Most of the cases in which you give medical evidence are those in which you have declined to sign a certificate of the cause of death.
There are also those cases in which the relatives object to your treatment, and those in which the registrar refers your certificate to the Coroner.
The fact that the account for professional services rendered is likely to be unpaid is not a good reason for refusing to sign a death certificate.
Decline to give medical certificates to police-constables or to solicitors’ clerks gratuitously, and without authority being shown.
Demand a formal interview by appointment during professional hours with a responsible superior; otherwise you may receive no fees.
Volunteer no private information, and express no opinion in public, concerning medico-legal causes with which you are not personally concerned; otherwise you may be sub-pœna’d to support your views. If you know facts which will aid the execution of justice, give a hint to the police either yourself or by a medical friend.
Give information viva voce or in letters marked “private.” Never write an unofficial opinion. “Do right, and don’t write—then fear nothing.”
Should you receive threatening letters, demanding blackmail, or otherwise without reasonable cause, at once put them into a good solicitor’s hands. “Let this action be a lesson for all men to stand boldly forward—to stand on their character—and not, by compromising a present difficulty, to accumulate imputations on their honour.” Associate yourself permanently with a Medical Defence Society.
Unless in self-protection, or at the request of patients, do not appear in court without having been properly served with a formal sub-pœna.
Do not fail to attend after receiving a formally served sub-pœna, on peril of contempt of court and an action for resulting damages on the part of the litigant calling you as a witness. You need not afford a precis of your evidence. “He [or they] must be satisfied with impromptu answers.” When in doubt or difficulty, seek at once the best legal advice possible.