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Statute of Limitations

Actions must commence within one year of the act or omission causing the injury

Comparative or contributory negligence

modifield comparative negligence, whereby the plaintiff can only recover damages if he is less negligent than the defendant.

Nature of accused's liability

Under the rule of joint and several liability, where more than one defendant is found liable, each defendant is individually liable for the entire amount, such that if one defendant is unable to pay the other defendant or defendants are liable for the entire amount.

Law of contribution

joint defendants have a right of contribution in wrongful death actions

Expert testimony standards

Expert witnesses must be licensed in Tennessee or in an adjoining state, and must have been practising for at least one year prior to the date of the plaintiff's injury

Limits on compensation

none

Limits on attorney fees

Fees are limited to 1/3 of recovery.

Collateral Source rule enforced

In Tennessee there is a compulsory offset, except for private insurance or for assets purchased by the plaintiff.

State and local health care providers immune from liabaility

Tennessee has waived its immunity for malpractice claims and established a board of claims to deal with such claims. The state is immune from liability for punitive damages.

Select Your State

Select Your State

Select Your State Alabama Alaska Arizona Arkansas California Colorado Connecticut Delaware District of Columbia Florida Georgia Hawaii Idaho Illinois Indiana Iowa Kansas Kentucky Louisiana Maine Maryland Massachusetts Michigan Minnesota Mississippi Missouri Montana Nebraska Nevada New Hampshire New Jersey New Mexico New York North Carolina North Dakota Ohio Oklahoma Oregon Pennsylvania Rhode Island South Carolina South Dakota Tennessee Texas Utah Vermont Virginia Washington State West Virginia Wisconsin Wyoming

Medical malpractice law varies from state to state, the key areas of difference are as follows

• Statute of limitations
• The law of comparative or contributory negligence
• The nature of the accused's liability
• Law of contribution
• Standards for expert testimony
• Limitations on compensation
• Limitiations on attorney fees
• Whether collateral source law is in effect
• Are state health care providers immune from liability