Roughly ten years ago, a series of specific laws were passed in Texas which drastically changed medical malpractice litigation. While the affects of “damage caps” on the recovery of non-economic damages have been frequently cited as the exclusive drive behind this change, the explanation is much more complex.
In addition to caps supposedly designed to eliminate allegedly “frivolous” claims, the medical community’s lobbyists successfully implemented a number of other laws unique to the medical field and unique in their application to related personal injury lawsuits. Consequently, health care professionals now have a protective shield that provides virtual immunity for their bad acts in Texas.
As one example, medical malpractice plaintiffs and their attorneys are now required to show that a medical professional has breached his or her standard of care before having the opportunity to collect critical evidence – as is allowed in every other type of personal injury lawsuits. Consequently, medical malpractice plaintiffs and/or attorneys typically must retain highly specialized experts to prove that there was a breach of standard before the facts can truly be known. Worse, an expert report must be presented to a court almost immediately following the commencement of a medical malpractice lawsuit and if this report is deemed insufficient a court may impose hefty sanctions, which may preclude the continuation of the legal action before it has truly began.
Despite these hurdles, the attorneys at Fears | Nachawati represent a collection of the few attorneys in Texas who continue to fight for the victims of medical malpractice, choosing to do so not because it is easy but because it is right and necessary. If you believe you or a loved one has been a victim of medical malpractice, please do not hesitate to contact our team of talented attorneys at 1.866.705.7584 or send an email to mn@fnlawfirm.com.