Unit 2 Vocab (Ch 5-8) Flashcards
Agency
Common law situation in business where the principal (employer) authorizes an agent (employee) to deal with a third person (customer, supplier or other third party) on the principal’s behalf.
Alternative Dispute Resolution
Settlement of civil disputes between parties using neutral mediators or arbitrators without going to court.
Arbitration
A method of settling disputes in which the opposing parties agree to abide by the decision of an arbitrator.
Mediation
An alternative dispute resolution method in which a neutral third party listens to both sides of an argument then helps resolve the dispute but the third party has no authority to enforce it
Confidentiality
The act of holding information in confidence not to be released to unauthorized individuals.
Damages
Monetary award sought by plaintiff’s in lawsuits.
Deposition
Sworn testimony given and recorded outside the courtroom during the pretrial phase of a case.
Duty of Care
The legal obligation of health care workers to patients and sometimes non-patients.
Standard of Care
The level of performance expected of a health care practitioner in carrying out his or her professional duties.
Interrogatory
A written set of questions requiring written answers from a plaintiff or defendant under oath.
Liable
Legally responsible or obligated.
Negligence
An unintentional tort not intended to cause harm but with disregard for the consequences of the act.
Forms of negligence include: misfeasance, malfeasance, nonfeasance and malpractice
Malpractice
The misconduct of a professional
Malfeasance
The performance of a totally wrongful and unlawful act
Misfeasance
The performance of a lawful act in an illegal or improper manner.
Nonfeasance
The failure to act when one should.
Privileged Communication
Information held confidential in a protected relationship.
Reasonable Person Standard
The standard of behavior that judges a person’s actions in a situation according to what a reasonable person would or would not do in similar circumstances.
Res Ipsa Loquitur
Literally means “the thing speaks for itself”. Also known as the Doctrine of Common Knowledge. A situation so obviously negligent that no expert witness need be called.
Respondeat Superior
Literally means “let the master answer”. A doctrine under which an employer is legally liable for the acts of his or her employees, if the acts were performed within the scope of the employee’s duties.
Standard of Care
The level of performance expected of a health care practitioner in carrying out his or her professional duties.
Subpoena
A legal document requiring the recipient to appear as a witness in court or to give a deposition.
Subpoena Duces Tecum
A legal document requiring the recipient to bring certain written records to court to be used as evidence in a lawsuit.
Summons
A written notification written by the clerk of court and delivered with a copy of the complaint to the defendant in a lawsuit, directing him or her to respond to the charges brought in a court of law.
Testimony
Statements sworn to under oath by witnesses testifying in court and giving depositions.
Wrongful Death Statues
State statutes that allow a person’s beneficiaries to collect for loss to the estate of the deceased for future earnings when a death is judged to have been due to negligence.
Affirmative Defenses
Defenses used by defendants in medical professional liability suits that allow the accused to present factual evidence that the patient’s condition was caused by some factor other than the defendant’s negligence.
Assumption of Risk
A legal defense that holds that the defendant is not guilty of a negligent act because the plaintiff knew of an accepted any risks involved beforehand
Claims-made Insurance
A type of liability insurance that covers the insured only for those claims made (not for any injury occurring) while the policy is in force.
Comparative Negligence
An affirmative defense claimed by the defendants alleging that the plaintiff contributed to the injury by a certain degree.