Chapter 1 - Nguyen Flashcards
Legislative branch
The U.S. House of Representatives and Senate and any similar state legislature that develops statutory law
Executive branch
President of the U.S. or the governor of an individual state. Can:
- propose laws
- veto laws proposed by the legislature
- enforce laws
- establish agencies
Administrative law
Establishes laws between citizens and government agencies and provides certain power to these agencies to enforce these laws and regulations
Statutes
Written laws enacted by the state or federal legislative branch
Judicial branch
- Federal constitutional court system
- One of the three parts of the U.S. federal government
- Interprets legislation and determines its constitutionality and applies it to specific cases
- May overrule cases presented on appeal from lower courts
Common law/case law
Law of precedents built on a case-by-case basis and established by citing interpretation of existing laws by judges in previous suits. Also known as “judge made law.”
Stare decisis
Latin: “to stand by the things decided”
- to adhere to a decided case
- condition in which, once a court rules, that decision becomes law for other cases
- also known as precedent
Law
The foundation of statutes, rules and regulations that governs people, relationships, behaviors and interactions with the state, society and federal government
Medical law
Laws that are prescribed to pertain specifically to the medical field
Dictates both the responsibilities of the healthcare provider and the rights of the patient
Medical ethics
Principles based on the medical profession that determine moral behavior
Criminal law
State or federal government law covering violations of a written criminal code or statute
Misdemeanor
Lesser crime punishable by usually modest fines or penalties established by the state or federal government and/or imprisonment of less than 1 year
Felony
Serious crime punishable by relatively large fines and/or imprisonment for more than 1 year and, in extreme cases, death
(For healthcare professionals, license may be revoked)
Assault
A threat or attempt to inflict offensive physical contact or bodily harm on a person that puts the person in immediate danger of or in apprehension of such harm or contact
*If the victim has not actually been physically harmed or touched, but only threatened or an attempt was made to harm, the crime is an assault
Battery
Bodily harm or unlawful touching of another
*In the medical field, treating the patient without consent is considered battery
Civil lawsuit
A noncriminal lawsuit for damages, usually based in tort, contract, labor or privacy issues
Tort
A wrongful act, not including a breach of contract or trust, that results in injury to another’s person, property, reputation, or the like, and for which the injured party is entitled to compensation
(Private and civil wrong)
Negligence
The failure to use such care as a reasonably prudent and careful person would use under similar circumstances
Does not require a specific intent to harm someone and is not a deliberate action
4 Basic Elements:
- Duty
- Dereliction of Duty (breach)
- Direct Cause
- Damages
Malpractice
The failure of a professional to meet the standard of conduct that a reasonable and prudent member of the profession would exercise in similar circumstances; it results in harm
It is an act of negligence and describes an improper or illegal professional activity or treatment
Requires proof of a breach of a standard of care, and the breach must cause damage or harm
Standard of care
The average knowledge and expertise that one can expect from a healthcare professional in the same area or field and with the same base of training
Jurisdiction
Authority given by law to a court to try cases and rule on legal matters within a geographical area and/or over certain types of legal cases
Can be in personam or in rem
In personam jurisdiction
Latin: “against the person”
A court’s power to adjudicate cases filed against a specific individual
In rem jurisdiction
Latin: “power about or against the thing”
A term that delineates the court’s jurisdiction over property or things, including marriage, rather than over persons
Statute of limitations
Defense against a tort action; requires that a claim be filed within a specific amount of time of discovering that a wrong has been committed
*vary by state and the type of offense
Plaintiff
The person or entity bringing a suit or claim
Defendant
Person or entity sued
Res ipsa loquitor
Latin: “the thing speaks for itself”
Legal doctrine that there is clear proof that the defendant had the responsibility (duty) to the patient and the injury would not and could not have occurred without the negligence of the defendant
(One is presumed to be negligent if they had exclusive control of whatever caused the injury)
Discovery
Process of gathering information in preparation for a trial
Strategies:
1) interrogatories
2) requests for productions of documents
3) admissions of fact
Interrogatory
Pretrial set of written questions that must be answered in writing under oath and returned within a given time frame
