Quote:
Originally Posted by blueash
Just a heads up. Several local eye doctors are demanding that you sign away your right to a jury trial in any alleged malpractice event and instead settle for binding arbitration. As you will not win a malpractice case unless there is a deviation from the standard of care and the cost of malpractice insurance is a tiny fraction of the expenses of an ophthalmologic practice I urge caution.
You wouldn't get in a taxi cab if the driver said, before I drive you I demand you sign a paper that you won't be able to sue me if I run a stop sign, crash, and you are injured and instead will just settle for arbitration. I'll take the next cab instead.
I don't want a doctor who is viewing me as a potential lawsuit even before the operation. Don't make a mistake and you won't have to worry about our tort system.
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I agree. But, for what it's worth, these contracts have been challenged in court, and the doctors have lost. Florida has a mandatory "non-binding arbitration" law for malpractice suits. If the patient doesn't like the arbitration decision, he/she can then sue the doctor in court. The courts have ruled that the "binding" arbitration agreements some doctors want you to sign are not enforcable because they are an attempt to circumvent the Florida law.