2006 Ohio Revised Code - 2743.43. Expert testimony on liability issues.

§ 2743.43. Expert testimony on liability issues.
 

(A)  No person shall be deemed competent to give expert testimony on the liability issues in a medical claim, as defined in section 2305.113 [2305.11.3] of the Revised Code, unless: 

(1) Such person is licensed to practice medicine and surgery, osteopathic medicine and surgery, or podiatric medicine and surgery by the state medical board or by the licensing authority of any state; 

(2) Such person devotes three-fourths of the person's professional time to the active clinical practice of medicine or surgery, osteopathic medicine and surgery, or podiatric medicine and surgery, or to its instruction in an accredited university; 

(3) The person practices in the same or a substantially similar specialty as the defendant. The court shall not permit an expert in one medical specialty to testify against a health care provider in another medical specialty unless the expert shows both that the standards of care and practice in the two specialties are similar and that the expert has substantial familiarity between the specialties. 

(4) If the person is certified in a specialty, the person must be certified by a board recognized by the American board of medical specialties or the American board of osteopathic specialties in a specialty having acknowledged expertise and training directly related to the particular health care matter at issue. 

(B)  Nothing in division (A) of this section shall be construed to limit the power of the trial court to adjudge the testimony of any expert witness incompetent on any other ground. 

(C)  Nothing in division (A) of this section shall be construed to limit the power of the trial court to allow the testimony of any other witness, on a matter unrelated to the liability issues in the medical claim, when that testimony is relevant to the medical claim involved. 
 

HISTORY: 136 v H 682 (Eff 7-28-75); 136 v H 1426 (Eff 7-1-76); 149 v S 281. Eff 4-11-2003; 150 v H 215, § 1, eff. 9-13-04.
 

The provisions of § 3, H.B. 215 (150 v  - ), read as follows: 

SECTION 3. The General Assembly respectfully requests the Supreme Court to amend the Rules of Civil Procedure to require a plaintiff filing a medical liability claim to include a certificate of expert review as to each defendant. The General Assembly respectfully requests that the certificate of expert review require the signature of an expert witness from the same specialty as the defendant; said witness shall be required to meet the statutory evidentiary and case law requirements of a medical expert capable of testifying at trial. A certificate of expert review should be required to state with particularity the expert's familiarity with the applicable standard of care, the expert's qualifications, the expert's opinion as to how the applicable standard of care was breached, and the expert's opinion as to how the breach resulted in the injury or death. 

See provisions, § 6 of SB 281 (149 v  - ) following RC § 2711.21. 

 

Effect of Amendments

150 v H 215, effective September 13, 2004, added (A)(3) and (4); and, in (C), substituted "witness, on a matter unrelated to the liability issues in the medical claim, when that testimony" for "expert witness that". 

 

Ohio Rules

General rule of competency, EvR 601.