Attorneys pay top dollar for nurses who can analyze medical records and provide expert clinical opinions. One of the most lucrative, flexible consulting paths for RNs.
Legal nurse consultants review medical records, identify standards of care issues, educate attorneys on clinical matters, and write expert reports. They work on malpractice cases, personal injury lawsuits, workers compensation claims, and more — without ever setting foot in a courtroom unless they choose to as an expert witness.
Learn the specific requirements, certifications, and skills needed for this income stream in your state and specialty.
Identify any certifications or training programs that will make you more competitive and command higher rates.
Update your resume, LinkedIn, and professional profiles to reflect your interest and qualifications for this opportunity.
Begin with one or two clients or assignments to build confidence, refine your process, and establish your reputation.
Once systems are in place and results proven, expand your client base, raise your rates, and grow your income.
Connect with other nurses doing this work. The RN Network community is full of nurses ready to share real-world experience.
Attorneys hire legal nurse consultants to make sense of medical records. You build chronologies, flag deviations from the standard of care, explain injuries and treatment in plain language, identify missing records and help find testifying experts. Cases include medical malpractice, personal injury, workers' compensation, nursing home neglect and product liability.
Most LNCs work from home on an hourly basis with a retainer. Your edge is clinical depth plus clean, organized writing. Plaintiff and defense firms both use LNCs, and many consultants build a practice around one case type, which makes marketing to the right attorneys far easier.
Take an LNC course or AALNC resources and build a sample chronology from a mock case.
Set up your business, retainer agreement and a one-page site listing case types you cover.
Contact personal injury and malpractice firms in your state and offer a screening review.
Exam Edge specializes in online practice tests that get you certified the first time.
View This Product →Happy Mind is a mental wellness platform built for busy people who carry a lot — which describes just about every nurse we know.
View This Product →Resource from The RN Network
For the nurse leader who is ready to stop managing and start mentoring. A playbook for building a legacy in nursing — on purpose, with intention.
Get the PlaybookStart with a plan. Our Nurse Business Plan guides walk you through startup costs, pricing, licensing and landing your first clients, written for nurses building income outside the bedside.
See the Business Plan Guides →