Medical negligence intake preparation checklist
Medical negligence claims are expert-heavy and run under state civil liability legislation. This checklist walks through the standard intake steps for a new matter.
This is a 12-step intake checklist for an Australian medical negligence claim. It covers limitation periods, medical records, expert causation evidence, and the state civil liability caps on damages.
The checklist
Check limitation period
Check the limitation period — 3 years from date of discoverability or long-stop of 12 years.
Establish the duty of care
Establish the health professional owed a duty of care — usually uncontroversial but confirm practitioner engagement.
Collect medical records
Collect all GP, specialist, and hospital records via authority to access.
Prepare a chronology
Prepare a chronological timeline of care, treatment decisions, and outcomes.
Identify breach of standard
Identify the alleged breach of the standard of care at each relevant treatment point.
Obtain independent expert opinion
Obtain an independent expert opinion on breach from a peer-accepted practitioner.
Establish factual causation
Establish that the breach was a necessary condition of the harm — the "but for" test.
Assess scope of liability
Assess whether it is appropriate to extend liability to the harm on the scope test.
Calculate economic loss
Calculate past and future economic loss — capped at three times average weekly earnings.
Calculate non-economic loss
Calculate non-economic loss by severity of impairment against the state thresholds.
Consider pre-action procedure
Consider any pre-action protocol required in the relevant jurisdiction before commencing proceedings.
Brief on costs and funding
Brief the client on costs, litigation funding options, and prospects of success.
When this checklist applies
Use this checklist at the intake stage of any medical negligence inquiry to assess viability before incurring expert costs.
Common pitfalls
- Obtaining an expert opinion from a non-peer-accepted practitioner
- Missing the limitation period by relying on long-stop alone
- Weak causation evidence on a hindsight basis
- Undervaluing loss by not accounting for care needs
- Not engaging with the practitioner's medical defence organisation early
Run this checklist on a real matter
Quillio prepares medical chronologies, expert briefs, and damages schedules for medical negligence matters. See /practice-areas/family-lawyers or start a free trial.
This checklist is a general guide. Medical negligence claims are expert-heavy — always confirm viability before proceeding.
Use this checklist on your matter.
Quillio can run this checklist on a specific NSW conveyancing matter — confirm each item, calculate adjustments, and generate the supporting documents. The free trial requires no credit card.
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