behalf for the medical expenses they incur for the child. This claim must be filed within the standard statute of limitations period.

Finally, when compensating an injured child, the law allows not only the medical expenses already incurred, but also those that will be incurred in the future. Future care alone can total millions of dollars. In addition, the child's future earning loss, disfigurement or handicaps, as well as pain and suffering, will be compensated. Except for relatively small amounts, any award to a minor is set up in an estate and is subject to supervision by the court.

Children's injuries are especially tragic and emotion-laden and each situation is different. Parents addressing these issues are urged to consult a lawyer.