Doctors and Litigation: The L Word

This month we're taking a look at the data available to physicians regarding their risk of malpractice litigation in the US. We are typically limited to survey data, national insurance company claims data, and data from the National Practitioner Data Bank. We discuss some of the limitations of these, and our increasing appetite for more specialty-specific, geography-specific granular data, and the...

Imagine you are a highly capable physician who saved a patient's life. You're sued over it anyway.  Actually, your hospital system is sued for it, but they need you to defend it. You spend days preparing for deposition, then eventually many weeks preparing for trial -- not to mention the five years of stress you endured leading up to it. You miss work for days of meetings with attorneys, and then...

Physician assistants (PAs), nurse practitioners (NPs), certified registered nurse anesthetists (CRNAs), certified nurse midwives (CNMs), and other non-physician clinicians increasingly face malpractice litigation -- sometimes along with a physician...and sometimes not.  For the purposes of education, we'll put them all under the umbrella of Advanced Practice Provider, or APP, although their roles...

Litigation in the U.S. is an enormous business sector. Tort costs exceeded $529 billion in 2022, rising at 7.1% annually between 2016 and 2022, outpacing both inflation and GDP growth. Medical malpractice litigation is part of this machine. The burden gets passed back to American households through higher premiums, defensive medicine, and reduced resources for care.  Your opponent in litigation is...

Perfectionism is one of the most underappreciated drivers of suffering in malpractice litigation, and one of the least talked about. In this episode, Dr. Gita Pensa is joined by Dr. Amna Shabbir , dual board-certified physician, Master Certified Life Coach, and TEDx speaker, to explore how the perfectionism that made us good doctors becomes our own worst enemy when we are sued. We explore the sham...

In this episode, we take a hard look at the growing use, and misuse, of punitive damages allegations in medical malpractice cases -- and how this trend has reshaped the practice of medicine in places like New Mexico. What was once intended as a rare legal tool to punish truly egregious conduct is increasingly being deployed early and broadly, sometimes before the facts of a case are fully known. I...

In this episode, host Dr. Gita Pensa sits down to continue her conversation with elite defense trial attorney, John E. Hall, Jr. His recent book, " Reviving Fairness: Defending Healthcare Heroes ", outlines the shifts in the modern world of American medical liability litigation, and offers a timely call to confront the malpractice climate harming clinicians and threatening access to care. We talk...

What happens when a physician defendant doesn’t just “get through” litigation — but prepares for it? In Part 2 of The Educated Defendant, host Dr. Gita Pensa sits down with the veteran trial attorney who defended Dr. Nirav Patel. (If you haven't listened to part 1, start there!) John E. Hall, Jr. helps us unpack what made this case different. What does an experienced defense lawyer actually want f...

THIS EPISODE is a must-listen for anyone facing, or fearing, litigation. (And their attorneys.) Host Dr. Pensa interviews radiologist Dr. Nirav Patel about his extraordinary journey through litigation...and what he did to become his legal team's secret weapon.  You can do it, too.    _____________________ Check out Dr. Pensa's recent appearance on The Pitt Podcast -- the HBO Max companion podcast...

This month we take a high level view of the landscape of 'tort reform' in the US (and what does that even mean?) Physician-lawyer Dr. Shilpa Mathew, MD JD, walks us through some basics of tort law and advocacy efforts in the US, how you can get involved, and why it matters. (Note: Dr. Mathew's views expressed in this podcast are strictly her own, and not representative of her employer or ACOG.) Sh...

REMEMBER: Use code LEAP100 until December 1st, 2025, to get 100$ off of the LEAP for Clinicians course! Eligible for 16 Category 1 CME/CNE Credits. Learn the essential mindset and skillset you need as a clinician in litigation, all in one place.    This month: finger pointing among health care professionals after an adverse event, or during litigation. We've all seen it: the tertiary care center d...

Welcome to Season 3 of Doctors and Litigation: The L Word! We start off with an update on the LEAP Course (Litigation Education and Performance) -- sign up from now through December 1, 2025 with coupon code LEAP100 and get $100 off. Now with up to 16 hours of Category 1 AMA CME Credits! https://www.doctorsandlitigation.com/LEAP/signup Our first conversation in Season 3 is with Dr. Anthony Orsini o...

In this episode (the last of Season Two), Dr. Pensa  sits down to speak with a plaintiff's attorney. However, her guest, Chad Englehardt , is not your average plaintiff's attorney. Chad is a highly lauded attorney, law professor, and advocate of Rick Boothman's Michigan Model (for more on that, listen to Episode 13 of Season Two. )  We talk extensively about CRP (Communication - Resolution) progra...

Following up after episode 15, "What to Know When the Government Comes Knocking," Dr. Pensa interviews a physician who went up against the US Department of Justice -- and won. Dr. Muhamad Aly Rifai is a practicing psychiatrist, boarded in psychiatry and internal medicine, who was indicted on charges of healthcare fraud by the US government in 2022, following seven years of investigation. Dr. Rifai...

The Department of Justice is waging a war on healthcare fraud, and sometimes even well-meaning doctors can get swept up in it. Today's interview with healthcare law attorney Anthony Box will shed some light on this high stakes topic.  Tony Box has extensive experience not only in defending doctors against government allegations -- but he also previously investigated and prosecuted these cases as a...

When an insurance company is accused of acting in bad faith, it's alleged that they failed to act fairly and reasonably in handling a claim -- often related to not agreeing to a reasonable settlement when the financial risk to the insured at trial was known to be substantial. In this episode, host Dr. Gita Pensa talks with Florida attorney Dale Swope about his decades of experience with bad faith...

If you’ve ever felt frustrated by the fear-driven legal landscape of medicine, this conversation will change the way you think about liability and the future of patient safety. In this episode, Dr. Pensa sits down with trailblazer Richard Boothman, JD, a pioneer in patient safety and transparency, to discuss how the traditional "deny and defend" approach has failed both doctors and patients. We di...

The first LEAP (Litigation Education and Performance) Course for Clinicians will run from March 17th through June 2nd, 2025. This is a hybrid online course, 1 h/week self paced videos and 6 live virtual review and Q&A sessions with Dr. Pensa, one of which will be an Ask-a-Lawyer segment with a seasoned defense attorney. These live sessions are spaced every other week, at varying times, and wil...

In this episode we have a conversation with surgeon and longtime expert witness Dr. Stephen Cohen, who wants to tell you about common mistakes he's seen physician defendants make in their cases. Dr. Pensa and Dr. Cohen discuss real cases Dr. Cohen participated in as an expert, and their legal outcomes. We also emphasize the unfortunate reality that we (and licensing boards, and society)should not...

Dr. Pensa explains why attention to your thinking, even when you feel your mental health is "good", can lead to personal growth and a more satisfying life. We all know the markers of excellent physical health, but what are the components of excellent mental health? Is it simply being happy all the time? Is that even possible? (Spoiler: it's not.)  Using functional fitness for the body as an analog...

Many of us have no idea who our medical malpractice insurance carrier is, let alone the details in our policy.  But this ignorance can have huge consequences when it's time to face a claim, and it's better to go into that challenge with your eyes wide open.  On this podcast, Dr. Pensa speaks with John Shufeldt, MD, JD, MBA about things that every doctor or other patient-facing clinician should kno...

Physicians and other clinician defendants whose cases go to trial (roughly 8-10% of malpractice cases) usually have little understanding of the legal events and strategies involved, which naturally amplifies their anxiety. Today on the podcast, we'll continue to address these knowledge deficits.  Decisions made about how cases proceed are usually made by considering how the 'optics' of a given cas...

In this episode, Dr. Pensa discusses 'strategic communication' in litigation with expert Matt Abrahams . Matt teaches strategic communication at Stanford Graduate School of Business and hosts the podcast, " Think Fast, Talk Smart. " He's also the author of the books "Think Faster, Talk Smarter" and "Speaking Out Without Freaking Out: 50 Techniques for Confident, Calm and Competent Presenting." We...

"A World of Hurt: How Medical Malpractice Fails Everyone" is a new documentary produced by Emmy-nominated physician-filmmaker Dr. Mark Brady and two medical students, Alex Homer and Viknesh Kasthuri. After a year of private screenings and film festivals, this powerful piece was recently picked up by PBS after winning multiple awards. It is now free to watch online (links below).  In under 27 minut...

The phrase "nuclear verdict" strikes fear into the heart of any defendant - and today we're going to tackle it head on. We welcome Dusty Otwell, JD , medical malpractice defense attorney and Chief Risk Officer of UCACS, to the podcast to discuss “nuclear," "runaway jury," or aberration verdicts. These are jury awards to the plaintiff, given at trial, that well exceed predictions. They tend to make...