The phrase "nuclear verdict" strikes fear into the heart of any defendant - and today we're going to tackle it head on. We welcome Dusty Otwell, JD, medical malpractice defense attorney and Chief Risk Officer of UCACS, to the podcast to discuss “nuclear," "runaway jury," or aberration verdicts. These are jury awards to the plaintiff, given at trial, that well exceed predictions. They tend to make headlines, create fear among doctors and other providers, and lead other parties to dream of giant jackpots. In this episode we discuss: Societal trends that may be fostering the increase in aberration verdicts How we can mitigate our fear around the possibility of an aberration verdict What happens after an aberration verdict: post-trial negotiations, and real-sizing the risk to your personal assets Why defendants should feel empowered to speak up, request preparation, and ask for 'financial risk estimates' The ‘reptile theory’ deployed at trial by plaintiff’s attorneys, and how tapping into the general anger in society fuels their persuasion Why and how defense teams need to evolve to combat these tactics  Now, more than ever, preparation of the defendant should be paramount and start EARLY in the case. More about host Gita Pensa, MD, can be found at https://doctorsandlitigation.com/ Dusty Otwell is vice president for claims and risk management at US Acute Care Solutions. He also serves as Chief Operating Officer and Corporate Secretary for Clinician Assurance Risk Retention Group, the self-insurance carrier for USACS. Previously, he was associate general counsel and director of risk management for Emergency Service Partners, a founding partner of USACS; a senior risk management consultant for ProAssurance Corporation, staff attorney for Maynard, Cooper & Gale, P.C., and staff counsel for Medical Reimbursements of America, LLC.