HORSHAM, Pa. - Jury awards in medical malpractice claims remained stagnant, and plaintiffs won fractionally more trials in 2001, the most recent year studied, than 2000.

According to Jury Verdict Research®'s just-released report, Current Award Trends in Personal Injury - 2002 Edition, after rising more than 40 percent in 2000, the median compensatory jury award in medical malpractice cases remained the same as the previous year, $1 million.

While there was a slight increase in the percentage of cases medical malpractice plaintiffs won in 2001, the group still lost more than 60 percent of the time when the case went to a jury.

Plaintiff Recovery Rate
(ratio of plaintiff verdicts to total verdicts)

— Year 2001 2000 1999 1998 1997 1996 1995

Medical Malpractice (Overall) 39% 38% 35% 33% 35% 29% 35%

Diagnosis Negligence 38% 36% 32% 33% 33% 26% 37%

Surgical Negligence 44% 46% 32% 30% 38% 30% 31%

Childbirth Negligence 53% 36% 43% 44% 35% 34% 47%

"Our med mal statistics leveled off this year," said David Boxold, editor of the study. "While plaintiffs are still compensated with million-dollar awards in some cases, the majority lose their jury trials and never receive a dime."

The 48-page study of personal-injury jury awards and settlements also reported trends and plaintiff recovery rates for major liabilities.

National Compensatory Jury-Award Median
in Personal Injury Cases

Liability Vehicular Premises Products Overall

2000 $17,495 $109,018 $1,775,000 $48,200

2001 $17,601 $125,025 $1,500,000 $51,573

Change + 1% + 15% - 15% + 7%

Since 1965, Current Award Trends in Personal Injury has analyzed jury-award and settlement trends for selected injuries and liabilities. Based on more than 202,000 nationwide personal-injury verdicts and settlements, the 2002 Edition also includes:

• jury-award averages and probability ranges;
• the median number of months from incident to trial date;
• jury-award trends for frequently claimed injuries including back strains,
  head injuries and wrongful death;
• the median settlement final offer and demand;
• plaintiff recovery rate by liability; and
• selected state-specific jury-award data.

Copies of Current Award Trends in Personal Injury, 2002 Edition are available from Jury Verdict Research® for $39.95 plus $5.50 shipping and handling. To order or for more information, call
1-800-341-7874, ext. 307; visit www.juryverdictresearch.com; or e-mail custserve@lrp.com.

Jury Verdict Research® maintains the only nationwide database of more than 202,000 plaintiff and defense verdicts, and settlements resulting from personal injury claims. The data are reported, tabulated and analyzed to determine values, trends and deviations for 400 injuries and 300 liabilities.

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Media Only: For a free media-review copy of Current Award Trends in Personal Injury - 2002 Edition, call Gary Bagin at 215-784-0941, ext. 370, or e-mail garyb@lrp.com.