Medical expert opinion following a car accident
In claims involving physical injuries resulting from a car accident in Israel, a medical opinion is usually submitted by an expert appointed by the court. The opinion will be used by the court to resolve the complex legal questions that arise in these lawsuits, such as the question of causation between the accident and the physical harm suffered by the victims of the accident. Where the victims do not agree with the expert’s conclusions, the opinion can be challenged, among other things, by cross examining the expert in court, submitting a motion to disqualify the opinion or submitting a motion to appoint another expert. All this and more will be explained below in detail by attorney Moti Orange, an expert in traffic and tort law from our firm.
Car accidents can cause the victims substantial injuries and even permanent disability. As a result of the accident, victims may be required to undergo many treatments for their rehabilitation, as well as become dependent on others for assistance in performing daily activities that they can no longer perform after the accident. To establish the entitlement to damages, which are designed to help the victims deal with the implications of the accident, the cost of which may amount to hundreds of thousands and even millions of shekels, it is generally necessary to perform an assessment of the totality of these damages.
In claims filed under the Road Accident Victim Compensation Law, 5735-1975, the court must resolve the matter. Naturally, the court does not have the tools to make such an assessment on its own, and therefore usually relies on a medical expert’s opinion. The expert is a doctor or a professional who engages in the matter at hand as a medical expert, including someone who deals with the rehabilitation of traffic accident victims. The opinion will almost inevitably affect the outcome of the final claim, so it is very important that accident victims know the procedure involved.
Appointment of a medical expert for the purpose of providing an opinion for a claim involving physical injuries from a car accident
There are regulations that guide the role of the medical expert in car accident damage claims, pursuant to the Road Accident Victim Compensation Law. These claims involve a special arrangement, which is different from damage claims filed for physical injuries in other cases. In other physical injury claims, as opposed claims filed under the Road Accident Victim Compensation Law, there is often a requirement to submit a medical opinion in order to prove the physical injuries and their consequences.
In the special arrangement set forth by the regulations mentioned above, the defendants are not allowed to attach a medical opinion to the statement of claim itself. Instead, they have to request the appointment of an expert by the court. For this purpose, basic proof (prima facie evidence) must be presented for the existence of a medical disability, indicating apparent causation between the damage and the accident.
Since the motion is submitted at a relatively early stage of the claim, the court tends to examine the evidence more leniently. For example, even if the medical documents do not unequivocally indicate causation, the mere proof of some possibility of a relationship may be sufficient for the appointment of a medical expert. It is important to note that not only the victims of the accident can request the appointment of the medical expert by the court, but also the defendants and other plaintiffs who were not directly injured by the accident (such as relatives suing together with the victims of the accident or on their behalf).
Who pays the high cost of the medical opinion?
As mentioned above, medical experts are usually doctors, or people with expertise in the field of medical rehabilitation of accident victims. Accordingly, their salary may be quite high. The court has the power to order each of the parties to deposit amounts it deems appropriate, and the funds will constitute a deposit to secure the fee of the appointed expert.
How does the medical expert examine the damage resulting from the accident?
For the purpose of preparing the opinion, the expert will examine the injuries suffered by the victims of the accident and the medical treatment they received. In this framework, the parties may present documents regarding their medical treatments. However, the documents can only relate to matters disputed by the parties. For example, if the parties agree that a certain physical injury occurred as a result of the accident, as a general rule, it is not possible to present the documents testifying to this very fact before the medical expert. Moreover, the regulations do not allow to submit to the medical expert a document that is a medical opinion on behalf of one of the parties, nor a document that is a summary of documents from the medical file of the accident victims. This is intended to protect the expert’s objectivity, and to prevent bias. In this context, it is important to emphasize the importance of keeping all the existing medical documentation of the accident victims, so you can submit the records to the medical expert and present the complete picture of the accident victims’ condition.
Can I challenge the opinion of the medical expert?
There are several ways to attack or challenge the opinion. First, in the context of hearing the case in court, the expert will be cross examined about the opinion. The parties may cross examine the expert and try to challenge determinations that are not in their favor within this framework. In certain cases, the court may allow the minutes of the expert’s investigation to be presented to another expert, for the purpose of resolving issues that are still in dispute. In extraordinary cases, the parties may ask to disqualify the opinion, or to request the appointment of an additional medical expert. This is possible, for example, when it has been proven that the expert acted in a non-objective manner, contrary to the duties of an expert. Another example is when the opinion represents a medical position which no longer constitutes the accepted position in the field, which may happen quite often in claims of this kind that are sometimes managed for several years. However, these are exceptions to the general rule.
Medical expert opinion following a car accident – contact a lawyer who specializes in tort law and car accident claims
In this article, we have explained the procedure of a medical expert opinion following a car accident, which greatly influences the damages that will be awarded in these cases. If you have any additional questions, or need advice or assistance, please contact us and we will be happy to provide you with a comprehensive and professional legal response. Our law firm, in Jerusalem and Tel Aviv, specializes in tort law and the representation of victims of car accidents in damage claims in court.
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