Wimbish Comments on Certifying Experts
Among the interviewees for the recently published article by Peter Veith in the Virginia Medical Law Report, Randy Wimbish was the one who identified stilll unanswered questions after Circuit Judge Gaylord Finch's ruling.
"The Grimaldi decision leaves a major question unanswered, said Richmond medical malpractice defense attorney Carlyle R. Wimbish, III. He said circuit judges have split on whether a judge has the right to review a plaintiff's certifying opinion if it's challenged by the defense. More often, he said, the judge will not demand to see the opinion.
Wimbish said it's a weakness in an otherwise valuable law. "There is no means to look behind it when there's a question about adequate certification."
He said he has called certification into question on two occasions. In one case, the plaintiff's counsel admitted he did not get a certifying opinion, and the judge imposed sanctions. In the other, the judge refused to make the plaintiff's lawyer pony up the paper for an in camera review.
"There ought to be some means to get the court to look behind it if there's some reason to suggest there wasn't [a certifying opinion]," said Wimbish."