New Legislation Will Change California’s Medical Malpractice System
On May 23, 2022, Gov. Gavin Newsom signed Assembly Bill 35, legislation to restructure the Medical Injury Compensation Reform Act’s (MICRA) limit on attorney’s fees and raise its cap on economic damages in California.
The measure was co-sponsored by the Consumer Attorneys of California and Californians Allied for Patient Protection.
Since becoming law in 1975, MICRA has been the subject of dispute throughout the courts and in state legislation due to the law’s $250,000 limit on non-economic damages in malpractice cases.
Additionally, this legislation increases the existing $250,000 cap on non-economic damages and provides for future increases to account for inflation. The legislation establishes two separate caps, depending on whether a wrongful death claim is involved. In a wrongful death case, the cap increases to $500,000. Each January 1st thereafter, this cap increases by $50,000 until it reaches $1 million. If the medical malpractice case does not involve wrongful death, the cap starts at $350,000, and increases each year by $40,000 until it reaches $750,000.
For full text of the bill, visit: http://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov.
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