Cerebral Palsy Glossary
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Damages: Monetary compensation claimed by a person who has suffered a loss or injury to his person, property or rights as a result of the negligence or unlawful conduct of another.
Decedent: A person who has died.
Decree: An order of the court.
Default: Failure of either party to file required documents or appear in a civil case within a certain period of time.
Defendant: The person or party sued in a civil case or accused in a criminal case.
Deposition: The testimony of a witness, taken out of court and usually prior to trial.
Direct examination: Questioning of a witness by the party who calls the witness.
Directed verdict: In a trial, a judgment entered by the judge without allowing the jury to participate.
Discovery: The pre-trial process, such as a deposition, by which one party discovers the evidence that will be relied upon at trial by the opposing party.
Dismissal with prejudice: An order to dismiss a case in which the court bars the plaintiff from suing again on the same cause of action.
Dismissal without prejudice: An order to dismiss a case in which the court preserves the plaintiff's right to sue again on the same cause of action.
Dysarthria: A speech disorder that often affects people with cerebral palsy, caused by a weakness in the muscles that produce speech. In mild cases, there may only be a slight slurring of speech; in more severe cases, the person may depend upon a voice output system to speak.
Dystonia: Involuntary, slow, sustained muscle contractions resulting in abnormal postures and twisting motions of the arms, legs, and trunk.
"After all the information came out, I was bitter. But eventually I put it in my heart to forgive.
It's not about the money, but it helps a lot, because brain injury causes a lot of problems that
you don't know about early on."
"First, you cry. You bawl. You ask yourself, 'why me?' But then I looked at Nathan and I
thought, 'He's exactly the same kid he was before. Now you just know more.'"
"I would tell anyone who's had an experience like ours to keep asking questions.
Don't let them go unanswered. Get a qualified lawyer to look into your case, and don't give up hope."
"The saddest moment came when Ken told us that if Lizzy had been born any time between when I came
in at 7 a.m. until 10 p.m., she would be fine. The doctor had misread the fetal monitoring strips.
She had made a mistake."
