US Doctor liable despite no patient relationship

http://www.ama-assn.org/amednews/2009/08/10/prca0810.htm

Doctor liable despite no patient relationship

In the Courts. By Amy Lynn Sorrel, AMNews staff. Posted Aug. 10, 2009.
Nevertheless, an Arizona appeals court recently found that a doctor doing one such exam on behalf of a workers' compensation carrier could be held partially liable for the death of a man he evaluated. The doctor is asking the state Supreme Court to hear the case. Before Dr. Krasner's evaluation, Ritchie signed a limited liability agreement stating: "It is very important that [Ritchie] realize that no doctor-patient relationship exists between you and Dr. Krasner. Because of this, the results of this evaluation will not be given to you or to anyone that you may request to receive them. This is done to insure that all findings will be neutral, and that the evaluators are completely independent and not involved in your disability claim."