In the second similar ruling in recent months, a federal judge has rejected a Jacksonville hospital's arguments in a case about whether it should be shielded from being required to turn over records to a patient in a medical-malpractice dispute.

The ruling last week by U.S. District Judge Timothy Corrigan against UF Health Jacksonville is part of years of legal battles stemming from a 2004 Florida constitutional amendment that was designed to provide access to medical records in malpractice cases.

In March, U.S. District Judge Allen Winsor ruled against UF Health Shands, part of the same health-care system as UF Health Jacksonville, in a similar case. UF Health Shands has taken that case to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit in Atlanta.