Category: Medical Negligence

Many Advocates Feel Medical Boards Are Protecting Doctors, Not Patients

We trust doctors to diagnose correctly; we trust surgeons to perform procedures to the best of their ability; we trust nurses and hospitals to protect us if something goes wrong. And most often, they do. But numerous respected studies over the years, including this recent report from John Hopkins Medicine, calculate that more than 250,000 deaths […]

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“Dr. Death” Reminder of Need to Protect Patient Legal Rights

The NBC series “Dr. Death” is based on the true story of Christopher Duntsch, a Dallas surgeon who maimed or killed nearly 40 patients from 2011 to 2013. Colleagues reported him to hospital administration and medical boards to no avail until Dallas prosecutors finally stepped in and filed criminal charges. Duntsch was sentenced to life […]

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Common Birth Injuries to Babies

Over the past 100 years, pregnancy has become incredibly safe. Nevertheless, injuries and sometimes death still occur, often because of a mistake a doctor made during labor or delivery. If you suspect that a medical mistake was made at the time of your child’s birth, you should consult with an attorney to check whether you […]

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Suspicious Nursing Home Injuries Warrant Investigation

Nursing homes play a vital role as North Carolina’s population continues to age. The state’s 427 nursing homes provide 24-hour medical care and attention to over 30,000 residents, relieving family members of the stress of taking care of their relatives all on their own. When you take your loved one to a nursing home, you […]

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How Will I Know if My Doctor Has Committed Malpractice?

Like all professionals, doctors owe their clients a duty of care. When a doctor falls below this standard, you can receive money to correct the mistake and to compensate for any physical pain or emotional harm. How will you know if your doctor made a mistake that has injured you? Unfortunately, there is no clear […]

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Medical Malpractice Caps

In 2011, North Carolina considered a controversial new law that limited or capped the amount of money a jury could use to provide to a person for her damages in certain kinds of lawsuits. N.C. Gen. Stat. § 90-21.19 capped the amount of noneconomic damages a person could receive in a medical malpractice suit to […]

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Wrongful Death Damages

I am preparing for mediation and possible settlement of a case where a husband and father died because of the negligence of two doctors. I have all my experts and medical facts lined up to show the medical malpractice and how with one simple and routinely done test, this man would still be alive. What […]

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Read What You Sign. Except Doctors.

One of the first bits of free advice you’ll get from an attorney, is to read and understand before you sign a document. Even where the clause is buried on page 8 of fine print; or where there was a change from an earlier draft; or where the person was told something different; or where […]

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Medical Records

Under North Carolina law, a person’s medical records are property of the healthcare provider who created them. However, a patient has rights to get copies and/or inspect the records of his medical care. The patient may need them to provide to a different doctor or healthcare provider to help with additional medical care. Legal actions […]

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Florida gets one right.

The Supreme Court of Florida rejected the state legislature’s cap on medical malpractice damages. Essentially they found that the cap discriminated unfairly. A person who was injured by the negligent fault of a doctor or health care provider would have the amount of their actual damages, as determined by a jury, limited. A person damaged […]

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With those lawyers, it would take a Christmas Miracle…

Last Sunday, the kids and I went to the Thalian Association’s production of  “Miracle on 34th Street” a musical adapted from the 1947 movie starring Maureen O’Hara, Edmund Gwenn, and a very young Natalie Wood. My theater review:  Wonderful entertainment, terrific cast, and catchy songs, with a kind of rare “Christmas Special” vibe that you […]

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Qualifications for an Expert in North Carolina Medical Malpractice cases

    Medical malpractice cases in North Carolina, like cases with complex or specialized facts, require expert testimony. Unlike other types of cases, North Carolina has strict rules on the person suing a doctor regarding what experts are allowed to testify and what types of opinions they can give. The following is some of the information I […]

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HIPAA

With our increasingly interconnected world and the rise of identity theft and other similar invasions of privacy, more and more laws and regulations are being enacted to bolster traditional common law and wall off private information from the public. One such body of law is contained in The Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act. More […]

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Curb Your Enthusiasm

 The other night, I was watching an old “Curb Your Enthusiasm” episode on DVD. The episode was a typical half hour of misunderstandings and wild coincidences. Larry’s friend and business agent, Jeff is in the hospital for some surgery to correct his snoring. For several funny reasons I won’t go into here, Larry inadvertently infuriates […]

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My Not-So-Hero, Zero

There has been a lot of justifiable backlash over “zero tolerance” policies for weapons at schools. The tale of the cub scout proud of his pocket knife with fork and spoon has prompted many people to cry out “where is the common sense of these school officials?” My practice really isn’t geared to this type […]

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The best way to reduce medical malpractice lawsuits

 The North Carolina Medical Board has made positive steps in the past few years to better regulate and discipline doctors in the state.  However, a new bill in the North Carolina Senate is making it harder for the Medical Board to regulate licensed medical doctors.  Among other things, it requires a panel, rather than a […]

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You are the Brakes on a Runaway Jury

I wrote earlier about medical malpractice cases in North Carolina and why they are so difficult to start and win.  Briefly, there are special procedures in North Carolina to make sure that medical malpractice cases that are brought in the courts have merit.  Aside from those special restrictions, in every civil case in North Carolina, there are […]

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Medical Malpractice in North Carolina

      I was at a Continuing Legal Education class the other day on medical malpractice.  One speaker, a gray-haired experienced medical malpractice attorney with many years experience was commenting on cases he would not take.  “I don’t take cancer cases,” he said, “I don’t take infection cases; I don’t like back surgery cases; I don’t […]

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