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MICHIGAN MEDICAL MALPRACTICE LAW
The
following is a summation of statutes that
apply to Michigan Medical Malpractice cases.
They are meant only as guidelines for Michigan
medical malpractice cases. Contact
a Michigan Medical Malpractice Attorney
to learn more about medical malpractice
cases.
Michigan
Medical Malpractice Statutes of Limitations
Michigan
medical malpractice suits occurring on or
after April 1, 1994, may be brought
either:
· Within
2 years from the date the act or omission
occurred
· Within
6 months from the date the claimant (individual
filing the lawsuit) discovers or should
have discovered the existence of the claim
(whichever is longer) or in a death case
depending on the circumstances three years.
A
Michigan medical malpractice claim may not
be brought to court more than 6 years after
the act or omission occurred unless:
· the
health care provider used fraudulent means
to keep the medical malpractice from the
victim, family, etc.
· the
injury involved the claimant's reproductive
system
If
the claimant is deemed insane when the incident
of Michigan medical malpractice occurred,
they have 1 year after the condition is
taken away to file the suit.
Minors
may bring a suit in the time allotted to
the rest of the population except if:
· A
minor younger than 8 years old can file
anytime prior to their 10th birthday.
·
Any
claimant younger than 13 years old with
a claim citing damage to the reproductive
system may file any time before their 15th
birthday.
Michigan
wrongful death cases begin on the date of
the act, not the date of death. Claims are
subject to the same statute of limitations
as an injury. In some cases, the statute
of limitations may be extended to three
years. If the injured person dies before
the two-year statute has run out (or within
a thirty-day grace period thereafter), the
personal representative may sue within two
years after being appointed so long as the
suit is commenced within three years after
the expiration of the two-year malpractice
period of limitation. Because of the various
exceptions always get an attorneys' opinion.
Claimant
Negligence
This
doctrine applies to any claimant (the person
bringing suit) who has some degree of negligence
for the medical injury or death that has
occurred to them. If a claimant is proven
negligent, they can still receive damages
for their injury. However, the damages that
a claimant can receive is reduced by the
approximate percentage of their negligence.
·
The only exception to this
is if the claimant’s percentage of fault
exceeds that of all other persons or parties
put together. In this instance, they are
unable to receive non-economic damages.
Joint
and Several Liability
Those
who handle and assess medical injury and
Michigan wrongful death cases must determine
the liability of each party involved based
on their percentage of fault. In order to
assess this, they consider any fault by
non-parties, as well as any other persons
who may have already settled. In the case
that the claimant is entirely without fault,
the defendants are jointly and severally
liable. However, if the claimant bears
some degree of fault, the medical-related
defendants are only severally liable.
Third
Party Liability
Michigan
law allows liability to be placed on hospitals
or healthcare facilities for cases that
involve negligence by independently-contracted
physicians. In deciding whether this type
of liability can be assessed, the key question
is whether the patient viewed the hospital
as the principal site of treatment or saw
it only a site through which the physician
was working. The hospital is not necessarily
responsible simply because the patient was
treated under its roof. The hospital has
to act in such a way that leads the patient
to believe that they an agency existed between
itself and the independently-contracted
physician.
Expert
Testimony in Michigan Medical Malpractice
Cases
A
Michigan medical malpractice practice case
must include a sworn statement from a qualified
health care professional that address these
four points:
·
An
acceptable standard of care
·
An
assertion that the standard of care given
to the claimant was breached.
·
Which
specific actions violated this applicable
standard of care.
·
How
this breach caused the medical maladies
or injuries to the plaintiff.
Expert
witnesses must be licensed health care professionals
who practice medicine in the same specialty
as applicable to the medical injury to the
defendant. For any Michigan medical malpractice
case filed before March of 1996, expert
scientific opinion is only acceptable if
it is deemed to be reliable and brings more
light to the body of truth in the case.
Specifically,
Michigan courts are looking for scientific
testimony that uses scientific testing,
accepted methods with known rates of error,
are subject to physician reviews, and are
accepted by scientists outside the arena
of the applicable litigation.
Cap
on Damages
On
April of 1994, there was a limit placed
on how much non-economic damages could be
recovered by a claimant. The cap for non-economic
damages from all defendants was set at $280,000
(adjusted upward each year for inflation).
·
The
only exception to this is in cases where
a claimant suffers paralysis from brain
or spinal cord injury, cognitive impairments,
or damage or loss of reproductive capabilities.
The cap for these cases is $500,000.
Michigan
Medical Malpractice Attorney Fees
Michigan
law states that attorney fees are left up
to the express or implied agreement between
attorney and client and subject to court
rule. Contingency fees for Michigan personal
injury and Michigan wrongful death cases
are limited by law to one third of the amount
recovered by the plaintiff.
Payment
to Claimants
Michigan
law stipulates that under certain circumstances,
a judgment for future non-economic and future
non-medical economic damages that are in
excess of $250,000 are required to be paid
by an annuity contract. However, this does
not apply to claimants who are older than
60 years of age when the judgment is made.
According
to Michigan law, juries are not authorized
to award a single payment to successful
plaintiffs. Instead, they must award separate
damage awards broken up into categories,
including future per year damages and a
timeline for which the damages will accrue.
Pre-Judgment
Interest
Paying
pre-judgment interest is required for all
money judgments entered in civil actions.
The interest on this begins to accrue once
the claimant files his action, except on
future damages (those awarded for loss that
will be incurred after the trial). If the
claimant offers a settlement which the defendant
rejects, then a successful judgment for
the claimant means they are entitled to
an additional two percent pre-judgment interest
from the date of the offer. However, if
the defendant makes a bona fide settlement
before the case goes to trial, pre-judgment
interest shall not be allowed beyond the
offer date was rejected. In Michigan medical
malpractice cases, the court can adjust
the start date for pre-judgment interest
to punish either party for not producing
the appropriate documents.
Patient
Compensation Funds and Physician Insurance
The
state of Michigan does not currently have
a patient compensation fund or a state-sponsored
liability insurance for physicians.
Immunity
from Medical Malpractice
Immunity
from Michigan medical malpractice is extensive,
but the law denies any immunity to a governmental
agency with respect to the ownership or
operation of a hospital or county medical
care facility or to the agents or employees
of such a hospital or county medical care
facility. Governmental agency is defined
to include the state, its political subdivisions,
and municipal corporations.
Arbitration
Panel
For
Michigan medical malpractice cases to go
to trial, they must go through a mandatory
mediation panel. Within two weeks, the panel
issues a written evaluation of the plaintiff
and defendant’s cases. Either one of the
parties can object to the findings and go
to trial. However, if they do so, the party
who rejects the findings is required to
pay the costs of the other party--unless
the judgment goes the way of the party who
rejected the panel’s findings.
If
however, the total damages sought by the
plaintiff are less than $75,000, both parties
can agree to a binding agreement.
To
find out if you have a legitimate Michigan
medical malpractice suit, please contact
a Michigan Medical Malpractice Attorney.
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