Medpedia

In 2003 the Arkansas legislature enacted a tort reform law that included a provision that expert witnesses in medical malpractice liability lawsuits must practice in the same specialty as defendant doctors. The requirement that testifying experts must be in the same specialty as a defendant physician when they testify on his/her behalf or against, when that testimony goes to the standard of care in that specialty has been a long standing one in many states. The requirement is sensible to the point of being common sense, and a very important one. But, due to constitutional language specific to Arkansas, the legislature does not have the power pass such a law. That power lies within the courts of Arkansas alone as we shall discuss.

On January 19 the Arkansas supreme court ruled the requirement “violates the separation-of-powers doctrine, Amendment 80, and the inherent authority of the courts to protect the integrity … (Continued...)