• Journal of Arbitration Studies
• /
• v.28 no.4
• /
• pp.43-59
• /
• 2018

This study aims to review various efforts required by medical institutions to prevent medical accidents in advance and to suggest the necessity of introducing liability insurance for medical accidents based on cases abroad and compulsory professional indemnity insurance at home. Over the past five years between 2013 and 2017, the number of inquiries regarding medical accidents and medical disputes has increased by 11.1 percent from 36,099 to 54,929, and the number of mediation and arbitration for medical disputes has increased by 14.3 percent from 1,304 to 2,225. Since some medical accidents even cause social problems, a compulsory insurance system for the liability of medical institutions for damages need to be introduced to promptly compensate the victims of medical accidents and to ensure compensation by medical personnel. In Korea, a system is in place to provide compensation for a client who suffers an accidental damage after receiving professional services, regardless of whether or not the professional service provider can provide compensation. In major foreign countries, a medical liability system is in place that is applied either by the principle of liability with fault, or the principle of liability without fault. In this study, the cases of compulsory insurance and semi-compulsory insurance in the US and Japan to which the principle of liability with fault is applied, as well as the case of New Zealand to which the principle of liability without fault is applied, were examined. It is necessary to urgently introduce the compulsory insurance system for the liability of compensation to prevent medical disputes and to compensate for the life and physical damages of the victims of medical accidents in domestic medical institutions. Doing so is expected to ensure fair compensation for the victims of medical malpractice and compensation by medical personnel, thereby improving medical practice.

• The Korean Society of Law and Medicine
• /
• v.7 no.2
• /
• pp.113-136
• /
• 2006

In recent years, as well as the other countries, medical dispute cases increase continuously in China. one of the reason that medical cases increase rapidly like this is after reformation and opening people's sense of independence, law and right come to be high, but a theoretical study about medical malpractice liability is insufficient and there is deficiency at legislation from 1986 civil law general rule is carried out in Chinese. but it is difficulty to deal with those more and more complicated medical dispute only according to the law above. so in 2001 The Chinese Supreme Court established the judicial construction about civil litigation evidence which regulated the shift of the burden of proof of medical malpractice and the relation of cause and effect from the plaintiffs to the defendants. in 2002 the State Council made out Incident of Malpractice Processing Rule. but many scholar pointed out the problem in it. on the other side, according to Chinese Contract Law parties could choose contractual or tort liability to prosecute. but because of the judicial construction above majority of people asked tort liability. of course there are some cases asking contractual liability. then this paper aim at analysis of the Chinese medical malpractice liability, especially of the problems about the subject of responsibility, burden of proof and scope of responsibility.

• The Korean Society of Law and Medicine
• /
• v.7 no.2
• /
• pp.331-364
• /
• 2006

Medical supplies have contradiction of efficacy and side effect to the various diseases together. Therefore, people have tried to reduce the side effects and also provide various methods to cope with any damages from the medicine quickly. In the case of accidents by medical supplies, the victim can be protected with advantage by the Product Liability Law rather than the Torts. The limit of Product Liability Law's application depends on whether medical supplies belong to the product or not. According to Product Liability Law, the product should be processed. Therefore, medical supplied should be processed to be the category of product. It can be said that the medical supplies in pharmacy, Chinese medicine, medical herbs, biological medicine manufactures, blood manufactured medicine, cord blood, hemopoietic progenitior cell and stem cell belongs to the manufactured products. The mixture by the prescription of doctor or preparation of pharmacist can be recognized as the product because prescription or preparation is a manufacturing act. Therefore, applying Product Liability Law to manufacturer, doctor or pharmacist would achieve the goal which is protecting the victims extensively.

• The Korean Society of Law and Medicine
• /
• v.7 no.2
• /
• pp.271-310
• /
• 2006

In the situation of bringing out of social problem about the medical accident and medical dispute, from 1988 the enactment activity for a legislative bill on conciliation of dispute has promoted, a legislative bill on prevention and relief of medical accident was again proposed in December, 2005. This bill has been faced rough going in review process of National Assembly. Because the purpose of this legislative bill is the conciliation of interest of between medical service consumer and medical service supplier, an item of issues of law is no-fault compensation scheme. However, as no-fault compensation scheme runs counter to the principle liability with fault in our civil law, as expected, whether the inducement is valid or, if induced, the problem is not must be totally reviewed. First of all, the general of principle liability without fault and especially the medical system in foreign countries are reviewed, by reviewing an issue and the pros and cons of the inducement of no-fault compensation scheme, this article draws the conclusion. After all, considering that the necessity adapting Gefahrdungschftung in medical accident as much as other industrial fields exists, the many provisions of the principle liability without fault exists in civil law and special law of our law system, and no-fault compensation scheme let legislative purpose be, to what extent, achieved by conciliating patient and doctor, the inducement of principle liability without fault in medical field is reasonable in the aspect of politic and legal system.

• The Korean Society of Law and Medicine
• /
• v.11 no.1
• /
• pp.59-84
• /
• 2010

Medical practice is characterized by various physiological response and uncapacity of prediction, therefore when medical accident occur it's hard to prove medical professionals' mistake. Though medical accident by medical professionals' mistake will be compensated anyhow, about irresistible medical accidents, no one should be not bound to compensate, victims get into very difficult situation. So, the nation don't negligent irresistible medical accidents but compensate anyway. As in the past, to the legal principle's constitution of irresistible medical accidents, theory of liability without fault was adapted, and it was said this theory was illogical in theory of liability with fault. But the subject of compensation to irresistible medical accidents is nation, nation don't participate in medical treatment therefore there is no room to occur mistake. And it is not reasonable to regard medical agency as a truster of public service, to cast to it responsibility of medical accidents. The problem of compensation to irresistible medical accidents is understood under the theory of social compensation. Social compensation is consisted of compensation to sacrifice and contribution to nation and society and compensation to sacrifice revealed under danger, the compensation to irresistible medical accidents belongs to the latter. This is near to concept of relief, is applied to national compensation system supplementarily, and compensation have no option but to compensate minimum. And there are not relation between national compensation system of irresistible medical accidents and proof liability transposition and theory of liability with out fault, merely in side of sharing responsibility burden between medical treater and victim, it is reasonable to discuss transportation of proof liability and compulsive liability insurance together.

• The Korean Society of Law and Medicine
• /
• v.15 no.2
• /
• pp.399-434
• /
• 2014

A criminal liability of the divisional medical-institution is faced a new aspect in the connection with development of the medical techonology. Especially, a division of labor in the medical-institution in Korea will be greatly increased in the foreseeable future. A general hospital will be frequently confronted with sofisticated techniques such as MRI, CT-screen. Accordings to the nature of its functions, a general hospital may make accommodation or services or both available for patients who give undertakings (or for whom undertakings are given) to pay, in respect of the accommodation or services (or both) such charges as the government may determine. It shall be the duty of the government to develop, promote and regulate a criminal liability of the divisional medical-institution. Above all, the government shall have to determine the standard of a criminal liability of the medical-institution in the horizontal specialization and the vertical specialization. But, the court may give finally by directions the standard of the criminal liability of the divisional medical-institution.

• The Korean Society of Law and Medicine
• /
• v.5 no.1
• /
• pp.622-660
• /
• 2004

Medical services aren't done by doctors only but by different medical personnels. If any medical accident takes place, to what extent doctors, nurses and other personnels should respectively be liable for that should be determined. And when an employed doctor does any illegal medical act, his or her employer also should be responsible for that as a user. If a medical accident occurs, the victim or patient usually claims against the employer of the doctor sho causes the accident for compensation. And those who assist medical treatment, including nurses, should be liable for their own acts, but in case their doctor doesn't give any appropriate directions, the doctor should shoulder the liability. This indicates that nurses are also professional medical personnels, and that they should share the liability as well. There are lots of different medical personnels, but doctors and nurses are the pivot of team treatment, and nurses should also take responsibility for their services. Doctors and nurses are equal, as they are in pursuit of the same, namely, helping patients recover their health. Only their roles are different. If they respect each other and see each other as being responsible for their own roles, they will be able to consult together. Medical information on patients and nursing information should be shared by both of them, and patients should be provided accurate treatment and nursing services. If those who offer nursing services are unaware of required information due to conflicts with doctors, it might result in threatening the safety of patients. And in case any important information isn't properly conveyed between them, it might trigger a medical accident. Sophisticated and complex medical science requires medical personnels to be professional, and nurses as well as doctors need to be an expert. The fact treatment-related accidents take place often indicates that treatment is basically attended with danger. Furthermore, patients respond to all sorts of investigation and medicine in a different manner. They should be professional and knowledgeable to predict how they might respond and prevent any possible hazardous situations, and they are expected to have more knowledge in the future. Nonetheless, there aren't yet enough studies on the legal liability of nurses, and this study is expected to pave the way for future research on nurse liability against medical accidents.

• Journal of radiological science and technology
• /
• v.18 no.2
• /
• pp.103-117
• /
• 1995

Recently the suits for medical malpractice are gradually increasing in this country. The main purpose of this study is to excavate the most suitable theories about civil liabilities on medical malpractice by radiological technologist. To solve the above-mentioned problems in medical malpractice, I have proceeded to make a survey of traditional theories and tried to exvacate the most suitable theories for our medical circumstances among those theories. Both domestic and foreign relevant professional literatures and legal cases were investigated in this study. Several important findings of this study are as follows. First, the nature of legal interrelationship between radiological technologist and physician(or the representative of a hospital) is to define the content of employment. But in the eye of medical law, the interrelationship between radiological technologist and physician is written that radiological technologist should be directed by physician. Second, the nature of legal interrlationship between patient and physician(or the representative of a hospital) is to define the content of legal obligation of physician(or the representative of a hospital), and radiological technoligst execute his obligation as proxy for physician. Therefore, patient can not clame any legal right to radiological technologist. Third, radiological technologist has the obligation of Due Care in medical practice. Fourth, on the medical malpractice by radiological technologist the civil liability can be treated as either tortious liability or contractual liability, and physician(or the representative of hospital) take the responsibility for the damage compensation. In this case, physician has the right of indemnity to radiological technologist. But it should be dinied or extremely limited.

• Health Policy and Management
• /
• v.16 no.4
• /
• pp.24-47
• /
• 2006

Based on the findings of a study focused on medical institutions(Fama & French, 2002), this study determined possible causality between determinants of capital structure and liability level, while estimating targeted debt ratio. Moreover, it also examined hypotheses about the adjustment of targeted debt ratio and the of fundraising patterns, so that it verified the relative priority of trade-off theory and pecking order theory. First, profitability had positive(+) relationships with liability level, while investment opportunities had negative(-) relationships with liability level. This finding supported pecking order theory, and non-liability tax shield effects had negative(-) relationships with liability level as estimated in both trade-off theory and pecking order theory. Next, this study verified trade-off and pecking order theory at once by means of regression analysis about the variation of liability level in associations with disparity from targeted debt ratio and short-term fluctuation of profit and investment. As a result, it was noted that liability level became mean-reversed to targeted liability ratio but slowly, SO it was difficult to assert that such mean reverse may support trade-off theory. However, the finding that most of short-term fluctuations of profit and investment are absorbed into liabilities supported pecking order theory. On the other hand, it was found that the larger scale of medical institutions is more supportive of pecking order theory in the associations between liability level and profitability and the fundraising patterns than trade-off theory.

• The Korean Society of Law and Medicine
• /
• v.11 no.1
• /
• pp.91-116
• /
• 2010

As Complex Regional Pain Syndrome (CRPS) is a new and rare illness, medical cause for it has not yet been clearly found out. Nevertheless, the patients continue to file lawsuits for damage compensation against wrongdoers or their insurers, claiming that the cause of the illness is certain actions of the wrongdoers. Moreover, the claim amount reaches to hundreds of millions of won through billions of won unlike other illnesses. Therefore, CRPS has become an important legal issue in the damage compensation lawsuit. Even though the wound is slight, the development and result may be serious in the case of CRPS. As a result, a sharp conflict arises even regarding medical diagnosis of CRPS in the lawsuit. And, even if the medical diagnosis of CRPS is admitted, severe debates occurs with regard to many issues, which include the causation between accident and CRPS in connection with establishment of damage compensation liability and scope of liability like anamnesis, determination standard of aftereffect disability, and scope of admitted aftereffect medical expense in connection with scope of damage compensation. In this study, I will review fundamental medical research on CRPS up to now and discuss principal legal issues in the damage compensation lawsuit focusing on lower court rulings.