Laws vary from state to state, but the elements of a liability claim for dental malpractice or negligence by a dentist are generally:

• a dentist is a defendant;

• the claim or claims at issue concern treatment, lack of treatment, or a departure from accepted standards of dental care;

• the defendant owed the plaintiff a duty of care;

• the defendant breached its duty of care by not meeting the required standard of care; and

• the defendant’s act or omission proximately caused the plaintiff’s injury (was the primary cause of the injury).

A claim for dental malpractice or negligence by a dentist may be brought as a simple negligence action based on the elements of a negligence claim—which are often located in a state’s court opinions (also known as case law or common law).

And in some states a claim for dental malpractice or negligence by a dentist may be defined by the state legislature in the state’s statutes—whether broadly as a health care liability claim against a health care provider, or more specifically as a claim for dental malpractice against a dentist.

In Florida, dental malpractice falls under the broader category of medical malpractice, as governed by Florida Statutes Chapter 766. To establish a dental malpractice claim, the plaintiff must demonstrate that the dentist owed a duty of care, breached that duty by deviating from the accepted standard of dental care, and that this breach was the proximate cause of the plaintiff's injury. Florida law requires that before filing a lawsuit, the plaintiff must conduct a pre-suit investigation and serve a notice of intent to initiate litigation on the defendant. This notice must include an affidavit from a dental expert attesting to the merit of the claim. The statute of limitations for dental malpractice in Florida is generally two years from the time the incident is discovered or should have been discovered, with a maximum cap of four years, except in cases involving fraud, concealment, or intentional misrepresentation where the period is extended to seven years. Additionally, Florida has damage caps for non-economic damages in medical malpractice cases, which may apply to dental malpractice claims as well.