Why do medical malpractice, nursing home, and other corporate defendants want secrecy?

When we sue negligent hospitals, medical practices, dental practices, nursing homes, insurance companies, and other corporations, we want to learn everything we can to figure out (1) what happened, (2) why it happened, and (3) how it can be prevented from happening again.  We uncover this information in the "discovery" phase of the lawsuit, when the trial court allows us to request documents from wrongdoers and take witness statements under oath.  

Many defendants in medical malpractice, nursing home abuse and neglect, insurance disputes, and other cases want to keep this information secret through a binding "confidentiality agreement."  At Atkins & Walker Law, we do not agree that such an agreement is fair to the client or fair to the public at large.  As one judge has noted, "'Hidden from the Public by Order of the Court' is not a concept sits well with a citizenry that reveres openness and honesty in government."  It does not sit well with us, either.

Click the following link for Atkins & Walker Law attorney Tyler Atkins' article about this topic:  Confidentiality in Discovery.