Dentist and the malpractice insurance they are required to carry. What is lawsuit protocol?

Question

I am in medical malpractice settlement negotiations with a dentist. Her insurance company was handling the negotiations, then the dentist license expired and the insurance company dropped the dentist. The dentist obtained a new policy from a new insurance company. Now the original insurance company has dropped out of negotiations. Is it possible that the original insurance company wants me to file suit against the dentist, and then the new insurance company will have to defend the dentist? Or, because the first insurance company received the initial settlement letter with notice of intent to sue, they will have to carry on and defend the dentist even though they no longer have the dentist as a client. Please clarify the typical procedure in this type of situation. Thanks a million! N.

Thanks for the info. I do have an attorney. But I do not want to sue and want to settle. The original insurance Co. made an offer, then we countered..then the Ins Co. dropped the dentist, and did not responded to the counter offer. SO, of course the attorney wants to sue cause he will make the big bucks. I want to settle because we were on track to settle. I just can't figure why the original insurance company would want to go to court unless they really don't care one way or another because the dentist is no longer a concern to them in the long run??? Tks. for you input.

Answer 1

You definitely need an attorney to work through this now. The dentist and the insurance company have dealt with you in bad faith. The insurance company probably did hope that you'd just go away. You aren't going to be able to fight this on your own, unfortunately. It's hard to say, without specialized knowledge of the laws in your area, to know who is responsible--the dentist, the old insurance company, or the new insurance company. Find a malpractice attorney who will work on contingency--don't pay an attorney anything up front.

Answer 2

Without specific facts, I would think the first insurance company would have to deal with you. The incident occurred while he was covered by that company. Doesn't seem likely that the new insurance company would pick up the liability of an incident before they were paid to cover the dentist.

Have you actually filed a lawsuit? Do you have an attorney? If the negotiations have died out, you may have to get an attorney and file suit.

Answer 3

This is complicated, and you should see an attorney like people said. But in all likelihood, the first insurance company is responsible for paying you since they were covering the dentist at the time the incident took place (just like with cars, the company that is covering you on the day of the accident is responsible). They may try to blow you off, telling you it's no longer their problem. Don't let them just disappear without paying your settlement.

Answer 4

You should probably contact an attorney who specializes in these matters.

Answer 5

Find a slip & fall... they'll take care of the rest.