By the time an obstetrical legal case reaches trial, many, many years have gone by since the delivery. Illustrative of this point is the fact that most of the recent obstetrical cases which have been decided by our courts in the last year or so, involve deliveries which occurred in the early 1990s. For that reason, from a medical professional's point of view, recent judicial decisions may not necessarily be relevant to what happens today in the delivery of obstetrical care. Judicial developments may lag behind medical developments. Nevertheless, there are a number of legal issues which are commonly problematic in obstetrical cases, no matter when the delivery took place.
Presented at Canadian Institute Obstetrical Malpractice Conference (2004 and 2007)
