The Florida Supreme Court has struck down a state law that capped noneconomic damages in medical malpractice injury lawsuits that stood at $1 million. The high court found that the law violates the equal protection clause of the Florida Constitution. In this 4-3 decision, the Florida Supreme Court affirmed the…
Chicago Medical Malpractice Attorney Blog
Illinois Appellate Court Affirms Trial Court Order Barring Expert Testimony in Medical Malpractice Case
After the jury found in favor of the treating physician, an appeal was taken by Zbigniew Adwent arguing that he was entitled to present testimony from a forensic document examiner in the lawsuit he brought against Dr. Richard B. Novak. The lawsuit alleged that Dr. Novak chose not to properly…
$5.6 Million Jury Verdict for Patient Left Paraplegic Following Late Diagnosis of Spinal Abscess
Aaron Riedel, who was 28 at the time, went to Lodi Community Hospital emergency room complaining of back pain. He told the emergency department staff that he was taking an antibiotic to treat a MRSA infection. Riedel was later discharged from Lodi Community Hospital with a diagnosis of simple muscle…
$4.39 Million Jury Verdict for Late Diagnosis and Treatment of Cancer
Sean Pedley was 43 when he developed a lump in his left thigh. An internist, Dr. Syed Danish, ordered an x-ray that did not signify or later lead to a diagnosis. Pedley’s mass grew and became painful over the next two years. When a later biopsy of the mass was…
$4.2 Million Structured Settlement Reached for Wrongful Death Caused by Excessive Administration of Anesthesia Drug
Antonio Marrero, 32, was seen at the Walanae Coast Comprehensive Center, which is a federally qualified health center. He went to the facility complaining of a sore throat. Marrero was diagnosed with having a peritonsillar abscess, which required evaluation by an otolaryngologist. A health center physician decided to evaluate Marrero…
State Appellate Court Holds Clinic Liable for Physician’s Negligent Surgery Even After Doctor Was Dismissed from Case
The Maryland State Appellate Court has ruled that the trial judge was correct in deciding whether a patient’s negligence lawsuit, that of Yolanda Harris, would go forward against a women’s health clinic even after she dropped claims against her doctor, the agent to the clinic. The Maryland Court of Specials…
Illinois Appellate Court Sends Case Back to Trial Judge for Further Disposition on Relation-Back Doctrine
This case arrived at the Illinois Appellate Court as an interlocutory appeal that came about from the plaintiff Eric Owens’s lawsuit against the defendant hospital, Louis A. Weiss Memorial Hospital, and its doctors related to the care received by Owens at the hospital’s emergency room in 2011. He initially named…
Court Allows Evidence of Nonparty Negligence to be Considered by the Jury
Jenny Copsey, on behalf of her late husband, Lance Copsey, filed a lawsuit against a radiologist, Dr. John Park, claiming that he chose not to properly analyze radiological images, which purportedly contributed to the her late husband’s fatal stroke. The state’s court of appeals said that the evidence of negligence…
State Supreme Court Reverses Defense Verdict in Medical Malpractice Lawsuit Because Trial Judge Excluded Potential Witness
In 2011, Sean Elliott filed a medical malpractice lawsuit against Resurgens P.C. and Dr. Tapan Daftaria. The lawsuit alleged that Elliott ended up with paralysis because treating physician Dr. Tapan Daftaria chose not to timely diagnose and treat an abscess in Elliott’s thoracic spine. During the jury trial, he attempted…
Failure to Timely Diagnose Lung Cancer Leads to Settlement of $1.47 Million
Gerald Teeuwen, 77, developed a persistent cough. He went to an urgent care facility and later underwent a chest x-ray, which was interpreted as showing a density in his left lung. Teeuwen was referred to a pulmonologist, Dr. Peter Birk. Dr. Birk ordered a second chest x-ray, which radiologist Dr.…