The Medical Expert Witness Role In Legal Cases

When a legal trial involves the issue of medical liability

, whether that is medical malpractice or personal injury, medical experts qualified for witness are relied upon by both sides to testify. In a court trial involving medical malpractice, the issue is one of negligence; did the doctor's actions or inaction cause injury that could have been prevented? Each side will offer evidence to support their claims.

The party suing, claiming an injury, is the plaintiff. This is a tort offense. Tor is a French term meaning wrong. The defendant is the person being sued, accused of the tort or wrongful act. The lawyer for the plaintiff will present a medical expert testifying that the plaintiff has been harmed by the health care professionals failure to act or action.

On the other side the lawyer for the defendant will present an expert testifying that the defendant's act or failure to take action did not result in the claimed harm to the plaintiff. Many trials are based on the testimony and the reputation of the expert witness.

This is why lawyers try to obtain the most qualified medical experts for their case. Lawyers want to establish a foundation of superior reputation as well as expertise for their client's case. The lawyer will first ask the witness his or her name. He will then ask the witness to tell the jury his or her background and why he or she is qualified as an expert witness.

Establishing a foundation in court means allowing the expert witness on the stand to detail his or her credentials, reputation, and background. The same is true for the personal injury case. In that trial both sides will testify as to the injury sustained by the plaintiff and how the injury will affect the rest of the plaintiff's life.

The plaintiff will present and expert testifying that the injuries are very severe and the long term results are very dire. The defendant on the other hand will have a medical expert testify that the injuries are not as severe and the long term results not as dire as the plaintiff's witness claims. Not to say that the experts determine their testimony based on which side they are on verses the actual facts.

Medical experts are paid for their time on the witness stand however. Payment comes from the side that calls them to the stand. Several services offer medical experts for courtroom testimony. A lawyer can call or visit one of many service online and choose the medical expert that pertains to his client's case.

Of course a lawyer will want to find an expert who will make sure his side prevails not lose. Medical experts qualified for witness is an all encompassing term. And when attorneys look to help their client win they are searching for experts qualified to give testimony in their favor. This is not to say that the scales of justice favor the more qualified witness but you sure want the best one on your side.

by: Adriana Noton

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