“Judge-Directed Negotiations” and Medical Malpractice

The New York court system received one of twenty recent federal grants to study alternative ways to resolve medical liability claims.  The court system will attempt to systematize the methods of NY Judge Douglas McKeon.  McKeon describes his method as “judge-directed negotiations,” but the emphasis seems to be what he refers to as “humanness.”  In essence, he listens to the parties to determine what is really driving the dispute.  Cases not settled by the parties will go to a special courtroom staffed by judges trained with a curriculum McKeon helped develop.  Plaintiffs can insist on a jury trial at any point.  WTOP.com has more.

–CJR