Nurse Expert Witnesses Provide Essential Litigation Support Services

The title Nurse Expert Witness sounds like a person who testifies in court. But trial testimony is rare and generally not a job requirement. Your “witnessing” is usually limited to the review of medical records which will be used as evidence in court. On this page, we take a closer look at the range of tasks a Nurse Expert Witness or Professional Legal Nurse Consultant performs for attorney clients.

What is a Nurse Expert Witness?

The term Nurse Expert Witness is simply an alternate title for Professional Legal Nurse Consultant. This person is a credentialed nurse, certified to assist law firms with legal cases that requires nursing knowledge. As a Nurse Expert Witness, or PLNC, you would:

• Review medical records — This task might include organizing and indexing records, preparing a chronology (i.e., timeline of events), and list documents that appear to be missing from the patient record. You would examine charting, electronic health records and other medical records, to evaluate the standard of patient care. You might also examine medical bills to discern any differences between services billed and those allegedly provided.
• Compile a report — You would document your relevant findings and your professional opinion in a report to the attorney. The legal team might use facts you provide in legal documents filed with the court.
• Consult with attorney and legal team — You are instrumental in helping the team understand medical and nursing terminology. You might be asked to perform research on medical issues. You might be present at interviews to help attorneys obtain facts from the client and potential witnesses. You might advise the attorney on the need for additional medical expert witnesses.
• Participate in case evaluation — You would help the legal team identify strengths and weaknesses of a claim. Attorneys must be able to prove important elements of a case, including medical errors that indicate substandard care, and direct causation between the mistake and a specific injury to a plaintiff. You would be expected to provide the standard of care and indicate whether you believe there was negligence.
• Participate in alternative dispute resolution — This would include inclusion in arbitration, mediation, negotiation, and settlement discussions.
• Assist in pretrial and trial preparation — Every trial has a narrative. Your input is essential to constructing a compelling case for a judge and/or jury.
• Attend legal proceedings — As a knowledgeable observer, your insights into witness testimony and the presentation of evidence can be crucial.
• Testify — Legal nurse expert testimony is in demand and pays a higher rate that other services. If you want to take a more active part in proceedings, you could testify as a nursing expert at depositions, hearings, arbitration, mediation, and nursing board proceedings. Of course, most PLNCs opt to review medical only.

Tasks vary depending on the law firm’s needs and the type of case. Jurex Nurse provides the training you need to select the opportunities that are most suited to your situation.

Expert Nurse Witnesses consult on a range of cases

Some malpractice, personal injury, or wrongful death cases involve specific clinical areas, which would require specialized knowledge. However, most simply require basic nursing knowledge. The types of cases you could work on include:

• Nursing malpractice
• Medical or surgical malpractice
• Critical care malpractice
• Nursing home and assisted living facility malpractice and neglect
• Pediatric nursing and neonatal care malpractice
• Personal injury, including slip and fall, auto accidents, sports injuries, and premises liability
• Criminal cases
• Probate disputes involving wills, trusts, and estates where state of mind is at issue
• Workers’ compensation
• Product Liability, involving medications, medical and nonmedical devices, and consumer products
• Toxic tort
• Environmental tort
• Employment, if medical conditions are at issue
• Title IX discrimination
• Family law
• Social Security Disability

Working on cases is intellectually stimulating, since no set of facts is ever the same. The work is also personally rewarding, because you are making an important contribution to work that is consequential to people’s lives.

Legal Nurse Expert Witness Directory puts your profile in front of interested attorneys

Jurex Nurse maintains a Legal Nurse Consultant Directory listing our certified consultants by geographic areas. You can complete a profile describing yourself, your experience, and the type of work you’d like to do. Attorneys across the country who are seeking PLNCs in their area can perform a quick and easy Legal Nurse Consultant search. This is just one of the ways Jurex Nurse continues to support you in your career after you earn your certification.

If you’re ready to take the first step towards becoming a Legal Nurse Expert Witness, click one of the buttons below to start your certification process now.

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