Suzanne M. Lim

Partner
O  804.806.4800
M  540.525.5967
slim@byrnecanaanlaw.com

Suzanne Lim is a partner of the firm and a recognized leader in administrative law, regulatory compliance, and licensing within the healthcare industry. She has built a reputation for guiding providers, hospitals, group practices, long-term care facilities, pharmacies, and ambulatory surgery centers through complex licensing matters, compliance challenges, and enforcement actions before state and federal agencies. Clients turn to Suzanne for her strategic insight, deep industry knowledge, and proven track record of protecting licenses and preserving reputations.

Suzanne also founded and leads the firm’s Incapacitated Adult Guardianship Practice, where she brings over a decade of experience helping incapacitated individuals obtain essential healthcare access and financial protections. Her leadership in this area reflects both her innovative problem-solving and her compassionate advocacy for vulnerable populations.

As the daughter of a physician and a nurse, Suzanne offers a unique understanding of the challenges facing healthcare providers. Combined with her extensive background in complex litigation, medical malpractice defense, and alternative dispute resolution—including negotiation, mediation, and collaborative law—Suzanne delivers creative, effective solutions to the most sensitive and consequential issues in the healthcare arena.

Suzanne earned her B.A. in Communications and Psychology from Purdue University, where she graduated summa cum laude and was elected to Phi Beta Kappa. She obtained her J.D. from the University of Richmond T.C. Williams School of Law, cum laude, and is licensed to practice in Virginia and Georgia.

Suzanne has an exceptional track record of defending healthcare providers and achieving successful outcomes in high-risk malpractice claims, licensing disputes, and regulatory investigations. Her results-driven approach has protected her clients’ licenses, reputations, and financial interests across a wide spectrum of complex matters.

  • Defended physicians and secured case dismissals in multiple high-exposure medical and dental malpractice actions, including alleged third-party injury, negligent root canal, and inpatient slip-and-fall claims.
  • Successfully defended private practice and hospitalist providers in complex claims of negligent care resulting in patient death or serious injury involving diagnoses and management of cardiovascular disease, orthopedic surgery and arthroplasty, general and specialized surgical procedures, pediatric, obstetric, and psychiatric care, as well as claims of professional incompetence and ethical violations.
  • Prevailed before the Board of Medicine in investigations and hearings involving opioid prescribing practices, laser skin treatment protocols, insulin dosing, patient dismissalprocedures, and the diagnosis and corrective surgical intervention of a newborn with a rare digestive tract disease.
  • Achieved dismissals with prejudice in numerous malpractice and administrative actions, protecting providers’ licenses and reputations.
  • Obtained exoneration for private practice and hospitalist obstetricians under investigation for delivery of high-risk obstetric care and deliveries resulting in fetal demise and birth injury.
  • Successfully defended healthcare providers against allegations of negligent diagnosis, patient abandonment, and other sensitive professional complaints.

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Distinctions and Awards

  • Legal Elite 2020
  • Legal Elite 2021
  • Legal Elite 2022
  • Legal Elite 2023
  • Legal Elite 2024
  • Legal Elite 2025
Licensure
  • Virginia
  • Georgia
  • Federal Bar, 4th Circuit Eastern & Western Districts
Academic Credentials
  • Purdue University, B.A.
  • University of Richmond Schoolof Law, J.D.
Associations & Professional Memberships
  • American Society of Healthcare Risk Management, Virginia Chapter
  • Defense Research Institute
  • John Marshall Inn of Court
  • Richmond Bar Association
  • Virginia State Bar