Medical Malpractice Litigation

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

In order to receive an award of money in a malpractice lawsuit, the injured patient must prove that negligent medical treatment led to injury. This requires establishing four legal elements: a professional duty and breach of that duty, injury, and resulting damages.

Discovery

The most important aspect of a medical negligence lawsuit is gathering evidence. This can be done by means of written interrogatories or malpractice requests for documents. Interrogatories contain questions that the opposing party must answer under oath, and are used to establish facts that can be presented in court. Requests for documents to be produced permit tangible evidence to be obtained such as medical records or test results.

In many cases, your attorney will take the defendant physician's deposition which is a recorded question and answer session. This allows your attorney to ask the doctor or witness questions that wouldn't be allowed during trial. It is extremely effective in a case with expert witnesses.

The information gathered during pre-trial discovery is used during trial to prove the following elements of your claim:

Breach of the standard of care

Injuries resulting from the breach of the standard of care

Proximate cause

A doctor's failure to apply the level of expertise and knowledge held by doctors in their field of specialization, and which proximately resulted in injury to a patient

Mediation

Although medical malpractice trials are sometimes required, they come with significant negatives for both parties. The stress, expense and time commitment required to conduct a trial can have a negative effect on plaintiffs. For defendant health care professionals trials can result in humiliation and a loss of prestige. It can also have detrimental effects on their career and practice, since the monetary payments they make as part of settlements before trial are reported to national databases of practitioners and to the state medical licensing body, and medical society.

Mediation is the most cost-effective and time-efficient and efficient method of settling the medical malpractice attorney malpractice case. Parties are able to negotiate more freely as they do not have the expense of a trial and the risk of jury verdicts to be eroded.

Both parties must provide brief details of the dispute to the mediator prior to mediation (a "mediation short"). At this point, parties will typically communicate via their lawyer and not directly with each other. Direct communication can be used as evidence against them in court. As the mediation progresses, it is recommended to focus on the strengths of your case, and also be prepared to admit its weaknesses as well. This will allow the mediator to fill any gaps and give you a reasonable offer.

Trial

The goal of tort reformers is to devise a system to compensate those who have been injured by medical negligence promptly and without a large cost. While this isn't easy several states have implemented tort reform measures to reduce expenses and to prevent frivolous medical malpractice claims.

Most physicians in the United States carry malpractice insurance to protect themselves against claims of professional negligence medical instances. Some of these policies may be required by a medical or hospital group as a condition of privileges.

In order to be able to claim financial compensation for injuries incurred by a medical practitioner's negligence the injured patient must prove that the doctor did not adhere to the applicable standard of care in the area of expertise he or she practices. This is referred to as proxy causation and is an important element of a medical malpractice case.

A lawsuit begins when the civil summons is filed with the appropriate court. After that the parties have to engage in a process of disclosure. This can be done through written interrogatories, and the production of documents, like medical record. Depositions (in which attorneys ask deponents under an oath), and requests for admission are also involved.

In a medical malpractice claim 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 like pain and discomfort. If you are pursuing a claim for medical malpractice, it is important to work with an experienced 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 injured patient receives an amount of money that is then paid to the plaintiff's lawyer who then deposits it into an escrow account. The lawyer then deducts the case expenses and legal fees per the representation agreement, and then provides the injured person with payment.

To prevail in a medical malpractice lawsuit, an aggrieved patient must demonstrate that a doctor or other healthcare professional owed them a duty of care, but breached that duty by failing to use the appropriate degree of knowledge and competence in their field, that in the proximate consequence of that breach, the patient suffered injuries, and that these injuries can be quantified in terms of monetary loss.

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, which hears cases. In certain situations, a medical negligence case can be transferred to one of the federal district courts. Physicians in the United States typically carry medical malpractice insurance to safeguard themselves against claims of unintentional harm or wrongdoing. Doctors must be aware of structure and workings of our legal system to respond appropriately if there is a case brought against them.