Doctor’s Testimony Leads to a Complex Legal Fight | NYT | 6.21.04
Dr. John Fullerton, a San Francisco internist and an occasional expert witness in medical malpractice suits, opened a letter from the Florida Medical Association not long ago. He thought it was a membership solicitation. …
Inside, instead, was a complaint from three doctors about expert testimony he had given for the patient in a malpractice case against them in Tampa last year. The doctors had won, and now they wanted the medical association to punish Dr. Fullerton for what they said were his “erroneous opinions.” …
“These are intimidation tactics,” he said. “Medical malpractice is being targeted right now. Plaintiffs’ experts are being scapegoated in the process.” …
Mr. Howard of Common Good said that the three sets of disputes - the medical malpractice suit, followed by the disciplinary action, followed by the libel suit - illustrated what was wrong with the justice system generally. “It’s literally a kind of perpetual-motion machine,” he said.
Mr. Howard said specialized medical courts, which do not use juries and rely on court-appointed experts, would solve many problems conventional expert testimony produced.
“We’re asking lay jurors to decide which expert is more credible,” he said. “You might as well flip a coin.”
Expert witness sues critics | AMNews | 6.28.04
California internist and geriatrician John Fullerton, MD, says a request for the Florida Medical Assn. to review his expert testimony in a medical malpractice trial defamed him and hurt his professional credibility. …
Earlier this month, Dr. Fullerton sued the FMA and three physicians who asked that the association review his testimony for defamation. He also is asking the court to put an end to an FMA program that subjects courtroom testimony to peer review. Dr. Fullerton believes that the program is designed to intimidate physicians who testify for plaintiffs in medical malpractice trials and is suing, in part, under the Florida RICO law. …
American Medical Association policy says that medical expert testimony is equivalent to the practice of medicine and that it should be peer-reviewed. The AMA says that state medical societies should work with state medical boards on the issue. …
The California Medical Assn. said the Medical Board of California should discipline doctors who knowingly give misleading or false expert testimony. The association voiced concerns on witness testimony to the California Attorney General, who in April issued an opinion saying a physician who knowingly provides false or misleading expert testimony can be subject to discipline by the medical board. …
Speaks for itself…this will be a recurring type of litigation.