Medical Malpractice has become a worldwide issue and is approached differently by different cultures. Even within our nation, there are a variety of not only policies relating to malpractice accusations but also a variety of definitions of what malpractice is. Each jurisdiction has established its own set of laws and various statues. In an attempt to clarify, we will lay out a few of Florida’s basic laws for medical malpractice in the legal environment.

Florida law, along with most other states, requires 3 elements for a successful claim. The claimant must show that they physically suffered an adverse event, that the even was caused by the action or inaction of the provider rather than nature, and show that the provider was negligent. Basically, the claimant must prove that the provider took less care than is standard and customary by the average professional in good standing (Keeton 1984).

Florida has established a strict set of Statues of Limitations that apply to medical malpractice cases as well as wrongful death cases. Action against medical malpractice must be brought within two years from the date of the incident or when the incident should have been discovered. In the case of fraud, concealment, or intentional misrepresentation preventing discovery, there is a maximum period of seven years. For cases involving wrongful death, action must begin within two years of the date of death, unless the death was caused by malpractice in which case the malpractice statutes detailed above apply. These limitations do not apply to children under the age of seven years (McCullough, 1998)..

Florida has defined standings on joint and several liabilities. In any action for professional negligence accruing on or after July 1st, 1986, wherein damages exceed $25,000, liability is apportioned among the defendants on the basis of each defendant’s degree of fault, and each is severally liable. Fla. Stat. Ann. § 768.81

There is however an exception to the joint liability as defined above. If a tortfeasor’s liability exceeds that of the claimant then that tortfeasor is jointly and severally liable for the claimant’s economic damages. Joint liability has been abolished and does not apply to the state university system or teaching hospitals (McCullough, 1998).

In Florida, physicians practicing at a hospital are not always direct employees of that hospital. In an attempt to encourage hospitals to carefully regulate and monitor the quality of the physicians practicing within their institution, Florida has adopted what it calls the theory of corporate negligence to hold hospitals vicariously responsible for non-employee physicians in medical malpractice cases.

Punitive damages in excess of three times the claimant’s compensatory damages are presumed to be unreasonable, and the court must order a remitter unless it determines by clear and convincing evidence that the amount is not excessive. Fla. Stat. Ann. § 768.73

The use of third party funding has begun to play a very important role in medical malpractice cases as well as having an effect on the health care sector as a whole, as we will discuss much further later in this paper. The Florida Birth-Related Neurological Injury Compensation Plan and The Florida Patient Compensation Fund are the two established patient compensation funds in the state. Details on the roles of each will be discussed later.

While Florida does not have laws requiring that medical malpractice cases be handled by arbitration, this method of settlement is most often preferred and encouraged. Incentives, mostly financial relating to settlements, are offered to both the claimant and defendant to encourage arbitration. “The important arbitration program in Florida is the system of voluntary binding arbitration for the determination of damages, which basically gives defendants an option to limit non-economic damages in return for admitting liability” (McCullough, 1998).