Laws that allow doctors to apologize to patients without having the apology used in legal action against them do not reduce medical malpractice liability risk, according to a study by Vanderbilt Economists W. Kip Viscusi, University Distinguished Professor of Law, Economics and Management; Benjamin J. McMichael, JD/PhD and R. Lawrence VanHorn of the Owen Graduate School of Management.
In their paper, “Sorry is Never Enough: The Effect of State Apology Laws in Medical Malpractice Liability Risk” the authors studied the impact of apology laws – reforms to state rules of evidence that explicitly exclude from malpractice trials any statements of apologies, condolence or sympathy made by physicians to patients – on settlements. They found that apology laws did not change the likelihood that surgeons would face a lawsuit or nonsuit claim. Apology laws are “intuitively appealing but empirically unfounded.” Sometimes doctors apologize or express sympathy, which is a natural human expression, but it is frequently interpreted as an expression of guilt.
J. Kimbrough Johnson practiced in Lewis Thomason’s Memphis office and was with the firm 47 years. His practice focused primarily on civil litigation in federal and state courts defending professional liability claims. Sadly, Mr. Johnson passed away in November 2017. Mr. Johnson was always a champion of the physician and was a staunch advocate for the healthcare professional. When Lewis Thomason began planning for the launch of Tennessee Healthcare Lawyers, Mr. Johnson was the first to dictate what became our first blog post.