Lightening Burden Of Proof In Medical Litigation

With the development of economy and society,a series of changes have taken place in the field of civil litigation.More and more new cases have gradually entered the field of civil litigation to form the so-called modern litigation,especially the modern litigation characterized by "evidence bias",such as medical disputes and other new litigation.This kind of dispute breaks the equal structure between the subjects in the traditional civil procedure,and the huge gap between the two sides in financial resources,intelligence and other aspects,resulting in the difficulties of the victims in safeguarding their rights.In these proceedings,in view of the unequal status of both parties,the difficulty of collecting evidence between the parties is different,which is commonly referred to as "arms inequality" in procedural law.The professional nature of the diagnosis and treatment activities should go beyond the general profession,but there are also great particularities.In many legal disputes concerning medical injury,it is not only difficult for the patient to prove the fault of the doctor's subjective intent,it is also difficult for the medical authorities to prove that their methods of diagnosis and treatment are not at fault,and the burden of proof and the consequences of failure to prove is biased both in terms of the patient and in terms of the medical institution.Therefore,in the process of modern litigation,by reducing the subjective burden of proof of the party responsible for the burden of proof,reasonably distributing the subjective burden of proof between the parties,balancing the status of proof of the parties,ensuring that the party responsible for the burden of proof can collect more case evidence through the burden of proof mitigation technology,and truly realize the parties of both sides It can carry out litigation on the basis of "equality of arms",so as to make the trial result more fair and just.In view of this,it is of great significance to study the relevant theories and regulations of burden of proof reduction.The harmonious coexistence of the doctor-patient relationship and the proper disposal of medical disputes have always been the focus of legislation and practicalattention.China 's legal scholars and legislatures have kept pace with the times in response to new problems arising from medical disputes and the reform of the medical system at different times,and have promoted the development of medical tort liability theory and legislation to better balance patients and medical care.The interests between the institutions have reached a more fair and just state.Before the promulgation and implementation of the Tort Liability Law,there was no special law in the field of medical tort liability.In practice,the division of medical tort disputes in practice is mainly based on the "Medical Accident Handling Measures","Medical Accident Handling Regulations" promulgated by the State Council,and the general rules scattered in the Civil Law,Relevant provisions in judicial interpretation.In the process of handling medical infringement disputes,various disputes also occur frequently,such as evidence is difficult to determine,proof responsibility is difficult to assign,law application is dual,and contradictions are difficult to resolve.Difficulties in the identification of evidence and the difficulty in proving the distribution of responsibility remain even after the Promulgation of the Tort Liability Law and the Supreme Law in December 2017 in the Judicial Interpretation of Liability for Medical Damage.Straightening out and in-depth analysis of the distribution of certification responsibility for medical infringement disputes in various periods will help us grasp the value orientation in the evolution of the system more macroscopically and provide better system and legal support for further reducing the burden of certification of patients.