Evolution of Jurisdiction in Medical Malpractice Cases in Hungary
In Hungary, in the period before the political transition, in 1989 and in the first years afterwards, a relatively small number of medical compensation lawsuits were initiated. However, the enactment of the Health Act in 1997 has gradually changed this and made the patient from the previous vulnera...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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State Higher Educational Establishment «Uzhhorod National University».
2023-08-01
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| Series: | Науковий вісник Ужгородського національного університету. Серія Право |
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| Online Access: | http://visnyk-pravo.uzhnu.edu.ua/article/view/286459 |
| _version_ | 1797728939583471616 |
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| author | Judit Zákány |
| author_facet | Judit Zákány |
| author_sort | Judit Zákány |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description |
In Hungary, in the period before the political transition, in 1989 and in the first years afterwards, a relatively small number of medical compensation lawsuits were initiated. However, the enactment of the Health Act in 1997 has gradually changed this and made the patient from the previous vulnerable position to an equal partner with the healers. As a consequence, we can observe the conscious consumer behaviour of citizens in relation to healthcare services, so recently the quality of health services is more often being questioned.
In the previous judicial practice, the rate of patients winning lawsuits was completely different compared to the current situation, the majority of cases ended with the dismissal of their claims. The reason for this lies in the vulnerable position of the patient which already exists during healthcare and lawsuits as well. Neither the judicial practice nor the legal environment attempted to counterbalance this vulnerability at that time.
However, this has gradually changed, and nowadays we can witness a particularly strict judicial practice, the establishment of liability for damages of healthcare institutions is frequent.
The purpose of the article is to demonstrate how the judicial practice of the medical compensation cases has evolved over the past 15-20 years in Hungary, and as a result, what currently observable trends have emerged. To achieve this, it is essential to examine extensively two preconditions of civil law liability for damages, namely causation and fault, as jurisdiction has changed the most in this aspect. Many factors of uncertainty arise in connection with healthcare services due to the uniqueness of the human body. The outcome of lawsuits is significantly influenced by how the court assesses uncertainty factors and which party bears the burden of uncertainty.
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| first_indexed | 2024-03-12T11:22:37Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-03e639e696154c5c8112f619d5e288f2 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2307-3322 2664-6153 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-12T11:22:37Z |
| publishDate | 2023-08-01 |
| publisher | State Higher Educational Establishment «Uzhhorod National University». |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Науковий вісник Ужгородського національного університету. Серія Право |
| spelling | doaj.art-03e639e696154c5c8112f619d5e288f22023-09-01T15:32:14ZengState Higher Educational Establishment «Uzhhorod National University».Науковий вісник Ужгородського національного університету. Серія Право2307-33222664-61532023-08-0117810.24144/2307-3322.2023.78.1.61Evolution of Jurisdiction in Medical Malpractice Cases in HungaryJudit Zákány0PhD, senior lecturer Administrative Law Department Faculty of Law University of Debrece In Hungary, in the period before the political transition, in 1989 and in the first years afterwards, a relatively small number of medical compensation lawsuits were initiated. However, the enactment of the Health Act in 1997 has gradually changed this and made the patient from the previous vulnerable position to an equal partner with the healers. As a consequence, we can observe the conscious consumer behaviour of citizens in relation to healthcare services, so recently the quality of health services is more often being questioned. In the previous judicial practice, the rate of patients winning lawsuits was completely different compared to the current situation, the majority of cases ended with the dismissal of their claims. The reason for this lies in the vulnerable position of the patient which already exists during healthcare and lawsuits as well. Neither the judicial practice nor the legal environment attempted to counterbalance this vulnerability at that time. However, this has gradually changed, and nowadays we can witness a particularly strict judicial practice, the establishment of liability for damages of healthcare institutions is frequent. The purpose of the article is to demonstrate how the judicial practice of the medical compensation cases has evolved over the past 15-20 years in Hungary, and as a result, what currently observable trends have emerged. To achieve this, it is essential to examine extensively two preconditions of civil law liability for damages, namely causation and fault, as jurisdiction has changed the most in this aspect. Many factors of uncertainty arise in connection with healthcare services due to the uniqueness of the human body. The outcome of lawsuits is significantly influenced by how the court assesses uncertainty factors and which party bears the burden of uncertainty. http://visnyk-pravo.uzhnu.edu.ua/article/view/286459civil law liabilityhealthcare service provider,patientmedical malpractice lawsuitrights of patientscausality |
| spellingShingle | Judit Zákány Evolution of Jurisdiction in Medical Malpractice Cases in Hungary Науковий вісник Ужгородського національного університету. Серія Право civil law liability healthcare service provider, patient medical malpractice lawsuit rights of patients causality |
| title | Evolution of Jurisdiction in Medical Malpractice Cases in Hungary |
| title_full | Evolution of Jurisdiction in Medical Malpractice Cases in Hungary |
| title_fullStr | Evolution of Jurisdiction in Medical Malpractice Cases in Hungary |
| title_full_unstemmed | Evolution of Jurisdiction in Medical Malpractice Cases in Hungary |
| title_short | Evolution of Jurisdiction in Medical Malpractice Cases in Hungary |
| title_sort | evolution of jurisdiction in medical malpractice cases in hungary |
| topic | civil law liability healthcare service provider, patient medical malpractice lawsuit rights of patients causality |
| url | http://visnyk-pravo.uzhnu.edu.ua/article/view/286459 |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT juditzakany evolutionofjurisdictioninmedicalmalpracticecasesinhungary |