Page 30 - Anatomy of a Medical Malpractice Lawsuit

SVMIC Anatomy of a Medical Malpractice Lawsuit

Attorney prior to making any alterations or modifications to the

medical record. If you have received a claim or lawsuit, DO
NOT MAKE ANY CHANGES OR ALTERATIONS TO THE

RECORD without first consulting a Claims Attorney and/or

your defense counsel. Remember, all electronic health records
(EHR) have an audit trail that can be replicated at any point in

the future. Plaintiffs’ attorneys are aware of this fact and
routinely retain forensic IT specialists to examine the audit trail

in the hopes of discovering an improper alteration and,

thereby, increasing the amount of damages they can
potentially recover for their clients. This highlights the need to

make contemporaneous and complete records of your
treatment at the time the care is rendered.

The plaintiff’s attorney’s fees are typically based upon a

contingency arrangement. The more money he or she recovers
for his/her client, the more money the attorney makes. Some

states (Tennessee) statutorily limit the percentage the attorney

can recover in a malpractice case to usually a third (33
percent). Other states do not and in those states, you see

plaintiffs’ attorneys collecting fees of 40 percent, 50 percent, or

more.

This concludes our discussion of the elements of a medical

malpractice lawsuit. Next, we will examine the phases of

litigation.

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