Medical malpractice lawyers in Boston take on some of the best-known hospitals in the country, including Mass General, Brigham and Women’s, Beth Israel Deaconess, and Boston Children’s. Massachusetts doesn’t let a patient go straight to court. You must first send the provider a notice of claim, and then wait 182 days before filing suit. After the case is filed, a three-member tribunal reviews it to decide whether the evidence is strong enough to go forward. Any lawyer you consider should know these steps well.
The firms below were chosen for their verdicts and settlements in malpractice cases, peer recognition, how long their lead lawyers have been trying cases, and their focus on representing patients rather than hospitals.
How a Massachusetts Malpractice Claim Moves
- Expert review comes first. A qualified physician has to support the claim before a firm will usually take it.
- The 182-day notice. The doctor or hospital gets written notice and a chance to respond before any lawsuit is filed.
- The tribunal. A judge, a physician, and an attorney screen the case. If they find against the patient, the case can continue only if the patient posts a $6,000 bond.
- Damages limits. Pain and suffering is capped at $500,000 unless the injury is a substantial or permanent loss of bodily function, a substantial disfigurement, or another special circumstance. Medical costs and lost wages have no cap.
1. Lubin & Meyer PC
Andrew C. Meyer Jr. founded the firm in 1974, and it has focused on malpractice cases ever since. It now has 18 attorneys and medical professionals on staff who review records before lawyers commit to a case. Partner Robert Higgins was named Boston’s Medical Malpractice Lawyer of the Year for 2025 by Best Lawyers, which has recognized him every year since 2008. Meyer was in the first class inducted into the Massachusetts Lawyers Weekly Hall of Fame.
The firm handles birth injuries and cerebral palsy, missed strokes, and delayed cancer diagnoses. It represents clients in Massachusetts, New Hampshire, and Rhode Island.
- Address: 28 State Street, 40th Floor, Boston, MA 02109
- Phone: (617) 720-4447
2. Jones Kelleher LLP
Patrick T. Jones has tried cases since 1978. Best Lawyers has named him Lawyer of the Year six times, including for plaintiffs’ medical malpractice in Boston in 2016 and 2018. He has been ranked among the Top 10 Super Lawyers in Massachusetts and is a Fellow of the American College of Trial Lawyers, which is open by invitation only. Partners Jones, Tim Kelleher, and Rob DeLello have worked together for about 25 years. Jones and Kelleher are both past presidents of the Massachusetts Academy of Trial Attorneys.
The firm takes a limited number of serious cases. Its lawyers are licensed in Massachusetts, Rhode Island, and New Hampshire.
- Address: 125 High Street, Suite 2114, Boston, MA 02110
- Phone: (617) 737-3100
3. Meehan Boyle, A Keches Law Firm
Meehan, Boyle, Black & Bogdanow was founded in 1985 by lawyers who left a large Boston firm to practice in a smaller setting. Two of its lawyers have been named Best Lawyers’ Boston Medical Malpractice Lawyer of the Year: founder Leo V. Boyle in 2013 and Peter J. Ainsworth in 2023. Early in 2026 the firm joined Keches Law Group. It kept its own name and now has the resources of a much larger firm for costly expert-heavy cases.
Ainsworth has signed on to best practices for representing patients in CARe, the state’s Communication, Apology and Resolution program. CARe can settle a claim without a lawsuit when a hospital acknowledges an error.
- Address: 100 Cambridge Street, Suite 2101, Boston, MA 02114
- Phone: (617) 523-8300
4. Libby Hoopes Brooks & Mulvey
Elizabeth N. Mulvey is one of the most decorated trial lawyers in New England. She has been named among the Top 10 Super Lawyers in Massachusetts every year since 2005, and Best Lawyers has included her every year since 1996. It named her Medical Malpractice Lawyer of the Year in 2010. She became a Fellow of the American College of Trial Lawyers in 1999 and is a Fellow of the International Academy of Trial Lawyers.
She is also a skilled appeals lawyer, which matters in malpractice cases because verdicts are often appealed. She has won multimillion-dollar verdicts in Massachusetts, New Hampshire, and Rhode Island.
- Address: 260 Franklin Street, Suite 1920, Boston, MA 02110
- Phone: (617) 338-9300
5. Breakstone, White & Gluck
Marc L. Breakstone leads this firm’s malpractice practice. Massachusetts Lawyers Weekly named him one of its ten Lawyers of the Year, and he has made the Top 100 Massachusetts Super Lawyers list 14 times. His results include a wrongful death recovery in a case involving a radiologist who misread a scan. Imaging errors are among the hardest cases to prove, so that experience counts.
Like Ainsworth, Breakstone has signed on to the CARe best practices. That’s useful if the hospital involved offers to resolve the claim early. A founding partner handles every case.
- Address: 2 Center Plaza, Suite 530, Boston, MA 02108
- Phone: (617) 723-7676
What to Ask at Your First Consultation
- Who will review my records: a nurse on staff, an outside physician, or both?
- Has the hospital invited me into CARe, and should I accept?
- Is the hospital a nonprofit? If so, what does the $100,000 limit on charitable hospital liability mean for my case, and which individual providers should be named?
- How many malpractice cases has this lawyer personally taken to verdict?
FAQs
Q1. How long do I have to file a medical malpractice claim in Massachusetts?
A: Generally three years from when you knew or should have known about the harm. Most claims are barred after seven years, except when an object was left in the body.
Q2. Is there a cap on medical malpractice damages in Massachusetts?
A: Pain and suffering is capped at $500,000 unless the injury is severe or permanent or involves substantial disfigurement. Medical bills and lost income are not capped.
Q3. What is a medical malpractice tribunal in Massachusetts?
A: It is a three-member panel of a judge, a physician, and a lawyer that screens each case. If it rules against the patient, the case can continue only with a $6,000 bond.
Q4. How much do medical malpractice lawyers charge in Boston?
A: They work on contingency, and Massachusetts law caps the fee on a sliding scale. It starts at 40% of the first $150,000 and drops to 25% of any amount over $500,000.
Q5. Can I sue a Boston hospital for a doctor’s mistake?
A: Yes, but a nonprofit hospital’s liability for malpractice is capped at $100,000. That’s why claims usually also name the individual doctors and nurses involved.
Q6. What is the CARe program in Massachusetts?
A: It is a voluntary process in which participating hospitals disclose errors, apologize, and offer compensation without a lawsuit. You can have your own lawyer throughout.
