Supremes: the best approach to tort reform survives: the Supreme Court holds that a med-mal plaintiff is entitled to a 90-day extension to file her certificate of merit - and that a 2004 law didn't reenact the version of 2-622 invalidated in Best v. Taylor.
Figuring out the meaning of a statute can be difficult enough without first having to determine what version of the statute is in effect. In O'Casek v Children's Home and Aid Society of Illinois, 2008 WL 2446694 (Ill Sup Ct), the Illinois Supreme Court had to do both. ...

Tort reform should go beyond damage caps.
ALEXANDRIA, VA. -- Traditional tort reform measures like damage caps won't address some of the fundamental problems with the medical liability system, experts said at a meeting on patient safety and medical liability sponsored by the Joint Commission on Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations. To deal with the...

Government liability in negligence.
[The tort reform legislation of most Australian jurisdictions includes provisions directed specifically at protecting government defendants from civil liability. The legislation makes it harder to sue for breach of statutory duty, regulatory failure, the exercise of 'special statutory powers', and negligent failure to inspect the roads. These changes reflect...

Liability improving for long-term care: nursing home claims costs are stable.
The frequency and severity of liability claims for the long-term-care industry are stable nationally, according to the "Long Term Care: 2008 General Liability and Professional Liability Actuarial Analysis" from Aon Global Risk Consulting. This is the first time that's been the case in the nine years that Aon has...

Federal tort reform drive unites specialties: $10 milion to spend and counting.
SAN ANTONIO -- A new and rapidly growing specialty society coalition called Doctors for Medical Liability Reform is poised to wrest the helm of the tort reform campaign from the American Medical Association. With $10 million in its coffers so far, Doctors for Medical Liability Reform (DMLR)...

Derms join societies' new tort reform push; taking different approach from AMA.
SAN ANTONIO -- A new and rapidly growing specialty society coalition called Doctors for Medical Liability Reform is poised to wrest the helm of the tort reform campaign from the American Medical Association. With $10 million in its coffers so far, Doctors for Medical Liability Reform (DMLR)...

Making up is hard to do.
After Harm: Medical Error and the Ethics of Forgiveness. By Nancy Berlinger. Johns Hopkins, 2005. 156 pages. Hardcover, $35.00. In a time when issues of patient safety, hospital care quality, and tort reform for medical liability are front-page news and hot topics in the halls of Congress,...

Med Mal lessens its pinch: but allow us to introduce a new malady--medical identity theft.
Summary * Triple-digit increases in medical malpractice premiums have been replaced this year by reductions in excess market premiums. * Tort reform, better financing, and a drive for patient safety have all contributed to the improved med mal market. * However, cyberliability is...

Touting tort reform may build AMA membership: number of members dropped 3.8%.
HONOLULU -- In the complicated calculus that governs membership in professional societies, winning--whether the win is in state houses or on Capitol Hill-is the only thing. Medicare reform counts as a big win on the scoreboard for the American Medical Association because it directly affects the physician...

AMA seeks tort reform to raise membership.
HONOLULU -- In the complicated calculus that governs membership in professional societies, winning--whether the win is in state houses or on Capitol Hill--is the only thing. Medicare reform counts as a big win on the scoreboard for the American Medical Association because it directly affects the physician...