Who Should Decide the Fate of Medical Malpractice Cases?

Abstract

As human beings, doctors are bound to make mistakes which can result in severe injury or the death of their patient. In such unfortunate situations, the person who was injured or died, or the deceased’s beneficiary may be entitled to recover compensatory and other monetary damages by filing a medical malpractice lawsuit against the medical professional in question. Medical malpractice litigation “is a process to determine the existence or absence of liability in a dispute between a patient and healthcare provider (doctor, hospital, nurse etc.).”¹ As this definition suggests, when a patient suffers unintended injuries or death at the hands of a medical professional, any claim of liability against that professional will initially be addressed through negotiations and, if not informally resolved, by a judge or jury presiding over a medical malpractice lawsuit.