From the desk of Hector J. Lombana

In a victory for medical malpractice victims and a setback for doctors, the Florida Supreme Court has allowed medical malpractice plaintiffs to waive limits on attorney contingency fees. The court held that plaintiffs may waive the fee limits if they sign an appropriate waiver.

The decision marks the culmination of a yearlong back-and-forth battle between doctors and attorneys to determine whether such waivers are a viable legal alternative to drastic limits on medical malpractice contingency fees, which were intended to deny injured individuals the ability to receive just reparations.

Florida voters approved a constitutional amendment in 2004 that limits attorneys' fees in medical malpractice cases. In response, attorneys for victims of medical malpractice began asking clients to sign consent forms waiving their rights to the fee limits.

On September 28th, the Supreme Court approved a procedural rule and a waiver form that allows that practice to continue. The court's approval of the rule wasn't a surprise -- the justices instructed the Florida Bar in December to draft the rules allowing patients to waive their new constitutional right.

The fee cap had made it impossible for victims of medical malpractice to find skilled and experienced lawyers to represent malpractice cases because they are often complex, time-consuming and expensive. Now that obstacle has been officially removed.