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Dov Apfel

46 years of experience
Medical Malpractice, Personal Injury
District of Columbia, Maryland

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Biography

Recognized for his national reputation and success as a child advocate, Dov Apfel has investigated and litigated birth trauma and obstetrical malpractice claims involving children with cerebral palsy and other neurological and intellectual disabilities throughout the United States for over forty years.

Mr. Apfel’s lifetime of achievements in birth injury litigation, education and advocacy was recognized by the Executive Board of the Birth Trauma Litigation Group of the American Association for Justice in 2011, an organization consisting of thousands of trial lawyers throughout the United States, when he received the Dan Cullan Memorial Lifetime Achievement Award. Judges, too, have recognized Mr. Apfel as both a committed advocate and a source of scientific and medical knowledge in birth trauma cases. He was an invited speaker at the New York State Judicial Seminars, “Medicine for Judges” Programs in 2008, where he taught judges about the criteria for determining the timing and causes of brain damage in babies and newborns.

Mr. Apfel’s record of success spans across the United States. He has the unique distinction and privilege of helping families and lawyers, and participating in the successful resolution and litigation of birth injury cases, in the following jurisdictions: Arizona, Arkansas, California, Colorado, District of Columbia, Georgia, Hawaii, Iowa, Illinois, Kentucky Maryland, Minnesota, Missouri, Mississippi, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, Ohio, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, Texas, Washington, Vermont, & Virginia.

Mr. Apfel, a passionate child advocate for his clients and all those who suffer preventable injuries due to negligence and inexcusable medical care, has dedicated his career to holding hospitals and other providers accountable for their failures to keep patients safe and out of harm’s way. Some of Dov's achievements include a $29 million settlement, a $20 million verdict, and an $18 million settlement for birth injuries to children.

Practice Areas

Medical Malpractice

Personal Injury: Animal & Dog Bites, Brain Injury, Car Accidents, Construction Accidents, Motorcycle Accidents, Premises Liability, Truck Accidents, Wrongful Death

Fees

Free Consultation

Jurisdictions Admitted to Practice

District of Columbia: District of Columbia Bar
Since 1980

Maryland: Supreme Court of Maryland
Since 1979

Languages

English: Spoken, Written

Professional Experience

: Levin & Perconti; Current

Education

American University Washington College of Law: J.D. (1979); 1979

City University of New York - Queens College: B.S. (1976)

Awards

Medical Malpractice Law - Plaintiffs: Best Lawyers in America

Personal Injury Litigation - Plaintiffs: Best Lawyers in America

Maryland Super Lawyer: Super Lawyers

America’s Premier Lawyers: Fortune Magazine

AV Preeminent: Martindale-Hubbell

Super Lawyer: Super Lawyers

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Professional Associations

State Bar of Maryland: Member; Current

Medical Negligence Section of the Maryland Trial Lawyers Association: Former Chairperson; Current

Maryland Association for Justice (MAJ): Member; Current

Maryland Bar Association: Member; Current

District of Columbia Bar Association: Member; Current

Montgomery County Maryland Bar Association: Member; Current

Illinois State Bar Association: Member; Current

District of Columbia Trial Lawyers Association: Member; Current

Illinois Trial Lawyers Association: Member; Current

Birth Trauma Litigation Group of the American Association for Justice: Member and Former Co-Chair; 1991 - Current

District of Columbia Bar: Member; 1980 - Current

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Publications

Articles & Publications

PLACENTAL PATHOLOGY 2023: Understanding the Clinical Significance of Gross & Microscopic Findings: Birth Trauma Litigation Group Journal; 2023

xpediting Delivery of Infants with Category II (Indeterminate) FHR Tracings That Are Close To – But Not Quite – Category III Tracings: Trial Journal of the Illinois Trial Lawyers Association; 2023

Category II (Nonreassuring) FHR Tracings 2022 Update: Are We Closer to Creating Reliable National Standards of Care?: Birth Trauma Litigation Group Journal; 2022

Electronic Fetal Monitoring: Establishing National Standards of Care that Require Multidisciplinary Team Training, Effective Communication, Meaningful Interventions and Timely Delivery,: Birth Trauma Litigation Group Journal; 2020

Electronic Fetal Monitoring in Identifying Fetal Hypoxia and Acidemia: AAJ Birth Trauma Litigation Group Newsletter; July, 2020

Birth Injury Litigation Criteria Exposed: Trial Magazine; May, 2015

Hospital Liability for Misuse of Obstetrical Drugs: Trial Magazine; December, 2013

Electronic Fetal Monitoring Plays a Vital Role in the Management of Pregnant Women and Their Babies: AAJ Birth Trauma Litigation Group Newsletter; February, 2013

Distinguishing Fact from Fiction in Cerebral Palsy Cases: Trial Magazine; November, 2012

When Every Minute Counts: Trial Magazine; May, 2011

Intrapartum Asphyxia is a Preventable, Not Inevitable, Cause of Hypoxic-Ischemic Encephalopathy and Cerebral Palsy: New York Litigation Review, Vol. 2; 2010

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Latest Posted to JD Supra

Speaking Engagements

Electronic Fetal Monitoring in Birth Injury Cases, Ft. Lauderdale, FL: April 18, 2024

APPARENTLY EVIDENCE OF FETAL HYPOXIA DOESN’T MATTER – response to Steven L. Clark, AAJ Summer Convention, Philadelphia, PA: June 16, 2023; American Association for Justice

Issues for Electronic Fetal Monitoring, Mastering the Medicine, Atlanta, GA: October 5, 2017; American Association for Justice; October 5-6, 2017

Placental Pathology: The Use of Placental Findings to Prove or Negate Obstetrical Malpractice in Bad Baby Cases, ATLA Winter Conference, Hawaii: February 1995

The Use of Placental Findings to Prove or Negate Obstetrical Malpractice in Bad Baby Cases, Placental Pathology Conferences Sponsored by the Armed Forces Institute of Pathology, Walter Reed Medical Center,: 1991

Maternal Infection in Pregnancy and Cerebral Palsy, Chairperson: Birth Trauma Litigation Group Educational Program

Intrapartum Electronic Fetal Heart Rate Monitoring: Understanding FHR Variables and Nonreassuring Patterns, ATLA Summer Conference, chicago: August 2000

Maternal Infection in Pregnancy and Cerebral Palsy, and the International Consensus Template and the Criteria for Establishing a Link Between Birth Asphyxia and Cerebral Palsy, Chairperson: Birth Trauma Litigation Group Educational Program

ATLA Summer Conference, Montreal: July 2001

Using Fetal Monitoring to Assess Quality of Care and Timing of Injury, Maryland Trial Lawyers Association Annual Medical Malpractice Educational Program, Baltimore: January 2002

Distinguishing Between Asphyxia and Stroke: The Timing of Brain Injury, Co-Chairperson, Birth Trauma Litigation Group Educational Program, Atlanta: July 2002

Using the Medicine to Make Your Case: Electronic Fetal Monitoring, Litigating Catastrophically Injured Infant Cases ATLA Program, Atlanta: February 2003

Keeping Junk Science Out of Cerebral Palsy Cases: ACOG’s Criteria on Neonatal Encephalopathy and Cerebral Palsy, ATLA Summer Conference, San Francisco: July 2003

What’s New in Obstetrical Malpractice and Placental Pathology, Co-Chairperson, Obstetric Malpractice Program, Sponsored by The American Conference Institute, Philadelphia: November 2003

Using the Medicine to Prove the Timing and Etiology of Irreversible Brain Damage, Litigating Catastrophically Injured Infant Cases, ATLA Program, Atlanta: February 2004

Keeping Junk Science Out of Cerebral Palsy Cases: ACOG’s Criteria on Neonatal Encephalopathy and Cerebral Palsy, Maryland Trial Lawyers Association Annual Medical Malpractice Educational Program, Baltimore: May 2004

Keeping Junk Science Out of Cerebral Palsy Cases: ACOG’s Criteria on Neonatal Encephalopathy and Cerebral Palsy, ATLA Summer Conference, Boston: July 2004

Closing Argument, Litigating Medical Negligence Cases: Updates and Techniques for Pretrial, Trial, and Settlement, Crystal City, Virginia: October 2005

Using the Medical Literature to Rebut ACOG Publications, Maryland Trial Lawyers Association — Annual Medical Malpractice Educational Program, Baltimore: March 2007

Perinatal Brain Injury, New Jersey Trial Lawyers Association — Annual Medical Malpractice Educational Program, The Best of the Best from Around the Country, Meadowlands: October 2007

What’s New in Electronic Fetal Monitoring?, Ohio Association for Justice — Annual Medical Malpractice Educational Program, Columbus, Ohio: May 2008

Keeping Junk Science Out of Cerebral Palsy Cases: Analysis of Criteria for Linking Neonatal Encephalopathy and Cerebral Palsy, New York State Judicial Seminars, Rye Brook, NY: August 28, 2008

Analysis of the 2008 NICHD Fetal Monitoring Guidelines, ATLA Winter Conference, New Orleans: February 2009

Fetal Asphyxia: Causes and Prevention, Obstetric Malpractice Program, Sponsored by The American Conference Institute, Philadelphia: June 2009

The Latest ACOG and AWHONN Electronic Fetal Monitoring Guidelines, AAJ Winter BTLG Educational Program, Miami: February 2011

New Fetal Monitoring Standards, Litigating Injured Infant Cases Seminar, Miami: April 2011

The Timing of Emergency Cesarean Sections: When Every Minute Counts, AAJ Summer Conference, New York: July 2011

Proving the Timing of Brain Damage: Distinguishing Fact from Fiction, AAJ Summer Conference, Chicago: July 2012

How to Handle Damages in Opening Statement, AAJ Winter Conference, Miami: February 2013

FHR Patterns, Algorithms for Management of Category

EFM: Expectations, Problems, and Reality, AAJ Education’s 1st Annual Total Electronic Fetal Monitoring Immersion Seminar, Washington, DC: June 27, 2013

Neonatal Encephalopathy & Neurologic Outcome Litigation Criteria, Chorioamnionitis & Intrapartum Brain Injury: 2014

EFM: Decelerations & Management of Category III Patterns, AAJ Education’s 2nd Annual Total Electronic Fetal Monitoring Immersion Seminar, Washington, DC: June 26, 2014

Neonatal Encephalopathy and Neurologic Outcome, AAJ Summer Conference, Baltimore: July 27, 2014

Neonatal Encephalopathy and Neurologic Outcome & EFM, Indiana Trial Lawyers Meeting: August 14, 2014

Determining the Timing and Etiology of Neonatal Encephalopathy and Adverse Neurologic Outcome, AAJ Winter Conference, Palm Springs, Palm Springs: February 2015

AAJ Education’s 3rd Annual Electronic Fetal Monitoring in Birth Injury Cases Seminar, Washington, DC: June 18, 2015

Issues for Electronic Fetal Monitoring, AAJ Mastering the Medicine program, Atlanta, GA: October 5, 2017

Electronic Fetal Monitoring: Fake Data and Alternate Facts, AAJ Summer Conference, Boston, MA: July 21, 2017

AAJ Education’s 4th Annual Electronic Fetal Monitoring in Birth Injury Cases Seminar, Philadelphia, PA: March 1, 2018

Gross and Microscopic Placental Findings, AAJ Summer Conference, San Diego, CA: July 28, 2019

Fetal Monitoring and Blood Gases, AAJ Mastering the Medicine program, Atlanta, GA: October 17, 2019

AAJ Education’s 5th Annual Electronic Fetal Monitoring in Birth Injury Cases Seminar, Orlando, FL, April 2-3, 2020 (to be rescheduled due to COVID-19), AAJ Webinar, Electronic Fetal Monitoring in Birth Injury Cases: April 3, 2020

Fetal Reserve Index, AAJ Mastering the Medicine Seminar: November 3, 2021; American Association for Justice

AAJ Education’s 5th Annual Electronic Fetal Monitoring in Birth Injury Cases Seminar, New Orleans, LA: March 10, 2022

A TRIP THROUGH THE DOJ Reversionary Trust Land, AAJ Summer Convention, Seattle, WA: June 19, 2022; American Association for Justice

HIE: JUNK SCIENCE AND LIES, AAJ Summer Convention, Seattle, WA: June 17, 2022; American Association for Justice

Electronic Fetal Monitoring in Birth Injury Cases, Charleston, SC: April 20, 2023

Determining the Timing and Etiology of Neonatal Encephalopathy and Adverse Neurologic Outcome, Winter Conference, Palm Springs, CA: February 2015; American Association for Justice