Archive for August, 2011

Contingent Funding for Law Firms

Wednesday, August 31st, 2011

Here is my recent video blog on the topic of Contingent Funding for law firms, which I explain in detail chapter 7 of my book.

I invite you to subscribe to my YouTube channel for future updates:

Mike Swanson

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No Shortage of Medical Errors

Tuesday, August 30th, 2011

We’ve all heard about the so-called “frivolous lawsuit” problem in America and about how doctors desperately need protection from greedy lawyers who are out to victimize them and the hospitals in which they practice.  Well, I took just a few minutes to check out a few facts. First, I found that, according to the CDC, the top ten causes of death in the U.S. for 2007 (the most recent complete data), including the number of deaths for each was:

1)   Heart disease: 616,067

2)   Cancer: 562,875

3)   Stroke (cerebrovascular diseases): 135,952

4)   Chronic lower respiratory diseases: 127,924

5)   Accidents (unintentional injuries): 123,706

6)   Alzheimer’s disease: 74,632

7)   Diabetes: 71,382

8)   Influenza and Pneumonia: 52,717

9)   Nephritis, nephrotic syndrome, and nephrosis: 46,448

10) Septicemia: 34,828

(source: https://www.cdc.gov/nchs/fastats/deaths.htm)

Next, I tried to find out the number of deaths that are attributable to medical mistakes each year.  I was surprised at how hard it is to find that out!  You would think the CDC would have a category for medical errors but apparently they do not.  Wonder why?  Hmmm…

I did find a few sources, and among them was a fairly well footnoted article on Wikipedia here.  It is difficult to know exactly how many people are killed by medical errors each year, but according to the sources cited the answer seems to be somewhere between 44,000 per year on the low end and 200,000 on the high end.  If we average those two numbers, we come up with an estimate of 122,000 deaths per year.  (Wow!)

(source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Medical_errors)

Now look back at the chart of the top ten causes of death as reported by the CDC above.  It would appear that medical errors are well within the top ten causes of death per year.  In fact, if we assume that those 122,000 deaths are “hidden” somewhere in the other causes in the chart and should therefore be subtracted out and reported separately, then deaths caused by medical errors could easily be as high as number 4 or 5 on the list!

I don’t think we need medical malpractice tort reform…I think we need medical competency reform!

PS.  The numbers above only discuss deaths caused by medical errors, not injuries.  I’ll try to blog about injuries soon.

Michael J. Swanson

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How David Beats Goliath in the News

Friday, August 26th, 2011

As seen on Reuters, Yahoo Finance, Market Watch and many others.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

CONTACT: Tina Burns, Marketing Manager at [email protected]

How David Beats Goliath

Access to Capital for Contingent Fee Law Firms

(Nashville, Tenn. – July 25, 2011) – The new book How David Beats Goliath: Access to Capital for Contingent Fee Law Firms addresses a little-known but critical flaw in America’s system of justice. Average citizens who have been injured or wronged through negligence or malfeasance are guaranteed their day in court. In practice, however, this bedrock legal right is often compromised.

Industry veteran Michael J. Swanson, the President and Chief Executive Officer of Advocate Capital, Inc., has written a definitive, common-sense book that explains how contingency-fee funding works, who provides it, what it costs, and how law firms can acquire and use it efficiently.

“I wrote the book because I believe in the important work that plaintiff lawyers do every day as they put into practice every citizen’s constitutional rights, especially the right to a trial by jury guaranteed under the seventh amendment of the United States Constitution.” commented Mr. Swanson.  He continued “I also have come to realize that there is a need for more and better practical training for contingent-fee law firms regarding financial and business management techniques.  This book is an attempt to help fill that void.”

Mr. Swanson has generously committed to donate all profits from sales of the book to the American Association for Justice – Seventh Amendment Fund. Contributions to this AAJ fund help provide the resources needed to protect the civil justice system and every American’s right to a trial by jury.

Initial reviews of the book have been very positive.  “This book describes the real life drama faced by individuals and the attorneys who represent them. I…recommend this book to all practitioners who toil in the trenches on behalf of those we represent.”  Said Robert Cartwright, of the Cartwright Law Firm Inc. in San Francisco, CA.  Another trial lawyer, Mitchell Jensen of Siegfried & Jensen, P.C. in Salt Lake City, UT had this to say “Mike [has] hit it on the head with this book! Our freedoms and constitution will soon be hanging by a thread if the trend continues.”

More information is available at www.HowDavidBeatsGoliath.com, including a free sample chapter of the book, links to online bookstores and more information about the author, Michael J. Swanson.

Note:  The views expressed in this book are not necessarily representative of the views held by AAJ.  Furthermore, the donation of profits from the sales of the books to the Seventh Amendment Fund does not imply that AAJ has endorsed Advocate Capital, Inc. or the book and the views and information contained therein.

Attention, Media: For more information about the book and the author, please contact…

Tina Burns, Marketing Manager

Tel: 615.577.5447 Fax: 615.377.9212

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EPN Interview: Mandatory Arbitration with Michael J. Swanson

EPN Interview: 7th Amendment Advocate Michael J. Swanson

Michael J. Swanson ePodcast Network Interview

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