Medical Legal Consultation

The Department of Diagnostic and Interventional Imaging at The University of Texas Medical School at Houston feel we have a responsibility to patients, society, and the medical profession to participate in medical legal consultations  that ensure that these cases are properly, ethically, and accurately assessed  at the highest level of integrity.  We consider these services to be an essential part of the practice of medicine as advocated by both the American Medical Association and the American College of Physicians.  No direct remuneration is received for these services, with proceeds from these activities used to fund medical student, resident physician, and faculty educational and research activities and services vital to the competent and excellent practice of diagnostic radiology at the UT Medical School.

Legal consultation is performed at an hourly rate to be negotiated between the attorney and the consulting radiologist.  Cases will be reviewed by the most appropriate or requested expert subspecialist with a 3-hour advance payment for the confidential and full review of all of the initial documents and images as a consultant medical expert, including the radiologist’s analysis of the case and a verbal preliminary medical opinion on the merits of the case.

Following this review, if the consulting radiologist is requested to become an expert witness and agrees the case has merit, and after both the radiologist and requesting attorney sign the Health Care Consultant, Medical Expert Engagement Agreement, a 10-hour initial fee will be paid to the consultant as detailed in the contract, and the radiologist can then be officially named as an expert witness for the case.  Further fees and expectations of payment for expenses, travel, deposition, reports, etc. are as detailed in the contract.