With increasing frequency we observe cases in which the existence of an error in a medical action is analysed. This fact generates situations of liability for healthcare professionals and institutions with consequences for patients and their families that can be framed in different areas of law, depending on the existence (or not) of a contractual relationship between the healthcare professional and the patient.

However, these cases may be framed in different aspects of the law, depending on the bond of the health professional and the medical act itself. The civil liability regime in public hospitals or in private clinics and/or offices is different, given that the State and other Entities’ Extra-contractual Civil Liability Regime and the Civil Code rules apply to the former.

On the other hand, the liability for medical “bad practice” is, in most cases, associated to the error, consubstantiating an action or omission that violates the “leges artis” and causes a damage to the patient, falling, mainly, in the field of negligence, although if the action integrates the lack of expertise or prudence the legal consequences are different.

It is also important to bear in mind that the verification of the medical error does not imply tout court the imputation of civil responsibility to the professional who practices it, having to be fulfilled all the assumptions of that institute.

Thus, the correct analysis of the situation and its legal framework is essential for an adequate defense of the associated interests, and Belzuz Abogados has professionals with extensive experience in the analysis of situations of this nature, following the processes both in the extrajudicial and judicial phases.