Justifying a Medical Malpractice Case

Unlike what's usually depicted in TV programs like the top-rating “Grey's Anatomy,” not all doctors and surgeons get it right all the time. In real life, even highly respectable health practitioners are susceptible to errors like making a wrong diagnosis or prescribing an incorrect medication. However, once the errors begin to worsen a patient's condition, the medical practitioners can face a medical malpractice lawsuit.

Medical malpractice laws, however, vary from state to state. For instance, the statute of limitations differ from one state to another, which limits the period in which claimants can file a charge. In North Carolina, a patient can file a medical malpractice lawsuit within three years from the date of injury, while in New York, a patient should bring a medical malpractice case within two and a half years from the date of injury.

A testimony by a medical malpractice expert witness is also required in most states, although some have stricter requirements than others. For example, in Florida, the medical experts must have the same specialty as the health care practitioner in the medical malpractice case, meaning a pediatrician can't offer his or her expert opinion on a case involving a neurosurgeon.

When a medical expert is hired to offer his or her objective testimony for a medical malpractice case, he or she thoroughly reviews the claim made and tries to come up with valid and verifiable data. The medical expert must then present to the court what he or she has gathered truthfully.