Alaska § 09.55.540 - Burden of proof.

§ 09.55.540. Burden of proof.

 (a) In a malpractice action based on the negligence or wilful misconduct of a health care provider, the plaintiff has the burden of proving by a preponderance of the evidence        (1) that the plaintiff had a health care provider-patient relationship with the defendant at the time of the act complained of;

 (2) the degree of knowledge or skill possessed or the degree of care ordinarily exercised under the circumstances, at the time of the act complained of, by health care providers in the field or specialty in which the defendant is practicing;

 (3) that the defendant either lacked this degree of knowledge or skill or failed to exercise this degree of care; and

 (4) that, as a proximate result of this lack of knowledge or skill or the failure to exercise this degree of care, the plaintiff suffered injuries that would not otherwise have been incurred.

 (b) In malpractice actions there is no presumption of negligence on the part of the defendant.

 (c) In this section, “health care provider-patient relationship” means a relationship between a health care provider and a patient formed for the purpose of the health care provider providing examination, diagnosis, or treatment to the patient.