In the instance of a medical malpractice case, the defense (usually a hospital) will call in the doctor who provided treatment to act as a medical expert and give testimony defending the actions of the hospital. In this instance, the doctor almost always refuses to bring the medical records to court. But why?
If the medical expert brings the records to court, they gives an opening to the cross-examining lawyer. If the records were in court, the lawyer has a right to examine them and check the doctors notes. The lawyer does this to see what the doctor was thinking at the time he or she read over the records.
If the records aren’t there, the doctor can omit pieces of information that may poke holes in the defense’s case. Those notes are an important piece of the puzzle to figuring out if malpractice was actually conducted. It can be difficult to obtain the notes, but a good lawyer will know to try.
Medical malpractice cases can be difficult. After all, it’s the resources of an individual against the resources of a medical establishment. It’s important to hire a high-quality malpractice attorney to handle your case if you believe you were mistreated.