Page 62 - Anatomy of a Medical Malpractice Lawsuit

SVMIC Anatomy of a Medical Malpractice Lawsuit

verdict. The judge will instruct them to return to the jury room

and continue to deliberate. All trials, but especially medical
malpractice trials, are expensive and time-consuming. When

cases are tried, everyone involved expects the dispute to be

resolved. Unfortunately, not all juries are able to reach a
consensus. In states where a unanimous verdict is required, a

lone juror can hold out creating a deadlock situation.

It is rare that the jury is unable to break the deadlock, but in
those cases when it happens, the trial process starts all over. A

new trial will be scheduled (usually months away), a new jury

will be empaneled to hear the case, and the physician will have
to go through the trial phases a second time. Cases which

involve a hung jury often settle to avoid the time and expense
of a second trial, and because the jury’s inability to reach a

verdict sends the message that a jury may have trouble
resolving the issues in dispute.

When the jury reaches a verdict for either the plaintiff or the

defendant, the losing party will present an oral motion
requesting the judge to set aside the jury’s verdict, granting a

Judgment Notwithstanding the Verdict. Some states

(Tennessee) allow the trial judge to act as a ‘thirteenth juror’. If
he or she feels that the proof was insufficient for the jury to

have reached the verdict announced, the judge can set it aside

and substitute his/her own verdict in its place. This is a rare
occurrence but has happened on occasion. In such instances,

usually a new trial will be ordered. The judge cannot award
damages.

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