Medical Malpractice Litigation in the 21St Century

By Nathaniel J. Friedman

A Lawyer's Guide to Successful Malpractice Litigation.
In using this volume, keep in mind that it is a general view of what it is to be anticipated in prosecuting a medical malpractice case.
However, no book is able to anticipate each situation and circumstance arising in the heat of battle.
As such, use this book in conjunction with your own background, training and experience.
Good luck!
Nathaniel J. Friedman, Esq.

• Language: English
• Publisher: AuthorHouse
• Release date: Jul 19, 2012
• ISBN: 9781477220320

Nathaniel J. Friedman

Mr. Friedman is a well known trial lawyer in Los Angeles County. He began practice in 1962 following graduation (ranked 3d in his class) from Southwestern University School of Law and, within five years, began preparation and trial of medical malpractice cases almost exclusively. In 1970, Mr. Friedman ran, albeit unsuccessfully, for a seat in the Federal Legislature. In 1975, he was on the losing side of the “Battle of MICRA.” Since then, every pleading, every brief and every possible form, he has condemned MICRA and the constitutional outrage that it is. Over the decades, some of his victories include: Gami vs. Mulikin Medical Center (1993) 198 Cal. App. 4th 870; Espinoza vs. Little Co. Mary (1995) 31 Cal. App. 4th 1304 – counsel a trial level; Segura vs. Cardin (2001) unpublished opinion – Summary Judgment reversed – Court “punts” on constitutional issues); and Gonzalez vs. Chen (2011) 197 Cal. App. 4th 881 – MICRA fee limitations in minor’s cases held superseded by Rule 7.955 of the Calif. Rules of Court. Trial verdicts and settlements include: Bautista vs. Santa Teresita Hospital -- $6,229,000; Rosas vs Prototype HMO -- $2,600,000; Rodriguez vs. Doe, M.D. -- $3,029,000; Frumkin vs. Lim, et al. -- $3,250,000; Thompson vs. Doe Hospital -- $3,400,000; Turner vs Doe Foundation Health Plan – Arbitration Award -- $1,600,0000; Olivares vs. Doe Medical Center, et al. -- $1,300,00; Diaz vs. Doe Clinic -- $500,000; Campos vs. Doe Hospital -- $1,150,000; Vela vs. Doe Medical Center -- $2,050,000; Guerrero vs. Doe Hospital -- $800,000; Torres vs. Doe, M.D. -- $1,975,000; Mota vs. Doe, M.D., $1,000,000.

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© 2012 Nathaniel J. Friedman, Esq. All rights reserved.

Published by AuthorHouse 7/16/2012

ISBN: 978-1-4772-2033-7 (sc)

ISBN: 978-1-4772-2031-3 (dj)

ISBN: 978-1-4772-2032-0 (e)

Library of Congress Control Number: 2012912238

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The publisher of this book accepts no responsibility for its content. For information, contact Nathaniel J. Friedman, Esq., www.medlawyer.net

Contents

Introduction

CHAPTER I

Medical Malpractice Litigation in The 21st Century: The Antecedent Catastrophe

CHAPTER II

The Prospective Client Comes to You

CHAPTER III

Marshalling the Facts - The Records

CHAPTER IV

Claims Prior to Suit

CHAPTER V

Drafting The Complaint:

Your Only Chance to Talk Directly With Your Client’s Adversary

CHAPTER VI

Jurisdiction and Venue

CHAPTER VII

Arbitration

CHAPTER VIII

Discovery

CHAPTER IX

Pre-Trial Preparation, Mediation

CHAPTER X

Trial Or Arbitration

CHAPTER XI

Review And Appeal

CHAPTER XII

Attorney’s Fees & MICRA

Afterword

Endnotes

Introduction

After more than two score years of prosecuting medical malpractice cases, one ought to have acquired a certain level of knowledge which, in respect of the opinion of one’s contemporaries, allows one to claim a certain level of expertise.

If that premise is accepted, the author now proceeds to put pen to paper with the expectation that, not knowing when one might journey to the great courtroom in the sky, when that day comes, a residue of that knowledge and the fruits of that labor will remain in permanent form, to be tested for its utility in the years to come.

Also, it is appropriate to acknowledge those lawyers whose efforts have inspired the author for more than 40 years: Leo Gelfand, Sam Shore and David M. Harney.

CHAPTER I

Medical Malpractice Litigation in The 21st Century: The Antecedent Catastrophe

Since 1984, at the latest, victims of medical malpractice in California (and in more than a third of the states of the United States) have found, usually to their great surprise, that remedies are stunted and even in that form, difficult to obtain.

The problem dates back to 1975 and the catastrophe called MICRA (The Medical Injury Compensation Reform Act), sponsored by that evil solo physician trade group, the California Medical Association (CMA) and promoted and protected by Jerry (Moonbeam) Brown, the former and current Governor of California. In brief, following the $ 7,000.000 campaign of hysteria and disinformation that was spread statewide in the spring and summer of 1975 (There is a malpractice crisis! Our rates are skyrocketing! It’s all the fault of parasitic patients and their greedy lawyers!) and aided by the inability of the small, weak plaintiff trial organization, the Consumer Attorneys of California (CAOC) to mount an effective counter-attack, the Legislature enacted, and Moonbeam signed, MICRA, a radical overhaul of two centuries of common-law remedies for the victims of physicians, hospitals, etc.

So what did the CMA want and get with MICRA? In a word: predictability – that is, it wanted its potential liability to be confined within