Natural History of a Lawsuit

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The Incident

The Cast

The Natural History of a Lawsuit

You are involved in care of a patient who has a bad result - especially an unexpected bad result.

You receive a letter from a lawyer or Summons & complaint

The Parties will exchange written Discovery

Your deposition will be taken by the other side, under oath before a Court reporter.

Trial

Post trial motions and appeals.

A note about timing and emotions.

Legalities

Trial

1. If your care is central to the case or you are a named defendant, the jury needs to understand that you care deeply about the case and that it is personal and about your good name. So you will probably need to be there for most, if not all of the case.

2. Hurry up and wait. The case will start later than you are used to starting and finish earlier than you would prefer. The Court controls the schedule and there is little that your attorney can do about it. Some of the delays are designed to help the jury stay focused.

3. Voir Dire. The first formal thing that will happen will be jury selection. Pay attention. as a member of the community you can really be of assistance in the selection process. Pay attention to your feelings. If a potential juror makes you uncomfortable it may well go both ways. Tell your lawyer.

4. Opening statement. Your attorney will get a chance to address the jury before any witnesses are called to give evidence. The purpose of an opening statement is to let the jury know what to expect. You should pay attention. Ask about anything you do not understand. Defending a case like this is a collegial process, though your attorney needs to make substantially all of the tactical decisions. You might ask your attorney if he or she can give you a preview of the opening prior to trial. It may help both of you.

5. Testimony. See instructions for witnesses above. One notable difference is that trial is your chance to tell your story. At trial you need to be forthcoming and helpful. Get advice and take it.

6. Trial is a roller coaster experience. Sometimes you are up. Sometimes you are down. But it always moves fast. Do not be too discouraged by a bad day while plaintiffs are putting in their case. Plaintiffs go first but you also get a turn.

7. Final argument. At the end of the case your attorney gets to argue the case, often with very limited preparation time. If there is something that you think was really important in the evidence on a particular day you might want to tell your attorney. But do not ask for a preview of Closing. At that point your attorney probably needs every available second to prepare emotionally and intellectually.

8. Instructions. The judge will give the jury the law. The jury swears to follow it. The jury then decides the case without any further help as a general rule.