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Submitted by DakotaLegal on
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Submitted by DakotaLegal on
You may or may not be judgement proof if you lose a suit. If the doctors or hospital did sue you, just to shut down your blog, there’s every reason to try and protect what you want to do: “warning” the public against possible problems in community health care. In this case, there are major legal issues about where your rights of free speech run up against state libel protections for the doctors and hospital.
There may be a possible safety net for you. If this Blog is to become your business, your homeowner or renters insurance might insure you from a suit. Look over the policy and see if you have at-home business coverage. If your blog gives certain facts, such as the dates and fact of injury from a treatment, and then clearly states an opinion you have based on those facts, then you have a general right to expressing that opinion. It’s when the “opinion” slips into being something closer to a reasonable person’s perception of your claim of another “fact,” (a false statement of “fact” which can damage someone’s reputation or community standing) where libel begins. Using phrases such as “in my opinion” or “it seems” or “it’s possible,” or the like can let a reader know your assertions are not proven facts.
But in most ways, this balancing test between free speech and libel is one of the benefits in trying to see if any of your legal rights to sue for malpractice have been investigated. Have you talked with any lawyers about taking these cases as malpractice? Time is crucial in every malpractice case. You usually have only two years to sue, from the injury or from reasonable discovery of an injury. I know some people are reluctant to try and find a lawyer, especially if they barely have the money to get to appointments. But many lawyers in malpractice cases can handle the first investigation of a claim over the phone, or via a Web interview, or even by sending a paralegal out to talk with you. This legal consultation may even be helpful in getting a release of the records you want.
You should be sure to specifically ask only for free consultations. You can find a New York lawyer who specializes in medical malpractice… in New York City http://www.ny sba.org/AM/Template.cfm?Section=Need_To_Hire_A_Lawyer_ or elsewhere in the state http://iapps.courts.state.ny.us/attorney/AttorneySearch.
About Your Blog
Unlike the lawyer referral system for a malpractice case, mentioned above, there are also low-cost or free law services. These can be especially useful as you set up your blog. Keep in mind, if you do have a valid malpractice suit, it will probably be unwise to open up a blog. Some of the things you say might be misconstrued, or even affect your finances if you should try to settle or win a malpractice suit.
Be careful about whether being “anonymous” on a web site or hosting service will really mean you will stay that anonymous. A Plaintiff can ask for a Doe Subpoena, and in New York, this is not a high standard. The following case describes the “prima fasciae” standard used in New York. http://petrofsky.org/misc/legal-docs/Eclipse/Sony-Music-vs-Does-2004-07-26.pdf.Your argument is that your blog is an opinion, and has First Amendment protections. The issue is so important, even the ACLU may have an interest in your rights… http://www.aclu.org/contact-us.
If the time to sue has expired (the statute of Limitations for you to sue has “run” out), then getting some free legal advice only about the blog and free speech rights will be useful. You can try here http://www.nylawhelp.org/ny/. Some area law schools also have clinics, open to the public, and your free speech issues will be of interest to many of the staff in these programs… here’s an example: http://www.law.nyu. edu/ academ ics/clinics/index.htm.
You may or may not be judgement proof if you lose a suit. If the doctors or hospital did sue you, just to shut down your blog, there’s every reason to try and protect what you want to do: “warning” the public against possible problems in community health care. In this case, there are major legal issues about where your rights of free speech run up against state libel protections for the doctors and hospital.
There may be a possible safety net for you. If this Blog is to become your business, your homeowner or renters insurance might insure you from a suit. Look over the policy and see if you have at-home business coverage. If your blog gives certain facts, such as the dates and fact of injury from a treatment, and then clearly states an opinion you have based on those facts, then you have a general right to expressing that opinion. It’s when the “opinion” slips into being something closer to a reasonable person’s perception of your claim of another “fact,” (a false statement of “fact” which can damage someone’s reputation or community standing) where libel begins. Using phrases such as “in my opinion” or “it seems” or “it’s possible,” or the like can let a reader know your assertions are not proven facts.
But in most ways, this balancing test between free speech and libel is one of the benefits in trying to see if any of your legal rights to sue for malpractice have been investigated. Have you talked with any lawyers about taking these cases as malpractice? Time is crucial in every malpractice case. You usually have only two years to sue, from the injury or from reasonable discovery of an injury. I know some people are reluctant to try and find a lawyer, especially if they barely have the money to get to appointments. But many lawyers in malpractice cases can handle the first investigation of a claim over the phone, or via a Web interview, or even by sending a paralegal out to talk with you. This legal consultation may even be helpful in getting a release of the records you want.
You should be sure to specifically ask only for free consultations. You can find a New York lawyer who specializes in medical malpractice… in New York City http://www.ny sba.org/AM/Template.cfm?Section=Need_To_Hire_A_Lawyer_ or elsewhere in the state http://iapps.courts.state.ny.us/attorney/AttorneySearch.
About Your Blog
Unlike the lawyer referral system for a malpractice case, mentioned above, there are also low-cost or free law services. These can be especially useful as you set up your blog. Keep in mind, if you do have a valid malpractice suit, it will probably be unwise to open up a blog. Some of the things you say might be misconstrued, or even affect your finances if you should try to settle or win a malpractice suit.
Be careful about whether being “anonymous” on a web site or hosting service will really mean you will stay that anonymous. A Plaintiff can ask for a Doe Subpoena, and in New York, this is not a high standard. The following case describes the “prima fasciae” standard used in New York. http://petrofsky.org/misc/legal-docs/Eclipse/Sony-Music-vs-Does-2004-07-26.pdf.Your argument is that your blog is an opinion, and has First Amendment protections. The issue is so important, even the ACLU may have an interest in your rights… http://www.aclu.org/contact-us.
If the time to sue has expired (the statute of Limitations for you to sue has “run” out), then getting some free legal advice only about the blog and free speech rights will be useful. You can try here http://www.nylawhelp.org/ny/. Some area law schools also have clinics, open to the public, and your free speech issues will be of interest to many of the staff in these programs… here’s an example: http://www.law.nyu. edu/ academ ics/clinics/index.htm.