Medical Malpractice Litigation

Medical malpractice litigation is complex and time-consuming. Both plaintiffs and defendants are also required to pay a high cost.

To be awarded monetary compensation for negligence, the patient has to establish that the substandard medical treatment caused their injury. This involves establishing four legal elements that include a professional duty, breach of duty as well as injury and damages.

Discovery

One of the most important aspects of a medical malpractice case is obtaining evidence via written interrogatories and requests for the production of documents. Interrogatories consist of questions that the opposing party has to answer under oath. They can be used to establish the facts that will be presented in court. Documents that are requested to be produced permit tangible evidence to be obtained, such as medical records or test results.

In many cases your attorney will record the deposition of the defendant physician that is an audio recording of questions and answers. This allows your attorney to ask the witness or doctor questions that wouldn't have been allowed at trial. It can be extremely beneficial in cases involving experts as witnesses.

The information collected during pretrial discovery is used at trial to establish the following elements of your claim:

Breach of the standard of care

Injury caused by the violation of the standard of care

Proximate causation

Failure of a doctor to apply the level of expertise and knowledge of doctors in their field, and that resulted in injury or harm to the patient

Mediation

While medical malpractice lawyer malpractice trials are sometimes required, they come with significant drawbacks for both sides. The cost, stress and time commitment that a trial requires can have a negative effect on plaintiffs. For defendant health care professionals trials can result in humiliation as well as a loss of credibility. It can also have adverse effects on their career and practice since the financial payments they receive as part of a settlement prior to trial are reported to national practitioner databases and to the state medical licensing body, and medical societies.

Mediation is the most cost-effective, time-efficient and risk-free method of settling the issue of medical malpractice. Parties can negotiate more freely since they do not have the expense of a trial, and the possibility for jury verdicts to be diminished.

Before mediation, both parties give the mediator a brief of information on the case (a "mediation brief"). Parties will usually let their communications go through their lawyer, rather than directly between themselves at this point since direct communications could be used against them later on in court. As the mediation process progresses, it is best to concentrate on the strengths of your case, and also be prepared to recognize its weaknesses as well. This will enable the mediator to overcome any misunderstandings and give you an acceptable offer.

Trial

The goal of those who work on tort reform is to develop an appropriate system for remuneration of those who suffer injury due to medical negligence promptly and without excessive cost. Many states have adopted tort reform measures to cut costs and also to prevent frivolous claims arising from medical malpractice.

The majority of physicians in the United States carry malpractice insurance to safeguard themselves from accusations of professional negligence in medical instances. Some of these policies are required to be carried out as a condition of hospital privileges or employment within a medical company.

In order to be able to claim financial compensation for injuries incurred by negligence of a medical professional, an injured patient must prove that the doctor did not adhere to the standards of care applicable in the field of expertise they practice. This concept is known as proximate cause, and is a crucial element of a medical malpractice lawsuit.

A lawsuit starts when an order for civil summons is filed in the appropriate court. After this, both parties must engage in a disclosure process. This includes written interrogatories and the production of documents, including medical record. Depositions (in which attorneys ask deponents under the oath) and requests for admission are also involved.

In a medical malpractice case the burden of proof is high. Damages are awarded based upon both economic losses (such as lost income or the expense of future medical treatment) and noneconomic damages such as discomfort and pain. When pursuing a claim for medical malpractice, it's important to hire a skilled attorney.

Settlement

Medical malpractice lawsuits are settled through settlement. In general, the actual dollar value of a case is negotiated between the plaintiff and the defendants (often through or alongside the defendant's malpractice/professional liability insurer). The result is a check for the injured patient, which is then given to the lawyer of the plaintiff who deposit it into an Escrow account. The lawyer subtracts the legal fees and case expenses according to the representation agreement and then provides the injured victims with compensation.

To prevail in a medical malpractice lawsuit, a patient must show that a physician or other healthcare provider violated their duty of care by not demonstrating the required level of knowledge and competence in their area of expertise. They must also show that the victim suffered harm because of the breach.

In the United States, there are 94 federal district court systems, which are equivalent to state trial courts. Each of these courts has an ad-hoc jury and judge panel that decides cases. In some instances, a medical malpractice case may be moved to one of these courts. In the United States, physicians carry medical malpractice insurance to protect themselves from claims of harm that is not intentional. Medical professionals should be aware of the structure and functioning of our legal system so that they are able to respond properly to any claim made against them.