Some Potential Certainty in an Outcome in an Uncertain Medical Malpractice World
7/12/19
By: Shaun Daugherty Medical malpractice claims can be dangerous in front of a jury and some recent Georgia verdicts are proof of that. In Georgia, as many other states, medical doctors typically have consent clauses in their professional liability policies that require their consent before any payment may be offered by the insurance company. In…
What's the Cause of Joan Rivers' Death?
9/24/14
By: Taryn M. Kadar Many have heard of the unfortunate and the unexpected death of Joan Rivers while having a planned throat surgery. Along with grieving their loved ones, it would not be unusual in such situations for a family to seek counsel to analyze whether to bring a medical malpractice suit. Other celebrity estates…
Caps on Medical Malpractice Awards- How Much is Too much?
8/5/14
By: Taryn M. Kadar Monetary caps on medical malpractice awards are commonplace in many states throughout the country. In today’s highly litigious environment, these monetary caps help limit the exposure a doctor or hospital may have in a medical malpractice suit. While some states such as Florida and Georgia have declared non-economic caps on damages…
Cumulative Does Not Always Mean Harmless
5/8/13
By: Scott Rees In Thomas v. The Emory Clinic, Inc. (March 26, 2013), the Georgia Court of Appeals addressed the issue of a trial court improperly allowing hearsay evidence during a trial when that improper evidence is cumulative of other evidence in the case. Typically, allowing inappropriate, but cumulative, evidence is not harmful in terms of…
Medical Malpractice Lawsuit Dismissed Because Expert Not Qualified
1/31/13
By: Scott Rees In Whitley, the Court of Appeals ordered a medical malpractice lawsuit to be dismissed for failure to satisfy Georgia’s expert affidavit requirements. O.C.G.A 9-11-9.1 requires that in any medical malpractice lawsuit, a plaintiff must file with the complaint an affidavit of an expert competent to testify as to the alleged medical negligence.…
Hospital Found Liable After Lawyers Intimidate Expert
9/17/12
By: Scott Rees
A default judgment was recently entered against a local WellStar hospital, based on the actions of its attorneys. In entering the default judgment, the judge determined that WellStar’s attorneys intimidated the plaintiff’s expert physician witness to the point he refused to continue on as plaintiff’s expert. According to the judge’s order
Workers Compensation Model to Replace Georgia's Medical Malpractice System?
8/1/12
By: Scott Rees
A recent study of 330 Georgia physicians indicated Georgia physicians are overwhelmingly in favor of proposed legislation to make such a change. Instead of the current legal system in place, the workers compensation model would allow a patient to file a claim for review by a panel. If the panel found