Answers to Common Questions
What is a Certified Legal Nurse Consultant (CLNC)?
A certified legal nurse consultant is a licensed registered nurse who has attained specialized training beyond the nursing degree and has passed a certification examination. Chiarezza CLNCs combine their nursing expertise with this specialized training to assist attorney-clients in cases such as medical malpractice, general negligence, product liability, toxic torts and environmental cases, worker’s compensation and workplace injury and criminal cases.
My firm only uses physicians. Why should I hire a certified legal nurse consultant?
Physicians are experts at medicine, and are unfamiliar with nursing standards. In addition to knowledge of nursing standards of care, the certified legal nurse consultant comprehends the inner workings of the health care system.
Chiarezza CLNCs can provide a cost-effective alternative for your firm before you need to retain costly physician testifying experts. You ultimately may provide the best results for your clients by combining the knowledge brought to you by both the physician and the CLNC.
I need a testifying expert. I don't need a consulting expert. So why would I hire a certified legal nurse consultant?
Chiarezza has access to a nationwide network of skilled healthcare professionals available as consulting or testifying experts. Additionally, through the owner's previous business experience in the medical device world, we have access to an extensive network of physicians on the cutting edge of their specialties who may act as testifying experts for you.
My law clerks or paralegals can do library research for me, so why would I need a certified legal nurse consultant?
Law clerks or paralegals may not be comfortable identifying relevant health care standards, identifying authoritative texts or literature, or identifying and validating medical research results—things that certified legal nurse consultants perform routinely. CLNCs can complement the work done by your clerks and paralegals
Chiarezza CLNCs can also assist with developing visual aids and demonstrative evidence on medical issues for juries in a variety of methods and at a level that juries can understand them. Hiring a CLNC will free up your law clerks and paralegals to do legal research for your cases.