Source: https://drslawfirm.com/tn-medical-malpractice-attorney/
Timestamp: 2019-04-24 05:56:27+00:00

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You may need a Nashville Medical Malpractice Attorney if you have been the victim of medical malpractice. Medical malpractice is medical negligence and occurs when a health care provider (physician, hospital, nurse) violates the standard of care when providing treatment to a patient, causing the patient to suffer an injury. Medical malpractice actions can be brought by the injured patient against any responsible licensed health care provider, including doctors, surgeons, hospitalists, radiologists and oncologists.Prescription drugs, medication errors, surgical error, hospital negligence and emergency room misdiagnosis account for many malpractice cases. Medical malpractice can result from an action taken by the medical practitioner, or by the failure to take a medically appropriate action.
Misdiagnosis of, or failure to diagnose, a disease or medical condition; failure to provide appropriate treatment for a medical condition; emergency room negligence; a defective or dangerous prescription drug; unreasonable delay in treating a diagnosed medical condition and a mistake in giving drugs or medication.
Barkes v. River Park Hospital (Tenn. 2010) established that a hospital owes a separate stand-alone duty to a hospital patient to provide reasonable care. Case affirmed a $7.2M wrongful death verdict for a hospital’s negligent failure to have an ER (emergency room) patient seen by an ER physician.
Jordan v. Baptist Three Rivers Hospital, 984 S.W.2d 593 (Tenn. 1999) which changed 100 years of Tennessee wrongful death law by recognizing the right to recover damages for the loss of the deceased’s love, affection, companionship and consortium.
Ashe v. Radiation Oncology Associates, 9 S.W. 3d 119 (Tenn. 1999) establishing causation standard in medical malpractice informed consent cases.
Foley v. St. Thomas Hosp., 906 SW2d 448, 453 (Tenn. 1995) establishing rights of next of kin in autopsy cases.
Travis v. Ferraraccio (Tenn. Ct. App., Sept. 19, 2005).The firm successfully clarified the law on qualification of medical experts under Tennessee’s medical malpractice locality rule.
The firm has obtained millions of dollars in settlements and judgments in medical malpractice cases in Tennessee, Kentucky, Mississippi and Georgia.With over fifty years experience, the medical malpractice, personal injury and wrongful death law firm of David Randolph Smith & Associates has the experience and detailed medical knowledge you need on your side to recover from hospital mistakes, including: cancer misdiagnosis or delayed diagnosis; failure to diagnose a heart attack in an emergency room setting; anesthesia mistakes and medication errors due to negligence or pharmaceutical malpractice; birth injury due to obstetric malpractice or delivery room error; surgical errors such as wrong limb amputation; iInjury and death do to unreasonable wait time in the ER; failure to evaluate a patient’s condition accurately; negligent operating room hygiene leading to a staph infection; failure to conduct a MRSA inspection if an outbreak of the so-called superbug is suspected or considered likely.
How Serious A Problem is Medical Malpractice?
Are Attorneys Certified as Specialists in Medical Malpractice Litigation?
What is your firm’s experience?
Are physician expert witnesses easy to find and are they usually willing to testify against another physician?
Can any lawyer effectively review and handle a medical malpractice claim?
Do most medical malpractice cases result in a verdict in favor of the patient?
Do most medical malpractice cases settle?
Do patients realize that medical malpractice has occurred?
Does a bad outcome mean that medical malpractice has occurred?
Why do more medical malpractice acts not result in claims?
Should I make a claim for any act of medical malpractice which is suspected?
Should I obtain my own medical records or should I get an attorney to obtain them for me?
What do I do if I suspect that malpractice has occurred?
What fees do most medical malpractice lawyers charge?
What is the time limit for filing a medical malpractice claim?
Why do medical malpractice cases take longer than normal legal cases?
Are most medical malpractice awards subject to a cap on damages, if so, which damages are capped?
Are there rules for expert witnesses?
Why Use a Specialist in Malpractice Law?
Medical malpractice is medical negligence and occurs when a health care provider (physician, hospital, nurse) violates the standard of care when providing treatment to a patient, causing the patient to suffer an injury.
Yes. Many states, including Tennessee, test and certify specialists in Civil Litigation and Medical Malpractice. David Randolph Smith is one of only 15 attorneys in the State of Tennessee certified as a Medical Malpractice Specialist . There are over 18,000 attorneys in Tennessee. Certification requires proof that the attorney is in good standing, is substantially involved in litigating and trying cases (including minimum trial day requirements), has met continuing legal education requirements and has been subjected to peer review by persons against whom they have tried cases, as well as judges before whom they have appeared.
Recently the firm successfully clarified the law on qualification of medical experts under Tennessee’s medical malpractice locality rule in Travis v. Ferraraccio (Tenn. Ct. App., Sept. 19, 2005).
The firm has obtained millions of dollars in settlements and judgments in medical malpractice cases in Tennessee, Kentucky, Missouri and Louisiana. Case results depend upon a variety of factors unique to each case. Indications of past case results do not guarantee or predict a similar result in future cases.
Are physician expert witnesses easy to find and are they willing to testify against another physician?
No. Well-qualified physician expert witnesses are not easy to find. However, experienced medical malpractice lawyers have resources and experience to find the best witnesses. Physicians within the same state usually do not testify against each other. Expert witnesses usually must be retained from out of state.
Malpractice cases are very complex, expensive and time consuming. The attorney who reviews these cases should be experienced in handling medical malpractice claims and have sufficient resources to have the case reviewed by top experts.
Nationwide about 30% of all medical malpractice cases that proceed to trial result in a verdict in favor of the patient. Physicians win about 70% of the cases tried in court.
No. If a physician settles the case for even $1, there is a report made to a national data bank. That reporting follows the physician for the rest of their career. Most medical malpractice insurance policies give the physician the right to decide if the case will settle.
One study estimates that as much as 90% of documented malpractice was not reported and not pursued by the patients.
No. Just because the patient suffers a bad outcome does not mean that malpractice occurred. Frequently, a bad outcome is caused by an unintended complication. Complications are not generally considered to be malpractice. In fact, most complications are contained on the consent form. Some of these include infection and bleeding.
Much speculation can be offered as to why medical malpractice is not more frequently reported or pursued, but the likely explanation is that unless the wrong leg is amputated, most medical malpractice is not readily apparent to a victim or his family. Moreover, most state laws do not require that victims be informed of malpractice. In fact, most state laws specifically preclude the patient from discovering that a physician has been reprimanded or disciplined by his peers for actions which are considered to be malpractice.
No. Medical malpractice cases are not like auto cases where the filing of a claim will result in some settlement offer. These cases require the expert testimony of a physician which is extremely expensive. Moreover, even a clear-cut case of malpractice is not worth pursuing unless there is at least $100,000 in provable damages. Thus, without clear evidence of malpractice and significant damages, these cases are not worth pursuing.
In most cases it is preferable that the patient attempt to get his own medical records first. When doctors and hospitals see requests from lawyers, such requests put them on notice of a potential claim. Records can be lost or even changed in some instances after a request from an attorney is received.
When malpractice is suspected, do not accuse or insult the treating health care providers. Quietly request the records and have them reviewed by an expert. If the care by the physician is ongoing, you may want to request a transfer of the patient’s care to another hospital or health care provider. Document the events as they unfold. Most important, consult an experienced and board certified medical malpractice attorney.
This varies by state. In Tennessee, for example, the fee is capped by statute at one-third of the recovery. In other states without fee caps the fee generally is a little higher than the contingency charged for an ordinary personal injury case.
Each state varies in the time period allowed for bringing a claim. Under Tennessee law, medical malpractice actions must be commenced within one year of the date of the injury or discovery of injury but in no event more than three years from the date of the accident or occurrence (except in the case of foreign objects or fraudulent concealment).
Why do medical malpractice cases usually take longer than normal legal cases?
The main reason is that the cases are complex and therefore time concuming with many experts. The schedules of the multiple physicians usually involved in the case (expert witnesses and defendant doctors) delay it further.
Each state has its own laws regarding medical malpractice. Tennessee has caps on non-ecnomic damages in all cases, including medical malpractice ($750,000 to, in some cases, $ 1 million) for damages such as pain, suffering, disfigurement, loss of enjoyment of life, loss of consortium) but no caps on economic damages (lost wages, lost earning capacity, past and future medical bills and expenses).
Under a traditional collateral source rule, a defendant may not seek to reduce its liability by introducing evidence that the plaintiff has received compensation from other sources, such as the plaintiff’s own insurance coverage. In Tennessee there is a mandatory offset, except for private insurance or for assets purchased by the plaintiff.
In many states, yes. Expert witnesses must be licensed in Tennessee or in a contiguous state, and must have been in practice for at least one year prior to the date of the plaintiff’s injury.
Medical malpractice law is a highly technical field of law, and malpractice lawsuits tend to be fiercely defended by well-funded defense firms. Medical malpractice lawsuits can be exceptionally expensive to pursue, with costs often exceeding $50,000.00. Due to the technical skills involved in prosecuting a malpractice claim, the possibility that an inexperienced or non-certified lawyer may not be sufficiently conversant with the medical issues, or might make a technical error which causes a case to be lost or dismissed, and the very high costs the malpractice law firm typically must advance, an injured patient is very well served by going with a specialist firm and an attorney who is recognized as a Specialist in Medical Malpractice Litigation by the State in which the attorney primarily practices.
Tennessee has caps on non-economic damages in all cases, including medical malpractice ($750,000 to, in some cases, $ 1 million) for damages such as pain, suffering, disfigurement, loss of enjoyment of life, loss of consortium) but no caps on economic damages (lost wages, lost earning capacity, past and future medical bills and expenses).
Expert witnesses must be licensed in Tennessee or in a contiguous state, and must have been in practice for at least one year prior to the date of the plaintiff’s injury.
Under Tennessee law, medical malpractice actions must be commenced within one year of the date of the injury or discovery of injury but in no event more than three years from the date of the negligent accident or occurrence (except in the case of foreign objects or fraudulent concealment).
Contingent attorney fees are limited to 1/3 of the recovery.
Tennessee law provides for voluntary arbitration.
Medical malpractice law is a highly technical field of law, and malpractice lawsuits tend to be fiercely defended by well-funded defense firms. In retaining a Tennessee medical malpractice attorney it is important to consider that medical malpractice lawsuits can be exceptionally expensive to pursue, with costs often exceeding $50,000.00. Due to the technical skills involved in prosecuting a malpractice claim, the possibility that an inexperienced lawyer may not be sufficiently conversant with the medical issues, or might make a technical error which causes a case to be lost or dismissed, and the very high costs the malpractice law firm typically must advance, an injured patient is very well served by going with a specialist firm.
Damages caused by a surgical error, hospital negligence or emergency room mistake, require a candid, professional assessment by a medical malpractice attorney. The Tennessee law firm of David Randolph Smith & Associates has received the AV rating under Martindale-Hubbell’s peer review rating system. David Randolph Smith is certified as a Medical Malpractice Specialist. He has been selected as a Mid-South Super Lawyer, as one of the the Top 100 attorneys in Tennessee (in all fields of practice) he is included in the guidebook Best Lawyers in America. David Randolph Smith, a Nashville medical malpractice attorney, is one of only 15 attorneys in the State of Tennessee recognized as a Medical Malpractice Specialist by the Tennessee Commission on Continuing Legal Education and Specialization. There are over 20,000 attorneys in Tennessee. The firm provides free and confidential evaluations of potential cases by a recognized Tennessee medical malpractice attorney .

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