Being a doctor requires special skills and knowledge that take the better part of a decade to acquire. Besides formal schooling, doctors also need a period of residency to get the boots-on-the-ground training that prepares them for special situations. Even though the vast majority of doctors do their jobs well and to the best of their ability, every once in a while a malpractice situation requires that a judge and jury decide whether a medical professional acted negligently. Medical expert witness services provide medical professionals who can help groups of ordinary people—the jury—understand the evidence in a malpractice suit. The following explains what they do in more detail and why it’s so important.

What Are Medical Expert Witnesses?

If a doctor makes a decision or has a mishap that costs a patient seriously, the doctor can be faced with legal challenges. A civil suit is when an individual accuses a person of a misdeed. A judge or jury is tasked with evaluating the evidence for and against the medical professional acting in an illegal or negligent manner.

Where reliable medical experts come in is during hearings. The average person (which the law states members of the jury need to be) likely can’t understand the jargon and specific medical situation that led to the alleged medical malpractice. A medical expert testifies to interpret the evidence and answer questions that can elucidate what went on.

What Is Medical Malpractice?

When a medical expert witness testifies that a doctor knowingly did something wrong or in a negligent manner and those actions led to harm to a patient, a jury can find the doctor guilty of malpractice. Medical malpractice is serious and can lead to a range of serious punishments. Because trials surrounding malpractice require specialized knowledge and have so much at stake, we recommend choosing witnesses that understand what is required of them in a court of law and have experience communicating complicated medical topics to laymen.