Legal Question in Medical Malpractice in Texas

Re: Can we sue for malpractice?

Unfortunately, as badly as your father hurts, you probably don't have enough "damages" to justify the high cost of a medical malpractice suit in Texas (now called a "healthcare liability claim"). Thanks to George Bush, Rick Perry, and our mostly-Republican legislature, the laws have been changed to protect doctors from just this kind of suit. The rules that have been put in place make it so expensive to maintain this type of case, you virtually have to be killed (or, at least, grievously and permanently injured) by the doctor to have enough damages to be able to recover the tremendous costs of filing such an action. Your attorney would have to hire "expert witnessess" (usually, other doctors) to sign affidavits and later testify against the offending doctor. Unfortunately, these expert witnesses charge thousands (or even tens of thousands) to testify. Therefore, in all but the most extreme cases, the costs of getting to court outweigh the verdict a jury is likely to impose, making the case simply not economically feasible. (There are many, many other problems created by the new laws, but this one obstacle alone is usually enough to prevent 99 out of 100 potential cases--which is exactly what the Republicans intended.)