ABSTRACT
In this chapter, a brief overview of the U.S. legal system is presented. e U.S. legal system consists of several layers of courts managed by the federal government as well as by state governments. Most of the scientiˆc community, including physicians, toxicologists, and biomedical scientists, are not familiar with the way the courts function in this country. At the same time, the legal community such as attorneys, paralegals, and law enforcement personnel are unfamiliar with the workings of hospitals and laboratories. Chapters 1 through 8 deal with the medical and scientiˆc aspects of hospitals and toxicology laboratories, as well as the way the patients are presented in the emergency room, and the way patients are treated and discharged aªer they get better. Some of these cases are interesting from a medical standpoint. ese cases are tried and disposed of.
