Showing posts with label Lawsuit. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Lawsuit. Show all posts

Tuesday, March 27, 2012

The Likelihood Of Success In a Medical Lawsuit In Canada

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Medical lawsuits get a lot of press, media attention, and blogging comments. And while medical malpractice lawsuits offer large awards in the United States, this doesn't hold true in Canada. In fact, many would claim that in the United States, medical malpractice awards are way out of proportion to the injuries plaintiffs suffer. Here in Canada, medical lawsuit awards are much lower. A medical lawsuit that is sure to succeed in the United States is not a lawsuit that is economically feasible to consider pursuing here.

Why you might ask? Aren't Canadians just as injured in a medical malpractice case as an American? The majority of doctors in Canada are defended by the Canadian Medical Protection Association (CMPA), an organization with a great deal of influence and a great deal of money. With billions of dollars in assets, the CMPA dedicates itself to standing by their doctors. The organization uses its vast financial resources to hire the best in defence lawyers and experts to defend doctors accused medical of malpractice in a medical lawsuit.

Victims of these malpractice lawsuits, however, are already struggling financially from their injuries, medical expenses, ongoing rehabilitation, medical care and lost wages. Consequently, the financial challenge a medical lawsuit would entail just isn't worth it to the average medical malpractice victim. A seemingly insurmountable challenge, a medical lawsuit against a CMPA member is doomed to failure.

Defences that doctors use to defend a medical malpractice lawsuit include:

• Forseeablility - Doctors are commissioned with a duty to protect their patients from foreseeable dangers and risks. However, doctors frequently allege that the outcome of a particular medical procedure was an unforeseeable consequence of the treatment and thus have a defence.

• The Patient Contributed To Or Caused The Injury - This defence makes the case that a patient did not follow the doctor's medical instructions or advice.

• The Risk Was A Recognized One - This defence is used when a doctor explains the risks of a procedure and the patient gives what amounts to informed consent. What happens here, is that the doctor claims he/she is not responsible for a particular patient's injury because the risk was covered in the information given to the patient upfront and the patient chose to take the risk.

• The Injury Was Caused By Another - As the defendant in a medical lawsuit, doctors routinely place blame on faulty equipment, hospital staff incompetency, or the treatment of other doctors.

• The Injury Was A Pre-Existing One - This defence claims that the patient had a previous condition or injury that contributed or caused the one for which the medical lawsuit has been filed.

A Medical Malpractice Lawsuit Requires An Experienced Lawsuit Lawyer

Pursuing a medical malpractice lawsuit is not for the faint of heart. Before filing a medical lawsuit, make sure you have engaged an experienced Canadian medical malpractice lawsuit lawyer and have all your medical documentation in hand.

If you're searching for additional information on medical malpractice lawsuits in Canada, don't hesitate to contact a personal injury lawyer or medical malpractice lawyers now, time is an issue, don't wait.

Lawsuit Loans May Be The Key To Victory In Medical Malpractice Lawsuits

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In personal injury lawsuits, many law firms are able to accept your case on a contingency fee basis. This simply means that you do not have to pay the attorney as the case goes along. However, assuming you prevail in your lawsuit, in most cases, your attorney will be entitled to one third of the settlement. Very often, both plaintiffs and law firms find that lawsuit loans and settlement loans can be extremely helpful in both filing and seeing these suits through to completion.

There are many expenses plaintiffs encounter with medical malpractice lawsuits that would not be encountered in many other cases. For example, most states require that the plaintiff have an expert witness file a report specifically stating that there is evidence of medical malpractice in the case. These experts can be extremely expensive. Not the least of which, are fees related to very lengthy depositions, travel, etc.

In addition to the experts, it is often necessary to produce not only the medical record extant in the case, but these cases also involve a great deal of research to clearly establish the evidence of malpractice in the case. It is very important that the experts, discovery, medical records, etc. be acquired as quickly as possible to enable your attorney to develop the best possible strategy for you in your case.

One of the most important roles of an attorney in a medical malpractice case is to quickly inform his/her client whether the case is worth pursuing. These cases can be extremely frustrating if a great deal of time, effort, and money are expended only to find that the case is not worth pursuing in the first place.

These cases are extremely expensive just to get to trial. Therefore, individuals would be wise to consult with litigation funding brokers to make a determination as to whether their case qualifies for either settlement loans or lawsuit loans - and whether the jurisdiction in which the case was filed will allow such funding.

Medical malpractice cases are very frequently expert-specific. This simply means that there will be a battle of the experts and the jurors will often have to make a determination as to which expert appears the most believable. This is not a time to take shortcuts. Additionally, this is not a time to rely on attorneys who do not have experience in handling medical malpractice cases.

In many cases, the medical malpractice insurance carrier will attempt to have the provider settle out of court. However, the vast majority of providers will often protest, insisting that they have an opportunity to have their day in court. This can be an extremely risky strategy for the provider, but is certainly understandable.

Unfortunately, most providers are confronted by jurors who are not very sympathetic to their position. In the vast majority of instances, irrespective of the provider's personal wealth, jurors will conclude that the provider has a great deal of money and could easily withstand the judgment being levied against that provider. This certainly does not make such cases appropriate. However, this is a stumbling block that the providers are likely to encounter and good legal counsel will advise them of this.

It is extremely important in medical malpractice cases to clearly establish the extent of injury - quickly. In most jurisdictions, plaintiffs have approximately 2 years to bring their claim. It is vitally important that you seek proper legal counsel as quickly as possible. It is also important that you attempt to arrange for lawsuit loans and settlement loans - if required - as early in the process as possible.

Are you in need of information regarding the best deal on lawsuit loans? If so, we encourage you to visit us to obtain information regarding the benefits of settlement loans today.