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Course Details

Course Information
  • smart_display Format

    Live Online with Live Q&A

  • signal_cellular_alt Difficulty Level

    Intermediate

  • work Practice Area

    Personal Injury and Med Mal

Date & Time
  • event Date

    Tuesday, July 8, 2025

  • schedule Time

    1:00 p.m. ET./10:00 a.m. PT

  • timer Program Length

    90 minutes

Credit Information

  • This 90-minute webinar is eligible in most states for 1.5 CLE credits.

$297.00
CLE
ALL

This CLE webinar will guide personal injury and medical malpractice attorneys in nursing home abuse and negligence cases on how to nimbly handle state surveys and reports, patients' Minimum Data Set (MDS) required assessments, the Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act (OBRA) and related regulations, and policy and procedures manuals to take compelling nursing home depositions. The panel will discuss how these documents can be used to establish standard of care and deviations from that standard. Attendees will also hear from defense counsel about best strategies for defending depositions involving these documents.

Faculty

Gillian A. Fisher
Partner
McGivney, Kluger, Clark & Intoccia, PC

Ms. Fisher's practice includes talc and asbestos products liability/toxic tort, medical malpractice, and general liability cases. Over her 27+ year career, she has defended hospitals, nursing facilities and physicians in medical malpractice claims arising in numerous medical specialties, including obstetrics, infectious diseases, geriatrics, cardiology, transplant, general surgery, orthopedics and plastic surgery. Ms. Fisher has also represented clients in Intellectual Property and Entertainment law, including review and negotiation of contracts, negotiating disputes related to wages and discrimination, and handling issues concerning the rights of privacy and publicity.

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Katherine L. McCrink
Partner
Wilson Elser, LLP

Ms. McCrink focuses her practice on the defense of medical malpractice, nursing home liability and general liability claims. In the medical malpractice area, she represents hospitals, physicians, and other health care professionals in cases involving a variety of medical specialties. Ms. McCrink also has experience defending nursing home clients amid the increasing number of lawsuits seeking punitive damages under New York Public Health Law Section 2801-d. In addition, she has assisted with presentations to nursing home staff on risk management and proper documentation.

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Description

Nursing homes are highly regulated through comprehensive federal and state laws and regulations in order to participate in Medicare and Medicaid programs. Plaintiffs in nursing home neglect and abuse cases can use these regulations and the reports and records they mandate to expose and illustrate the applicable safety rules, alleged violations or deviations from those rules, and how those deviations resulted in harm.

Nonetheless, nursing home defendants often argue that applicable rules and regulations deal only with reimbursement conditions and do not establish a standard of care. Similarly, defense counsel often posit that the nursing home's policies and procedures are merely guidelines, not requirements.

Armed with state surveys, MDS, the defendant's policies and procedures manual, and deep knowledge of OBRA, plaintiff's counsel can take powerful depositions in a nursing home case. Defense counsel must be able to anticipate and counter any possible overstatement or misapplication of the relevant rules.

Listen as this expert panel of plaintiff and defense nursing home litigators explores how to make the most of the applicable rules and regulations and best strategies for limiting the damage they can cause.

Outline

I. Preparing for deposition

A. Selecting deponents

B. Obtaining the documents

II. Deposing the witness

A. Minimum Data Set (MDS)

B. Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act (OBRA)

C. State surveys

D. Policies and procedures manuals

Benefits

The panel will review these and other key issues:

  • What is an MDS, and what does it require? What are the latest rules and regulations for state surveys?
  • What reports are signed under penalty of perjury by the nursing home?
  • What makes an injury unavoidable, and what are just excuses?
  • What happens when nursing homes fail to advise families that they lack the resources to care for the patient?
  • Do policies and procedures manuals reflect standards of reasonable care?