Med Mal Lawsuit Funding

March 15, 2024 by Paul Coppola

Med Mal Lawsuit Funding Helps Plaintiffs in Need

Lawsuit loans are routinely offered for medical malpractice cases by legal funding companies. The underwriting of these cases however, is often much more complicated than the standard negligence case. This post identifies some things to remember when attempting to secure Med Mal lawsuit funding.

Medical Malpractice Basics

The American legal system places a duty of care upon doctors as they interact with their patients. Medical Malpractice actions are based upon a breach of this duty. The breach must be of the standard of care for similar professionals in that specialty and in the geographic area in which the treatment occurred.

In order to sustain a cause of action for malpractice against a medical professional, the negligence must be causally related to the damages alleged. In other words, the malpractice must have caused an injury or other damages to the plaintiff. Plaintiffs routinely allege different types of damages. Most often, plaintiffs allege physical damage to their bodies. In other instances, lost wages or other economic damages are sought. In still others, emotional or mental damages are available to plaintiffs.

Malpractice Cases are Often Complicated

Most states recognize malpractice cases for the following:

* Misdiagnosis and Failure to Diagnose a Treatable Medical Condition
* Delay in Diagnosis of a Treatable Medical Condition
* Misread or Improper Evaluation of Study
* Pregnancy, Labor & Delivery Malpractice
* Medication Errors
* and others. . .

People can easily imagine a medical malpractice case where the doctor amputates the wrong leg. Clearly, the doctor should have known which leg to amputate and the resulting damages would be irreparable and not hard to quantify. Such a case would most likely be settled in short order.

But the vast majority of medical malpractice lawsuits are not so cut and dry making Med Mal lawsuit funding challenging.

When health care professionals (including doctors, nurses, and other practitioners) treat their patients, most are doing their very best to help. When something goes wrong, victims sometimes blame the health care worker for unexpected complications. However, just because a patient’s condition worsens does not necessarily mean the medical provider deviated from standard practice. After all, the patient is usually ill before he seeks medical attention.

The Standard of Care

The “standard of care” is treatment that is accepted by medical experts as a proper treatment for a certain type of disease and that is widely used by health care professionals. Once a breach of the standard of care is proven, plaintiffs and their attorneys must then prove malpractice caused the plaintiffs damages. In other words, it is not enough to show the patient eventually suffered. The negligence must cause the suffering. In many lawsuits, this is not so easy to show.

For example, a physician may misdiagnose a patient’s Stage 4 pancreatic cancer. And the attorneys, through their skill and expertise can prove that the doctor’s diagnosis deviated from the acceptable standard of care. However, due to the terminal nature of this type of condition, damages would be very difficult to prove. The patient would most likely be facing a terminal diagnosis regardless of its timeliness. In this instance, any damages would certainly be minimized by defense attorneys.

Med Mal Lawsuit Funding

Med Mal lawsuit funding is a tricky endeavor. When funding malpractice cases, lawsuit loan companies attempt to analyze the probability of success based upon much more complex factual and economic scenarios than typical case loans involving negligence. These might include car or pedestrian accident loans.

For example, malpractice cases usually involve multiple parties. A lawsuit involving a surgery would require the examination of every individual in the Operating Room during the procedure. This normally includes the serving and answering of interrogatories, depositions, and other discovery requests. These steps are taken AFTER the following:

Drafting and filing of the Complaint, service of the Complaint, answering of the Complaint by defense counsel, motions to dismiss, designation of trial counsel, scheduling, logistical issues, document compilation, document production, etc. This must be done for each and every defendant. For these reasons it is not difficult to see why these cases take years to litigate.

Lawsuit delays are compounded by the fact that many lawsuits involve very serious medical conditions which prevent plaintiffs from earning wages. This combination frequently results in increased economic difficulty for plaintiffs. Creditors do not usually care whether plaintiffs can work, they only care about getting paid. That is their business.

Med Mal lawsuit funding is one way to mitigate against these economic hardships. Essentially, plaintiffs assign a portion of the proceeds of their cases to lawsuit funding companies. If a case settles, the “loan” is paid back according to the terms outlined in the funding agreement. The use of the Med Mal lawsuit loan is totally at the discretion of the plaintiff. The money can be used for anything at all. Which is great news for plaintiffs who find themselves behind on their expenses.

If You Have Any Questions, Call 888-964-2224

WE ARE HERE TO HELP YOU!

Med Mal Lawsuit Funding Troubles

The bad news is that medical malpractice cases are very difficult to fund. The reason is because they are so difficult to win. Keep in mind, the discovery process described above costs money in the form of time, expert fees, court fees, stenographers, support staff, etc. A lawsuit based on medical negligence is a commitment of time, money and energy.

Further, in many jurisdictions, Med Mal plaintiffs only win 1 out of 3 lawsuits filed. Plaintiff attorneys make money because the cases which are won, are very large. But for purposes of Med Mal lawsuit loans, where any loss is a total loss, 33.33% is just not the ideal scenario.

Med Mal Lawsuit Funding Still Available

Despite these obvious pitfalls, lawsuit funding companies offer lawsuit funding for medical malpractice cases every single day. They are not the easiest cases to get approved, but the plaintiff’s need still exists. The legal funding business is there to help plaintiffs lessen their financial burdens while they wait for a favorable recovery on their case. Med Mal lawsuits are complex and time consuming. Med Mal lawsuit funding is one possible financial solution available to plaintiffs.

Thank you for your interest in Med Mal Lawsuit Funding and the lawsuit loan business.

Apply Now

May 31, 2018 by PMCESQ

Lawsuit loans for medical malpractice cases are routinely offered by legal funding companies. The underwriting of these cases however, is often much more complicated than the standard negligence case. This post will attempt to identify some things to remember when attempting to secure a lawsuit loan for a medical malpractice case.

Malpractice Basics

Lawsuit Loans for Medical Malpractice Cases

which the treatment occurred.

In order to sustain a cause of action for malpractice against a medical professional, the negligence must be causally related to the damages alleged. In other words, the malpractice must have cause an injury or other damages to the plaintiff. Plaintiffs allege different types of damages. Most often, plaintiffs allege physical damage to their bodies. In other instances, lost wages or other economic damages are sought. In still others, emotional or mental damages are available to plaintiffs.

Malpractice Cases are Often Complicated.

Most states recognize malpractice cases for the following:

Misdiagnosis and Failure to Diagnose a Treatable Medical Condition.
Delay in Diagnosis of a Treatable Medical Condition.
Misread or Improper Evaluation of Study.
Pregnancy, Labor & Delivery Malpractice.
Medication Errors.
and others. . .

But the vast majority of medical malpractice lawsuits are not so cut and dry.

Once a breach of the standard of care is proven, plaintiffs and their attorneys must then prove malpractice caused the plaintiffs damages. In other words, it is not enough to show the patient eventually suffered. The negligence must cause the suffering. In many lawsuits, this is not so easy to show.

For example, a physician may misdiagnose a patient’s Stage 4 pancreatic cancer. The attorneys, through their skill and expertise, can prove that the doctor’s diagnosis deviated from the acceptable standard of care. However, due to the terminal nature of this type of condition, damages would be very difficult to prove. The patient would most likely be facing a terminal diagnosis regardless of its timeliness. In this instance, defense attorneys would certainly try to minimize the damages.

Medical Malpractice and Lawsuit Funding

When evaluating a lawsuit loan for a malpractice case, funding companies analyze the probability of success based upon much more complex factual and economic scenarios than a typical case loan involving negligence.

For example, malpractice cases usually involve multiple parties. A lawsuit involving a surgery would require the examination of every individual in the Operation Room during the procedure. This normally includes the serving and answering of interrogatories, depositions, and other discovery requests. These steps are taken AFTER the following:

Litigation delays are compounded by the fact that many lawsuits involve very serious medical conditions which prevent plaintiffs from earning a wage. This combination frequently results in increased economic difficulty for plaintiffs. Creditors do not usually care whether plaintiffs can work, they only care about getting paid. That is their business.

Lawsuit loans are one way to mitigate against these economic hardships. Essentially, the plaintiff assigns a portion of the proceeds of the case to the lawsuit funding company. If the case settles, the “loan” is paid back according to the terms outlined in the funding agreement. The use of the lawsuit loan for medical malpractice cases is totally at the discretion of the plaintiff. The money can be used for anything at all. Which is great news for plaintiffs who find themselves behind on their expenses.

The bad news is that lawsuit loans for medical malpractice cases are very difficult to obtain. The reason is because they are so difficult to win. Keep in mind, all of the discovery mentioned above costs money in the form of time, expert fees, court fees, stenographers, support staff, etc. A lawsuit based on medical negligence is a commitment of time, money and energy.

Further, in many jurisdictions, plaintiffs only win 1 out of 3 lawsuits filed. Plaintiff attorneys make money because the cases which are won, are very large. But for purposes of lawsuit loans, where any loss is a total loss, 33.33% is just not the ideal scenario.

Despite these obvious pitfalls, lawsuit funding companies offer lawsuit loans for malpractice cases every single day. They are not the easiest cases to get approved, but the plaintiff’s need still exists. The legal funding business is there to help plaintiffs lessen their financial burdens while they wait for a favorable recovery on their case.

Thank you for your interest in the lawsuit funding business.

February 29, 2016 by PMCESQ

Medical malpractice lawsuit funding exists to provide liquidity to malpractice plaintiffs while they wait for their case to be resolved. Personal injury lawsuits, including “med mal” cases, make up the vast majority of lawsuit settlement funding transactions. However, because malpractice cases are normally more complicated than the standard negligence proceeding, providing “lawsuit loans” for med mal plaintiffs requires a slightly different process. This post will identify some important things to keep in mind when attempting to secure a lawsuit loan on a medical malpractice case.

Malpractice Basics

The American legal system places a duty of care upon all of us to protect our fellow citizens. Drivers on the roadways, business owners, as well as product manufacturers must take steps to ensure this duty of care is being met as they interact with others. Physicians must also make sure that their interaction with their patients meets the standard of care. Medical malpractice lawsuits occur when this duty is breached. The breach must be of the standard of care for similar professionals in that specialty and in the geographic area in which the treatment occurred.

In order to sustain a cause of action for malpractice against a medical professional (doctor, nurse, etc.), the negligence must be must have caused an injury or other damages to the plaintiff. In malpractice cases, plaintiffs allege many different types of damages. The most common, since we are dealing with medical care, is physical damage to the plaintiff’s body. In other instances, plaintiffs allege lost wages or other economic damages were caused by the negligence. In others, emotional or mental damages are sought.

Proving a Med Mal Lawsuit Can Be Complicated

Most states allow plaintiffs to pursue a lawsuit against a medical professional for the following reasons:

* Misdiagnosis or failure to diagnose a treatable condition
* Delay in the diagnosis of a treatable condition
* Misreading medical study
* Pregnancy labor & delivery malpractice
* Medication errors
* Other breaches of the applicable standard of care

There is a classic malpractice example in which a surgeon amputates the wrong leg during an operation. Obviously, a surgeon misread the chart and should have known which limb to remove. This type of clear malpractice is a rare case. Instead, most med mal lawsuits fall into an area in which lawyers, judges and juries could reasonably disagree about whether malpractice actually occurred.

Most health care professionals (including doctors, nurses, and other medical practitioners) are simply trying to help. When something goes wrong with a patient’s medical condition, victims and/or their families sometimes place blame on the medical provider for these complications. However, simply because a patient gets worse does not necessarily mean the professional deviated from the standard of care and committed malpractice.

When the plaintiff proves the medical professional breached the standard of care, he/she must then prove that the breach resulted in damages. In medical negligence lawsuits, this task may not be as easy as it seems.

For example, if an oncologist misdiagnoses a patient’s Stage 4 pancreatic cancer, and the plaintiff’s lawyers are able to prove the doctor was negligent, the lawyers may still find it difficult to prove damages. Due to the terminal nature of the illness, even if the patient ultimately passes on, defense attorneys will argue that any damages were not necessarily caused by the misdiagnosis. And a jury might agree.

If You Have Any Questions, Call 888-964-2224

WE ARE HERE TO HELP YOU!

Medical Malpractice Lawsuit Funding

Medical malpractice lawsuit funding is when a lawsuit “loan” company advances money to a med mal plaintiff prior to resolution. Lawsuit settlement funding outfits analyze the probability of success in malpractice cases as they do with all negligence lawsuits. One major difference however, is the complexity of issues surrounding the negligence and its resulting physical or economic ramifications.

This complexity is evidenced by the fact that medical malpractice lawsuits usually target multiple defendants. A lawsuit involving a surgery for example, requires the questioning of every medical professional present during the operation. The questioning can take many forms such as interrogatories, depositions, and other discovery requests. And only after a formal filing of the lawsuit can these parties normally be approached for examination.

Common considerations in a medical malpractice lawsuit which add to complexity include:

drafting and filing of the Complaint
service of the Complaint
answering of the Complaint by defendants
number of defendants
addition of new defendants to the case
naming expert witnesses
filing and arguing motions to dismiss
designation of trial counsel for plaintiff and defendants
scheduling, including rescheduling witnesses, and parties to the case
logistical issues such as travel for witnesses, experts, and parties to the case
document compilation and production.

Simply put, there are a great deal of moving parts in a med mal lawsuit. It is no wonder that litigation can take years before the case is resolved.

Compounding the delays is the fact that many lawsuits involve very serious medical conditions which prevent plaintiffs from working or otherwise earning a living. This often results in financial difficulty for plaintiffs care not about a plaintiff’s financial condition.

Lawsuit loans arose as a way to ease these financial hardships. A lawsuit funding transaction occurs when a plaintiff assigns a portion of the future proceeds of the case to the lawsuit funding company. If the case settles, the “med mal lawsuit loan” is paid back according to the terms and conditions in the funding contract. The proceeds can be used at the plaintiff’s discretion and are repaid in the event there is no recovery. The money is normally used to pay bills, mortgage payments, car payments, groceries, insurance premiums or whatever the plaintiff deems suitable. This is great news for plaintiffs who fall behind on their expenses.

The bad news is that medical malpractice lawsuit loans are not your typical negligence case such as a car accident or slip and fall. Because of their complexity med mal lawsuit funding is more difficult to obtain. The reason is because they are so difficult to win. In many jurisdictions, the chances of prevailing in a med mal lawsuit is one out of three cases filed. When investing in med mal lawsuit loans, where any loss is a total loss of investment, one out of three is not the greatest gamble.

Regardless, lawsuit funding companies offer pre-settlement loans on medical malpractice cases every single day. While their complexity makes them difficult to litigate and thus difficult to approve for funding, plaintiffs still need support. The lawsuit funding business offers help while plaintiffs patiently wait for relief.

Thank you for your interest in the lawsuit cash advance industry.

Apply Now