Medico-legal Expert Reporting Insurance

Thank you for expressing an interest in our services.   We hope we can have a long association and to that end, we think it will be useful to set out what we think is important about professional negligence insurance for medico-legal professionals of all types who offer expert opinions to the Courts.

The scope of cover is important in this area, particularly the policy covering medical examinations (as distinct from desk top reporting) Our policy has this option.

Equally important, is an understanding of the legal framework within which the reporting expert operates and the boundaries of “witness immunity” …

A few years ago, a case came before the Courts which resulted in one of the expert witnesses being liable for loss suffered by a claimant as a result of the way in which a reporting expert behaved.

The case was Jones v Kaney (2011) and was heralded as turning point in the law in this area. We do not agree that this case changed the landscape. In our view it was a case that turned on its own facts. However, it did reaffirm the criteria by which an expert witness will be judged.

Experts can disagree. However, their views must be within their own area of expertise, faithfully held and supported by literature as appropriate.

The joint experts meeting is also an area of risk for the reporting expert. This was the area that caused Dr Kaney’s problems. Again, you are permitted to change your mind, but it must be within recognisable bounds of your previous views. That was the real difficulty in Jones v Kaney…

At MRSL Enterprise, we regularly review medico-legal reports for compliance with the Jones v Kaney criteria. We would expect your instructing Solicitors to deal with any concerns you may have with a joint experts meeting. In short, we seek to provide you comfort that you are operating within the bounds of your expertise and thereby you can still benefit from expert witness immunity. The insurance is there for those improbable occasions where you are at risk.

We are not here just to sell you an insurance policy each year. We are here to help you manage complaints and claims. In the event that a claim has legs and needs to involve your insurers we are here to present the best possible case that we can to your insurer and help you through a really difficult process.