1. The Law -- 2. Malpractice -- 3. Defenses in Malpractice -- 4. Standards of Nursing Care -- 5. The Nurse at Risk for a Malpractice Lawsuit -- 6. The Legal Process -- 7. Surviving Notification of a Nursing Malpractice Lawsuit -- 8. Preparing for and Surviving a Deposition and a Trial -- 9. Defensive Documentation -- 10. The Medical Record As Evidence in Nursing Malpractice -- 11. Legal Implications of Informed Consent -- 12. Legal Implications of Advance Directives and No-Code Orders -- 13. Malpractice Insurance -- 14. The National Practitioner Data Bank -- 15. Disciplinary Actions by State Boards of Nursing under Nurse Practice Acts -- 16. Roles of the Professional Nurse in the Legal Process -- App. I. State Laws on Patient Access to Medical Records -- App. II. List of Web Sites -- App. III. List of State Boards of Nursing.