Why do medical malpractice attorneys decline some cases?

Usually economics, not merit. Proving a California medical negligence case requires retained medical experts on both the standard of care and causation, while Civil Code section 3333.2 caps non-economic damages and Business and Professions Code section 6146 caps the contingency fee — so a case with modest economic damages can cost more to prove than it can return.

California medical negligence cases are expert-driven by design: the standard of care and causation must ordinarily be established through qualified medical expert testimony, and juries are instructed to follow the expert evidence. Retaining those experts, obtaining complete records, and taking provider depositions makes these cases expensive to prosecute, and the attorney typically advances every dollar. Two statutes then shape the return: Civil Code section 3333.2 caps non-economic damages (rising annually under AB 35 since 2023), and Business and Professions Code section 6146 caps the contingency fee on a sliding scale. When projected economic damages — medical costs and lost earnings — are modest, the arithmetic can rule out litigation even where care was questionable. A declination by one office is therefore not an assessment that no malpractice occurred; consulting more than one attorney is common and sensible. Do it quickly: the one-year discovery period of Code of Civil Procedure section 340.5 keeps running while a case is being evaluated.

Authority: Cal. Civ. Code § 3333.2