Healthcare and Medico-Legal

At Thomson Wilks our Healthcare and Medico-Legal team is dedicated to protecting those who protect others. We act for major private hospital networks, healthcare practitioners, and insurers in complex litigation, regulatory, and compliance matters across South Africa and beyond.

From defending high-value medical negligence claims to advising on health-sector regulation and cross-border compliance, we deliver sophisticated, commercially attuned legal solutions.

Our approach combines deep sector knowledge with strategic insight into how healthcare providers, insurers, and professionals operate - ensuring outcomes that are defensible, sustainable, and aligned with clients’ broader business objectives.

Team expertise including:

1. Medical Malpractice and Litigation

We defend hospitals, practitioners and insurers in high-value and mid-tier medical negligence claims.  

Our experience includes:

• Misdiagnosis, surgical and medication errors, obstetric and neurological injuries, and wrongful surgery claims
• Managing civil litigation, arbitration, and inquests arising from alleged negligence
• Representation before the HPCSA, SANC, OHSC, and related statutory bodies
• Dispute management, including coordination of expert witnesses, media liaison, and reputational response
• Advising on professional indemnity, product liability, and coverage dispute

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2. Healthcare Regulatory and Compliance Advisory

We advise hospital networks, pharmaceutical and medical-device manufacturers and healthcare professionals on:

• Licensing and regulatory frameworks under South African health laws and SAHPRA guidelines
• Data protection, telemedicine, and artificial-intelligence applications in clinical settings
• Policy reviews and compliance audits for hospital and insurer clients
• Import, export, and sale of medical devices and alternative medicine
• Ethical issues in clinical research, patient consent, and digital health innovation

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3. Risk Management and Training

As a value-add to our clients, we design and deliver tailored medico-legal training programmes and workshops covering:

• Incident investigation and patient-complaint management
• Record-keeping, confidentiality, and informed consent
• Ethical and emerging issues, including AI and personalised medicine
• Criminal and forensic aspects of medical practice
• These initiatives empower healthcare teams to reduce exposure, strengthen compliance, and embed a culture of accountability.

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