Medical Malpractice Newsletters

Compensating the Expert Medical Malpractice Witness

Before the trial begins, the expert physician and the attorney should have a crystal clear understanding about the amount of the payment and who is responsible for that payment. Generally, it is considered unethical for a medical expert witness to agree to a payment based on the amount of the award. Under agreements between medical societies and bar associations in some states, it is the obligation of the attorney, not the client, to compensate the expert.

Discovery Techniques in Medical Malpractice Cases

Discovery Techniques in Medical Malpractice Cases

Establishing Standards of Care without Experts

A physician, nurse, hospital, or other healthcare organization must provide its patients with the appropriate standard of care under the circumstances. In a medical malpractice action, an injured party must establish the standard of care and also must show evidence that the healthcare provider breached that standard. Generally, the standard of care is defined as how similarly qualified practitioners would have managed the patient's care under the same or similar circumstances. In determining the appropriate standard of care, juries may take into consideration a respected minority rule, which allows a healthcare provider to show that although the course of treatment followed was not the same as the majority of practitioners would have used, it is one that is accepted by a respectable minority of practitioners.

Obstetric Malpractice

Obstetric Malpractice

Retained Foreign Bodies and Medical Malpractice

Retained Foreign Bodies and Medical Malpractice