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Attorney FAQ

Who is LegalNurse, Inc.?

LegalNurse, Inc. was founded, in 2008 by Laura Averette a 20+ year RN with many years of experience in healthcare risk management and malpractice claims management.  LegalNurse, Inc. is a full service legal nurse consulting firm specializing in assisting attorneys and claims adjustors in medically related litigation.  Services have included chronologies of medical records, case analysis of the claims within the litigation as it relates to the care provided, deposition review, assistance with discovery and expert witness location.

What are the benefits of working with LegalNurse, Inc.?

LegalNurse Inc. works behind the scenes with you to give you a leg up on what is in the voluminous medical records WELL BEFORE your deadline to disclose an expert.  You will receive a high quality, timely review of medical records in a cost effective manner.  You will appreciate the insights you gain through a chronology and case analysis so that you will understand the significant clinical events within the medical records. Your knowledge of the strengths and weaknesses of your cases helps prevent unpleasant surprises. With our help, you will be able to retain clinically active, well qualified, testifying experts. We actively recruit and screen testifying experts in advance of your need.  We also locate specifically credentialed experts.

What is NurseExpert, Inc.?

Since 2008 Laura Averette has established a loyal client base who rely on her for both medical summaries and chronologies but also expert witness location.  Responding to the high demand from attorneys to locate testifying experts, Laura launched a new division of LegalNurse, Inc. called NurseExpert, Inc.  NurseExpert, Inc. is solely focused on actively recruiting testifying experts prior to receiving a specific request for an expert.

Why should I rely on NurseExpert, Inc. to identify a testifying expert?

Laura Averette has worked with attorneys to prepare numerous nurses and other health care professionals for deposition and trial in medical malpractice litigation.  She has a keen ability to read people and recognize whether they “get the process” and are able to effectively communicate clinical information.  In addition, she understands the laws that govern the requirements of an expert such as “similar situation” and other mandates within state medical liability acts.

NurseExpert Inc., like any other service is dependent upon satisfied customers. We want to be your resource for all your clinical experts, not just one referral.  Therefore we are motivated to provide you with a quality expert.

I already have a chronology prepared by a paralegal. Isn’t that all I need?

LegalNurse, Inc. works with several attorneys who need an analysis or a second look at the chronology prepared by their paralegal.  Many paralegals are very adept at summarizing medical records into a chronology.  However, most are not clinically trained as nurses and therefore they may miss the clinical relevance of some medical information and other nuances within a case.

For example, Laura was once asked to simply summarize the medical specials in a premises liability spider bite case.  Upon review of the records it became crystal clear to Laura that the patient actually had community acquired MRSA that had not been correctly treated.  The ED ordered and renewed a first line skin infection antibiotic that would not treat MRSA.  The defendant was able to make a minimal settlement on behalf of his client who did not want to go to trial.

Why hire a consulting expert? I am going to need a testifying expert for my case, why not just rely on them to educate me on the medical records?

Most attorneys want to know what’s in their case, warts and all, before their expert disclosure deadline and without the fear of any work product being discoverable. Working with Laura as a consulting expert provides you that freedom.  You should be well versed in the strengths and weaknesses of your case from the point of view of a clinician before you hire an expert. A consulting review by Laura will also give you an extra set of eyes to anticipate what your expert may not know or may overlook.