The lawyer must also have malpractice insurance. Attorney Patrick Tomasiewicz, of Fazzano & Tomasiewicz, LLC in Hartford, has practiced criminal law for 27 years and said that he has had several clients who would have greatly benefited from having a

The senators spent much of Wednesday afternoon discussing the law and telling anecdotes about malpractice cases with which they were familiar. After two hours of discussion and debate, the Senate passed the bill temporarily without a vote.

When Sandra Gersten followed in the footsteps of two pioneering sisters to become a lawyer in 1960, her husband already had a thriving law firm in downtown Hartford with his three brothers and she wanted to work part time until the children grew up.

Earlier in her career, Karen served as an associate at another Connecticut law firm, where she defended medical malpractice cases and physicians before the Connecticut Department of Public Health. Karen began her career at Beth Israel Medical Center in

So essentially, the insurers are sharing in [paying] the attorneys' fees.” It was one of two big legislative wins for trial lawyers. The other victory makes it easier for plaintiffs' attorneys to make offers of compromise in medical malpractice cases.