It is beyond a doubt that, in many states, including the state of Maryland in which I am licensed, tort reforms for medical malpractice occupy a good part of the legislative agenda. In Maryland, tort reforms bring:
“No medical malpractice lawsuit is frivolous,” is the narrative echoed by plaintiff attorneys. Medical malpractice lawsuits are vastly underrepresented. Also, because frivolous lawsuits are too expensive to litigate, expense is a natural deterrent for filing one. Plaintiff attorneys have controlled this narrative for as long as I’ve been in practice since 1972.
Recently, I examined the veracity of this claim. Indeed, there are 66 million civil lawsuits filed in the …
I define a frivolous medical malpractice lawsuit as being caused by a random error of nature.
Plaintiffs are entitled to feel aggrieved and to seek legal counsel. Some, however, have ulterior motives.
Plaintiff attorneys are “good Samaritans.” They work for a contingency fee. This invites ulterior motives; however, because these attorneys bear the cost, motives do not matter. Only the value of a case matters and there is artificial intelligence to weed …
When I am sued by a prominent medical malpractice plaintiff attorney, I open the firm’s website. Despite the lawyer’s prominence, the website uncharacteristically solicits for medical malpractice, claiming, “If you have a phone, you have a lawyer.” We all know that it takes more than a phone; it takes a case. What I have learned since that day is a lesson for every physician practicing medicine because each, like it …
Physicians today face mounting challenges in the practice of medicine, including declining reimbursement, workforce shortages, administrative burdens, and the ever-present risk of litigation. The Doctors Company’s latest study, “Nuclear Verdicts and Rising Costs: How Inflation Is Impacting Medical Malpractice Claims,” highlights another pressure point: the accelerating impact of inflation on medical malpractice claims.
The research study, conducted by Moore …
Frivolous medical malpractice lawsuits are endemic and infect everyone whether they realize it or not. The greed of plaintiffs, attorneys, medical experts, and malpractice carriers, coupled with the ineptitude of the tort system, causes hopelessness in physicians. Everyone else pays the price.
Plaintiffs sue for malpractice even when a claim has no attributable merit. Plaintiff attorneys, who are looking for business, advertise “if we don’t win, you don’t pay.” Once …
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Nephrologist Saad S. Alshohaib discusses his article, “Why truth still matters in the courtroom: lessons from a physician witness.” The conversation provides a profound reflection on his decade of experience serving as …
“In the courtroom, I was asked to speak about wounds. But the deepest wounds I saw weren’t just in patients — they were in trust, in truth, and in the silence that follows when no one wants to say what really happened.”
I never aspired to testify in court. Like most physicians, I trained to treat patients — not to evaluate the decisions of others. But then a case came. A …
Eighty-five thousand medical malpractice lawsuits are filed per year, but the total number of claims reviewed by lawyers is unknown. What underlies their decision to proceed is their inability to determine which complication results from a systemic medical error in a medical intervention and which is just a random error of nature.
Reflected in this 85,000 is that two-thirds—52,000—are summarily dismissed and 4,600 are defense verdicts, and one-third—27,000—are settlements and 1,400 …
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Nurse practitioner Surani Hayre-Kwan discusses her article “Are you protecting your career? 5 essential questions about your NP liability insurance.” Surani discusses the critical need for nurse practitioners to secure their own …
All medical malpractice lawsuits stem from complications caused by medical interventions. Some complications are random errors of nature, which are unpreventable. Others are systemic medical errors, caused by medical interventions gone astray. Clinically, a medical error and an error of nature are indistinguishable. Herein lies the problem in medical malpractice.
It is not that the inability to differentiate a systemic medical error from a random error of nature is unknown. On …
Risk management has been around for centuries. In ancient times, there were oracles and soothsayers. In the 1950s, risk management became a science. Nevertheless, 75 years later, a medical malpractice lawsuit is still a problem. An unknown number of claims are reviewed by lawyers, but 85,000 lawsuits are represented. Of these, 66.6 percent are frivolous.
It stands to reason that many meritorious cases are reviewed but are never represented. There are …
In ancient times, there were oracles and soothsayers. In the 1950s, risk management becomes a science. Nevertheless, there are 85,000 medical malpractice lawsuits filed per year. They are problematic, not because they overwhelm court dockets, but because a disproportionate number of claims are either frivolous or, if meritorious, are not represented. Also, each physician, myself included, has an 8.5 percent chance per year of being sued for a bad result …
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In ancient times, there were oracles and soothsayers. Risk management was not a science until the 1950s. However, a medical malpractice lawsuit is still a problem in need of a skilled risk manager, not an oracle or a soothsayer.
Today, there are 1 million physicians practicing in the U.S. A doctor’s chance of being sued for medical malpractice is 8.5 percent per year, and the chance that this lawsuit has no …
Doctors are plagued by medical malpractice lawsuits. Every year, there are 85,000 lawsuits filed, of which 66.6 percent are frivolous. Each doctor has an 8.5 percent chance per year of being sued.
In the course of my efforts to make a difference, I personally contact 50 of the nation’s most prestigious medical malpractice law firms, both plaintiff and defense firms. I make it known that I developed a risk management process …
Verdicts in excess of $10 million, or even $25 million, are no longer rare occurrences in medical malpractice litigation. Though most of these awards are handed down by empathetic juries concerned for an injured plaintiff, 40 percent of the award or more may go to pay attorney fees and other investors in the lawsuit. Third-party litigation funding (TPLF), …
Every year, there are 85,000 medical malpractice lawsuits, of which 66.6 percent are frivolous. In the course of my endeavor to remedy frivolous medical malpractice claims, I introduce myself to 50 of the nation’s most prestigious medical malpractice law firms, both plaintiff and defense firms. I make it known that I have developed a risk management process. I make contact to explore the possibility of collaborating with them in some …
Today, a doctor’s chance of being sued for medical malpractice is 8.5 percent per year. The chance that the lawsuit is frivolous, meaning the alleged injury is from a random error of nature and not from an accidental medical error, is 66.6 percent.
Complications are inevitable. Medical errors occur during medical interventions. So do random errors of nature. At first glance, an error of …
Until now, when a lawsuit is frivolous, once a doctor who is the defendant prevails, the case concludes. However, there is a next step. Whether it is taken depends on this doctor.
Prevailing means there is 95 percent confidence that the lawsuit is frivolous. Not every frivolous lawsuit is malicious; however, every malicious lawsuit is frivolous. Malice is actionable.
As of now, malicious prosecution cases are difficult and expensive to prove because …
On August 6, 2021, a medical malpractice lawsuit was filed against me. The case involved care I provided between June 29, 2018, and August 3, 2018, while I was an employee at a medical weight loss clinic in Bethesda, Maryland. I resigned from that clinic in November 2018 due to concerns I had about my employer.
The complaint alleged that the patient was defrauded, hospitalized, sustained liver damage, suffered …
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