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This article makes no attempt to explain or justify why medical malpractice has thus far attracted more concrete reform attention than many other areas of third party liability that have also been affected by the tort liability insurance crisis. Several potential factors contributing to the emphasis on medical malpractice might be suggested: The role of the insurance industry in promoting particular perceptions; the strength of the medical lobby; and cultural sensitivity to inhibiting the practice of medicine. In any event, this author offers no value judgment about whether medical malpractice suits are special or, if there is to be any reform, whether the entire third party liability system should be changed uniformly. Instead, the current reform activity regarding medical malpractice is taken as a reality for purposes of this article and is analyzed as a distinct phenomenon.Google Scholar

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Although an earlier Danzon study had stated the tentative conclusion that limits on the contingency fees of plaintiffs' attorneys (a) reduced the size of out-of-court settlements by 9 percent, (b) reduced by 1.5 percent the cases litigated until verdict was reached, and (3) increased by 5 percent the cases dropped without any indemnity, Danzon, Lillard, , “Settlement Out of Court: The Disposition of Medical Malpractice Claims,” 12 Journal of Legal Studies 345 (1983), Professor Danzon's later study using nationwide claims experience over the full decade 1975 through 1984 indicated that limiting contingency fees appeared to have no systematic effect on the number of malpractice claims filed or the size of awards, Danzon, Note 10, supra.Google Scholar

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