Lawyers filed more medical malpractice lawsuits in Philadelphia in the first 20 days of 2023 than were filed in any other single month in the past six years—a surge many attorneys anticipated would follow the rollout of a newly effective venue rule.

Fifty-seven medical malpractice cases were filed this year in the First Judicial District as of Jan. 20, court data shows. Two-thirds through the the month, the January numbers exceed the average monthly filings between 2017 and 2022, which ranged from 23 to 35. In the six-year time frame predating the rule change, the most cases filed in a single month was 50, in May 2017.