When Medical Experts Switch Sides in Medical-Legal Cases
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- Published: Wednesday, 03 November 2010 22:39
May a medical expert witness switch sides in a lawsuit? Unlike the lawyers in a case, no rule expressly stops a medical expert from "hopping the fence." After all, the conventional wisdom is that the expert's allegiance is to the truth, not to any one party. But just because an expert has the opportunity to switch sides doesn't necessarily make it the right thing to do. Switching sides can have adverse consequences. For one, the expert could be disqualified. For another, the lawyer could be sanctioned. And if either of those happens, the medical malpractice case could be nonsuited.