First and foremost, medical malpractice lawyers are involved in a business – they must meet payrolls, pay office and business expenses, and take care of their own families’ financial needs. Most medical malpractice cases are handled on a contingency basis – only if and when a medical malpractice case is resolved and there is a recovery of money will the lawyer be paid for the lawyer’s time and efforts, and the lawyer will be reimbusred for the substantial litigation expenses that the lawyer advanced (often tens of thousands of dollars or more).
Time Is Money
Medical malpractice lawyers must be particular with regard to the cases they agree to handle. If the medical malpractice lawyer is ultimately unsuccessful in obtaining money on behalf of the client, the lawyer’s time will remain unpaid but the lawyer’s staff will nonetheless have to be paid and the expenses incurred by the lawyer will also have to be paid. If the recovery of damages is less than the value of the time devoted to the case and the expenses incurred, the lawyer will still be facing a loss. No medical malpractice lawyer can remain in business if the losses mount up. Hence, lawyers must make crucial business decisions regarding the medical malpractice cases they accept, and may decline representation even if the case has merit and the potential client has been harmed by medical negligence.
Medical Providers And Their Insurance Companies Spend Millions To Save Millions
Medical malpractice cases are an uphill battle: doctors, hospitals, and other medical providers, in lock-step with the highly profitable medical malpractice insurance companies that insure them, spend millions every year in organized campaigns to convince ordinary people and state legislatures that innocent victims of medical malpractice are greedy and frivilous with their claims, and therefore the healthcare industry must be annointed with special financial protections at the expense of their victims. Health care providers are the sole beneficiaries of laws that put limits on the amounts that medical malpractice victims can be compensated for their losses. They employ scare tactics to convince people that they will be unable to find a health care provider if they are not granted special protections. They instill fear by arguing that medical providers will flee their state if they are not insulated from the harms they caused by their medical negligence. They thumb their noses at the people they hurt. They sit upon their thrones and seek not to be held accountable for their wrongdoings. Unfortunately, people often do not care that their medical providers are protected at the expense of their patients until they, themselves, are victims of medical malpractice – by then, it’s too late.
Too Much Medical Malpractice, Too Few Medical Malpractice Lawyers
It should not come as a shock to anyone that few, if any, experienced medical malpractice lawyers are sitting idle, waiting for the next potential medical malpractice client to walk into their office. Too many medical malpractice victims with legitimate claims for compensation, especially those with smaller cases, will be unable to find a medical malpracice lawyer to accept their case. It is true that medical malpractice lawyers spend millions in advertising seeking new clients, but it is hidden from potential clients that the vast majority of medical malpractice cases are turned down by medical malpractice lawyers – some claims are not valid, and others are just too small to justify taking the case.
MIssing from the statements above is the all-important concept of “patient safety,” but it is important to note that when state medical boards fail to take timely and appropriate disciplinary actions against medical providers that allow them to continue to harm their patients, the last remaining hope to promote patient safety is the fear by incompetent medical providers, and their employers, that they may be sued for malpractice.
If you or a loved one were injured (or worse) as a result of medical malpractice in the United States, you should promptly find a medical malpractice lawyer in your state who may investigate your medical malpractice claim for you and represent you or your loved one in a medical malpractice case, if appropriate.
Visit our website or call us on our toll-free number in the United States (800-295-3959) to find medical malpractice attorneys in your state who may help you.
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