Rules For Expert Witnesses in Medical Malpractice (Health Care Liability) Cases in Tennessee

There are a unique set of rules applicable to Tennessee medical malpractice cases.  (Note: the Tennessee Legislature has decreed that such cases must now be called "health care liability actions.)

In a health care liability action in Tennessee, both the liability of the health care provider and the link between the negligent action or omission ("causation") must be proved by one or more expert witnesses in the vast, vast majority of cases.   The liability expert must 1) practice in a field of medicine that makes his or her testimony pertinent to the case; 2) practice in that field of medicine in Tennessee or a contiguous state in the year preceding the incident; and 3) be familiar with the regularly accepted level of medical practice in the community where the incident took place or a similar community. 

The causation expert must also meet the geographic requirements mentioned above.  However, this expert does not need to know the standard of care in the community where the incident occurred if his or his expert opinion is limited to causation issues.

Knowledgeable, credible expert witnesses are an important part of winning health care liability cases in Tennessee and every other state.  The Law Offices of John Day, P.C. has worked with hundreds of expert witnesses to evaluate potential cases and to testify in the cases we are able to accept.  

If you have a potential health care liability case, contact John Day at 866.812.8787 or complete the Contact Form and we will call you.  We do not charge for an initial consultation, and if we are able to help you we work on a contingent fee basis.

John Day and the other lawyers in his firm represent people who have been injured or lost a loved one because of an error made by a health care provider.

John has been listed in Best Lawyers for 20 years, and has the highest legal rating a lawyer can earn by the legal rating services Martindale and AVVO.

An author of three books on Tennessee personal injury and wrongful death law and over 50 articles for legal publications, John has given approximately 300 speeches to lawyers in over 15 states on personal injury, wrongful death, and related subjects. He represents people across Tennessee in personal injury, wrongful death, medical malpractice, products liability and other civil cases. To read what John’s clients have said about him and his law firm, click here

Contact Information