Making the case for doctors: AMNews interviews James J. Jordan

In today's litigious society, the AMA/State Medical Societies Litigation Center takes on legal battles in defense of the medical profession.

By Amy Lynn Sorrel, AMNews staff. July 10, 2006.

In an era when physicians appear to be getting as familiar with the courtroom as they are with the exam room, the American Medical Association/State Medical Societies Litigation Center is advocating for doctors by getting involved in the legal system on their behalf.

Believed to be the only litigation center of its kind exclusively for doctors, it was established 11 years ago to provide physicians with legal assistance, usually in the form of a friend-of-the-court brief or a financial contribution. All 50 state medical societies belong, and since its inception in 1995, the Litigation Center has taken on nearly 150 cases that address issues that have the potential to make a difference in the practice of medicine. Peer review, medical liability reform and physician antitrust issues are just a few examples of the types of cases the center has weighed in on.

AMNews reporter Amy Lynn Sorrel recently talked to Litigation Center Chair James J. Jordan, also executive director of the Alaska State Medical Assn., about some of the battles percolating in the courts.

AMNews: Are doctors encountering more litigation these days? Why or why not?

Jordan: The answer is yes. And why is that? There are a lot of confounding and complicating factors in the life of physicians these days. For example, the American Academy of Actuaries did a study back in the late '90s related to medical liability reform. The [data] indicated that in the 1950s, physicians had a one in seven chance of being sued as a result of a medical injury in their career. By the 1990s, that one in seven chance was still there, but on a yearly basis.