Study shows jury awards climbing in medical liability cases
Medical liability cases posted some of the highest average jury awards in the nation in 2005 compared with other types of civil cases, according to an October report by the U.S. Dept. of Justice Bureau of Justice Statistics.
The study also showed that average damages in medical liability trials more than doubled from 1992 to 2005, while average awards for all civil cases declined 40%.
During the same period, the overall number of civil trials, including medical liability cases, dropped by more than half. The study looked at trends in civil trial litigation in the nation's 75 most populous counties.
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