Medical Justice membership provides comprehensive support for challenges such as preventing frivolous lawsuits, addressing unwarranted refund demands, managing sham peer reviews, and safeguarding your online reputation. Our expert team assists with issues like defamatory reviews, medical board complaints, and notices of intent to sue.
We offer protection plans, online review monitoring, and consultations for concerns that fall outside of membership coverage (such as board complaints, National Practitioner Data Bank reports, and negotiation on your behalf with patients seeking refunds), with suggested next steps to help you regain control. If you require more hands-on assistance, or if your need falls outside the scope of membership, we can often be engaged for further support.
Our History
In 1998, founder and CEO Dr. Jeffrey Segal developed the concept of Medical Justice while practicing neurosurgery. His vision is a unique approach that forms part of our two-pronged strategy: to deter the filing of frivolous medical malpractice lawsuits and to enable viable responses and remedies from wrongful suits against physicians. We filed our first patents in 1999, and with the signing of our first distribution agreement in 2002, Medical Justice commercialized our proactive professional liability service. By 2003, the U.S. Patent Office had issued the patents covering the company’s protective system.
During his career as a practicing neurosurgeon, Dr. Segal recognized that the tort system in the United States did little to dissuade medical malpractice plaintiffs—even those who knowingly filed frivolous medical malpractice lawsuits. This situation persists: in the experience of many unfortunate physicians, the legal system provides little protection against dishonest claimants and leaves them few practical remedies, whether or not they are proven “innocent.”
Although Dr. Segal practiced in states that had embraced tort reform (California and Indiana), he was frustrated that such reforms were incomplete. He was also concerned with the lack of balanced reforms in other regions. In many parts of the United States, physicians are baselessly sued for medical malpractice frequently, and pay exorbitant malpractice premiums. Dr. Segal assessed the national medical malpractice landscape and saw the need for a proactive strategy to mitigate frivolous malpractice suits and better protect physicians.
Thus—the creation of Medical Justice.
Today, Medical Justice has assisted over 12,000 physicians in the US. We create a practice infrastructure to prevent, deter, and respond to frivolous medical malpractice suits. We offer prospective and retroactive service plans that enable “points forward” service as well as optional benefits as far back as residency. Medical Justice supports a broad group of medical specialties and is endorsed by many state, county, and specialty medical societies.
Chief Executive Officer & Founder
Jeffrey Segal, MD, JD is a board-certified neurosurgeon and lawyer. In the process of conceiving, funding, developing, and growing Medical Justice, Dr. Segal has established himself as one of the country’s leading authorities on medical malpractice issues, counterclaims, and internet-based assaults on reputation.
Feeling the pressure? Learn how we can protect you.
With our pioneering combination of expertise, resources, and medical reputation management services, we deliver as seasoned advisors and formidable advocates. We’re the first call doctors make when they sense trouble. We stand vigilantly by our member physicians with guidance and grit, relentlessly clearing out frivolous lawsuits before they start, and being the go-to for guidance when situations are at their most bewildering.
We know your time is valuable. Spend a few minutes with us and discover how membership protects what’s important to good medical practice – and does away with what’s detrimental…
Not sure where to start? Let’s talk about it. The fastest way to diagnose your dilemma is with a brief phone call. We’ll listen to your concerns, weigh your objectives against our current offerings, and suggest potential options.
Protection
Protection against frivolous lawsuits and damage to your good name
Approximately 85% of intent-to-sue notifications that Medical Justice members face are dismissed before escalating to lawsuit status.*
Medical Justice makes your practice’s protection complete. We work tirelessly to neutralize frivolous lawsuits quickly with the goal of reducing your overall risk of legal claims. After all, prevention is always preferable to a painful cure. For those lawsuits not halted, we’re with you for the long haul. What’s more, we offer the most complete suite of services dedicated to managing your online reputation – completing the sphere of protection for your practice.
*Ohio and California data
Leadership
Leadership to deter the specific medico-legal issues physicians face
At any moment, there are up to 60,000 open medical malpractice cases – though four out of five are deemed to have no merit.
As the proven experts in medico-legal issues for doctors, we’re the first call our members make when a question or problem arises. Founded by doctors exclusively for fellow doctors, we’ve been leading the way for over twenty years. We take your protection further because we know what it means for doctors like you. After all, we’re deeply rooted in the medical world ourselves.
Results
Results our members count on for the health and prosperity of their practices
“I was not dropped from the suit until my defense attorney received the Medical Justice letter and called the plaintiff attorney and described the letter. A dismissal was filed with the court the next day. Thanks Medical Justice!”—Mike Ritter, MD, Emergency Medicine, CA
When our members call on us, we deliver. Medico-legal threats and challenges to your reputation often arise with the same urgency as medical problems. We respond quickly to our members’ needs with genuine solutions to real concerns and pressing issues. From deterrence and counterclaim support to guidance in taking the right steps for the overall health of your practice, positive outcomes are our specialty.
We’ll Stand Fast When the World Bewilders
Each year many groundless medical malpractice suits are initiated against health care providers. Physicians are pressured to settle frivolous medical malpractice lawsuits in order to minimize their financial risk, damaging their professional reputation, creating undue stress, and greatly increasing medical malpractice insurance premiums. The legal system leaves physicians vulnerable to frivolous medical malpractice lawsuits filed by unethical attorneys and “expert” witnesses.
Medical Justice holds those who exploit those vulnerabilities accountable.
Arm Yourself with Expertise: Subscribe to Our Newsletter
Our newsletter helps doctors better understand medico-legal legislation. We cover everything from strange medical malpractice cases to the bizarre medico-legal issues that inspire them. As well as must-know general information, that doctors should know, but often don’t. Keeping informed can help you achieve peace of mind – or give you valuable time to prepare for the storm you didn’t know was coming.
Subscribers receive new articles every Friday at 5PM, EST.
Popular topics we’ve covered in the past include:
- The UK surgeon who burned his initials into his patients’ organs
- The emerging legislation that wants cameras in every operating room
- The medico-legal issues at play when a patient’s pacemaker is hacked
- The common (and uncommon) legal issues with physician advertising
When our members call on us, we answer…
And we’re called on a lot. So we’ve learned a lot. We’ve chronicled our most invaluable experiences in the form of case studies. These reports are measures of our past successes and strong indicators of future outcomes. We trust they will prove informative and perhaps even entertaining.
You have real concerns and pressing problems, so we respond quickly with genuine solutions. Learn how we’ve helped our many loyal clients in our case study library.
Our Effectiveness is the Success of Our Clients
Medical Justice has been protecting doctors from frivolous litigation since 2002. It is our duty and our privilege to protect the livelihoods entrusted to us.
Today, Medical Justice has helped over 12,000 physicians across the U.S.
“What Medical Justice did for me was something my med-mal carrier could not do: it made me no longer fear my patients.”
—J. Crutchfield, MD, FACS
Our members value the services we provide and aren’t afraid to let us know.
We invite you to browse their feedback and weigh their feelings and experiences against your expectations and objectives.
Browse Our Library of Complimentary Resources
Our executive team breaks medico-legal dilemmas into bite-sized lessons. Each video features commentary from Medical Justice Founder and CEO, Jeff Segal, MD, JD, and Medical Justice General Counsel, Mike Sacopulos, and blogs are written by Jeff Segal, MD, JD.
Key resources include:
- How do lawyers shake down doctors? And what can doctors do to stop them?
- My ex-employee stole my database to start her own practice…now what?
- HIPAA Compliance for Doctors and Medical Practices – An Essential Review
- How easily can patients extort their doctors?
Past Speaking Engagements
Founded by doctors exclusively for fellow doctors, we’ve led the way in physicians’ medico-legal matters since 2002. Since inception, Medical Justice Founder and CEO, Jeff Segal, MD, JD has received invitations to address audiences at many venues, including:
Endorsements
We’re deeply rooted in the world of physicians, and we’re proud to be endorsed by (or a member-benefit of) the following organizations.