Medical Malpractice

Perry Nomination Could Motivate Trial Lawyers to Spend Big Bucks on Obama

Trial lawyers are already gearing up to oppose Republican presidential candidate Rick Perry. The Texas governor presided over several rounds of tort reform, and that makes him unpopular with the trial bar, Politico reports. “Among litigators, there is no presidential candidate who inspires the same level of hatred—and fear—as Perry,”…

Aug 22, 2011 4:37 PM CDT

Most Physicians Will Be Sued for Medical Malpractice, Though Payouts Are Few, Study Finds

Most physicians and virtually every surgeon will face a medical malpractice claim at least once in their careers, a study has found. But only one claim out of five results in a settlement or other payout, the Associated Press and the Boston Globe report. Neurosurgeons and heart surgeons are sued…

Aug 18, 2011 4:25 PM CDT

Federal Med Mal Reform Will Help Reduce Deficit, Orszag Writes

Enacting federal medical malpractice reform can help the county improve its credit rating, former White House Office of Management and Budget director Peter R. Orszag wrote today in a column for Bloomberg View. Now chairman of global banking at Citi Group, Orszag strongly advocates reducing the deficit as a solution…

Aug 8, 2011 8:31 PM CDT

Judge to Confirm $4.6M Settlement for Botched Circumcision

A Los Angeles judge says he will approve a $4.6 million settlement in the botched circumcision of a week-old baby. Judge Rex Heeseman says he will approve the deal reached with Miltex Inc. and its parent company for making a defective clamp that caused the accident, City News Service reports.…

Jul 19, 2011 12:57 PM CDT

Zone-of-Danger Rule Won’t Protect Doctor in HIV Misdiagnosis Suit; Are Lawyers Also at Risk?

A man who mistakenly believed he was HIV positive for five years because of a mistaken diagnosis may sue for negligent infliction of emotional distress, an appeals court has ruled. The en banc District of Columbia Court of Appeals allowed the suit against the plaintiff’s doctor and health clinic, according…

Jun 30, 2011 4:44 PM CDT

Juror Accused of Asking Med-Mal Plaintiff’s Dad for a Cut of Any Verdict

A juror in a medical malpractice trial was arrested when he showed up in a New York courthouse on Tuesday. Deonarine Persaud, 53, of Long Beach was accused of soliciting a bribe for a favorable verdict, report the Long Island Press and the Associated Press. His alleged offer: He would…

May 18, 2011 1:13 PM CDT

Top Mass. Court Puts Law Firm Back on Med-Mal Client’s Case, But Says Firm Can Select Attorney

When an individual lawyer at Thomas M. Kiley & Associates cited both a plan to withdraw temporarily from the practice of law and irreconcilable differences with a medical-malpractice client, the state court judge overseeing the case allowed her to withdraw. But he ordered the law firm to continue with the…

May 3, 2011 5:13 PM CDT

Texas Bill Requiring Loser-Pays Rule in Lawsuits Is Drafted with Push from Governor

In his State of the State address in February, Texas Gov. Rick Perry endorsed a loser-pays system that would require “those who sue” to pay attorney fees. Now he’s pushing a loser-pays bill that is in the draft stages, the New York Times reports. Still unclear is whether the bill…

Mar 11, 2011 12:48 PM CST

Study of Pa. Surgeons Finds One-Fifth of Tests Ordered Because of Lawsuit Fears

A new study confirms the conventional wisdom: Physicians order unnecessary tests because they fear lawsuits. The study asked 72 orthopedic surgeons in Pennsylvania to check a box indicating whether the medical tests they ordered were needed for clinical care or done for defensive purposes, the Washington Post reports. One-fifth of…

Feb 17, 2011 1:32 PM CST

As Man Is Dying in Hospital Parking Lot, Police and Ambulance Get There Before ER Staff

Seemingly, 61-year-old Birgilio Marin-Fuentes shouldn’t have had to look far for help when he apparently had a heart attack as he was driving his car erratically into the garage of a Portland, Ore., hospital and crashed into a wall there earlier this month. But he got more assistance from city…

Feb 16, 2011 12:04 AM CST

Mom of Disabled Law Student Gets Evidence, Wins Rehearing by Camping at Justice Ministry for 1 Year

Law student Antonio Meño Ortega didn’t like the way his nose looked. So he had cosmetic surgery two decades ago that left him in a coma after he was accidentally deprived of oxygen. To this day, 21 years later, he has never received any damages award for the injury because…

Oct 27, 2010 8:25 PM CDT

Murdered Michigan Lawyer Had ‘No Shortage of Enemies’

Police are investigating the murder of a Michigan med-mal defense lawyer found dead on Wednesday from multiple gunshot wounds in the entry of his apartment. The slain lawyer, Nicholas Anthony Ianni, had practiced law in Bloomfield Hills and was associated with an offshore malpractice insurance company that was accused of…

Oct 22, 2010 3:17 PM CDT

Lawyer Who Took Obstruction Plea in Med Mal Kickbacks Case Is Suspended

A Las Vegas lawyer who pleaded guilty to obstruction earlier this year concerning an alleged medical malpractice case kickbacks scheme has been temporarily suspended by the Nevada Supreme Court. Further attorney discipline proceedings will determine an appropriate sanction for Noel Gage, 72, who had been accused of participating in an…

Aug 5, 2010 9:01 PM CDT

Judge Settles Med Mal Cases with a Measure of Sympathy

A New York judge is credited with developing a settlement negotiation model that is now being tried by five hospitals in a $2.9 million, three-year demonstration project funded by a federal grant. Bronx County Supreme Court Justice Douglas McKeon starts by asking families to tell him about their loved one,…

Jun 21, 2010 11:07 PM CDT

Psychiatrist Had Duty to Warn Patient’s Spouse of Herpes Risk from Doctor-Patient Affair

A psychiatrist allegedly infected with the herpes simplex virus had a duty to warn his patient’s spouse before allegedly having unprotected sex with the patient, a New York judge has ruled. Upholding the husband’s right to bring a negligence suit for the alleged breach of duty by the psychiatrist, Westchester…

Jun 7, 2010 7:59 PM CDT