5.4 Professional Negligence and Malpractice

Professional negligence occurs when experts fail to meet their field's standards, causing harm. Unlike ordinary negligence, it involves a higher duty of care due to specialized training. Malpractice specifically refers to medical professionals, while professional negligence covers all fields.

To prove professional negligence, four elements must be shown: duty of care, breach of standard, causation, and damages. Standards vary by profession, with medical professionals held to what a reasonably skilled practitioner would do. Expert testimony is often crucial in these cases.

Professional Negligence and Malpractice

Professional vs ordinary negligence

• Professional negligence occurs when a professional fails to meet the standard of care expected in their field leading to harm or damages to a client
• Professionals have a higher duty of care than the average person because of their specialized education, training, and expertise (doctors, lawyers, accountants)
• Ordinary negligence happens when a person does not exercise reasonable care that a prudent person would in a similar situation resulting in injury or damages
• Malpractice is a type of professional negligence specific to medical professionals while professional negligence broadly covers any professional field (engineering, architecture)

Elements of professional negligence claims

• Duty of care existed between the professional and the plaintiff based on their professional-client relationship
• Professional breached the applicable standard of care for their field by not acting as a reasonably competent professional would
• Breach of duty directly caused the plaintiff's injury demonstrated through actual cause and proximate cause
  • Actual cause means the injury would not have happened without the professional's breach (but for causation)
  • Proximate cause means the breach was a substantial factor in bringing about the injury and it was foreseeable
• Plaintiff suffered quantifiable damages or harm due to the professional's breach (medical expenses, lost wages, pain and suffering)

Standards of care across professions

• Professionals are expected to meet a higher standard of care than a layperson because of their specialized knowledge and training
• Medical standard of care is what a reasonably skilled practitioner in the same field would do under similar circumstances
  • Medical specialists are held to the standard of a reasonably competent specialist in that area (oncologists, surgeons)
• Attorneys must exercise reasonable care, skill, and diligence in representing their clients' interests
  • Legal standard of care is what a reasonably prudent lawyer would do in a similar situation
• Other professionals like CPAs, architects, and engineers are held to the standard of a reasonably competent professional in that field

Expert testimony in negligence cases

• Expert witnesses are often required to establish the applicable standard of care and if the professional breached it
• Experts are typically other professionals in the same field with comparable qualifications and experience to the defendant
• Expert testimony educates the judge and jury on complex technical issues in the case beyond common knowledge
• Experts opine on the standard of care, evaluate the professional's actions, and determine if those actions breached the standard
• Some jurisdictions mandate expert testimony to prove the standard of care and breach in professional negligence claims

Defenses against malpractice accusations

• Statute of limitations defense argues the claim was not filed within the statutory time period after the alleged malpractice
• Contributory or comparative negligence asserts the plaintiff's own negligence contributed to their injury
  • Can completely bar recovery or proportionally reduce plaintiff's damages based on their percentage of fault
• Assumption of risk contends the plaintiff voluntarily and knowingly assumed the risks inherent in the professional's services
• Respectable minority rule allows a professional to avoid liability if they followed an accepted alternative practice or method in their field
• Good Samaritan laws may shield professionals from liability when rendering emergency aid in good faith (first responders, ER doctors)