Legal nurse consulting is a relatively new role in the landscape of civil law. Sometimes called LNCs or nurse paralegals, individuals who practice in this field bring their medical knowledge and experience to cases that demand important expertise concerning bodily injuries or regulatory claims.
Legal nurse consultants work in law firms, hospitals or insurance companies performing a variety of duties. These in-house employees have an average salary of $80,000/year plus benefits. Other legal nurse consultants serve as independent contractors and, depending on their education and experience, can command $100-$250/hour in consulting fees.
What are the Requirements to Work as a Legal Nurse Consultant?
A person must first be a registered nurse with a BSN degree to work as a legal nurse consultant. While this is the only formal requirement, most people will also need solid experience working as a nurse in a medical setting. Because legal nurse consultants will be giving advice about matters that have to do with things that happen in the doctor’s office and hospitals, it is important that they have working knowledge of those environments.
Additionally, it helps a nurse get a foot in the door as a consultant if she graduates from an legal nurse consultant or nurse paralegal program. The American Bar Association, or ABA, has defined the profession as falling under the definition of paralegal, so it’s important for nurses to gain an understanding of the duties and responsibilities of a paralegal.
These paralegal programs vary in form, length and expense. Many of them allow graduates to identify themselves as certified legal nurse consultants, or CLNCs. Certification is not a requirement, but it does add credibility to the career path of a nurse paralegal.
What Types of Work Do Nurse Paralegals Do for Law Firms?
Legal nurse consultants work closely with attorneys and paralegals to develop all types of litigation cases, to include medical malpractice, personal injury, products and premises liability and workers compensation. Medical records are a key component to any lawsuit that results in bodily injury, and nurse paralegals spend time reviewing, summarizing and indexing these records.
Additionally, they form medical opinions on the facts of each lawsuit based on their contemplation of medical records and other evidence. Attorneys use these opinions to build an offensive or defensive case. Often times, they work as part of a trial team, using their medical and legal knowledge to prepare pleadings, evidence and witnesses.
How Can a Legal Nurse Consultant Build a Practice as a Contractor?
Legal nurse consultants who wish to contract their services as independent advisers to lawyers, hospitals or other organizations have no shortage of potential clients. Nurse paralegals can market in various manners. Joining and getting involved in local bar and hospital associations is a highly effective way to get a foot in the door.
It is best to market services to attorneys who specialize in cases with a strong medical component. A key selling point for legal nurse consultant services is that nurse paralegals can provide much of the knowledge the attorney is seeking at a lower rate than a medical doctor would charge.
Nurse paralegals play a vital role in delivering quality health and legal services to the public. With the proper education, training and experience, any registered nurse can work in this interesting, lucrative specialty branch of the medical and legal fields.
Sources:
ABA: Guidelines for the Approval of Paralegal Education Programs
Legal Nurse: Frequently Asked Questions
For more information concerning legal career opportunities, please read Become a Certificated of Certified Paralegal, What is a Legal Document Preparer or Assistant? and Paralegal Online Degree: Accredited Certification or Not?
Janice Fahy - Janice Fahy is a freelance writer who is comfortable researching and writing on just about any topic under the sun.
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