PROBLEMS OF LIABILITY IN MEDICAL PROFESSION TO THE ACT OF TORT BY INGURES OF THE LIFE AND BODY

Abstract

      This research aimed to study background, history, concept, and theory on physicians’ tort liability in life and body damages, foreign and Thailand’s legal measures on physicians’ liability due to tort conduct leading to life and body damages, and to analyze problems and obstacles of physicians’ tort liability in life and body damages in order to propose approaches to make improvements and recommendations on physicians’ tort liability in life and body damages. The findings showed that: 1) in case of the problems on tort liability, searching for facts was a heavy burden for the plaintiffs because most of the evidence was in the exclusive knowledge of the defendants only (physicians), so it was difficult for the plaintiff to prove and search for essential facts necessary for judging the case accurately and fairly, 2) the problems on proving physicians’ tort liability still lacked criteria on appointing medical expert witness to establish a pang of guilt due to physicians’ tort liability following the Section 84/1 of the Civil Procedure Code, and 3) in case of the problems on punitive damages in tort in case of physicians’ tort liability in life and body damages, the Civil and Commercial Code and the Medical Profession Act B.E. 2525 still lacked criteria on punitive damages leading to physician’s torts continuously.

           The researcher would like to propose to make revisions on Section 438 of the Civil and Commercial Code and the Section 32 of the Medical Profession Act B.E. 2525 in order to provide criteria on punitive damages in both laws.