The National Practioner Data Bank, the entity that gathers data about medical malpractice claims, reports that paid medical malpractice claims continue to drop.
In 2001, the total number of paid claims was 20,319. In 2010, the number had dropped to 13,277. Now, a new report released by Kaiser citing data from the NPDB indicates that paid claims for 2011 totaled 9497.
(The NPDB data for 2001 through 2010 is set forth in Appendix D, Table 1.)
"1-800-Ask-Gary" is a medical and legal referral service in Florida founded by Sarasota chiropractor Gary Kompothecras. If you have been to Central Florida you have seen their billboards, television ads and radio ads. Television ad costs exceed $12M per year.
Business must be good – last June Kompothecras paid a little more than $1 million for a three-year deal to put his service’s name on the amphitheater in Tampa. And he built a home of almost 30,000 square feet.
However, 1-800-Ask-Gary has created more than a little controversy. The referral business sends people to some 40 clinics operated by Kompothecras. Lawyers pay to join the referral network and get cases from the referral service.
Tennessee law requires that the plaintiff present expert proof that the defendant violated the standard of care applicable in the community in which the care was given at the time the care was given. Proof of the standard can come from an otherwise qualified expert who knows the standard of care in that community or in a similar community. This rule is codified in Tenn. Code Ann. § 29-26-115(a).
In Marsha McDonald v. Paul F. Shea, M.D. and Shea Ear Clinic, No. W2010-02317-COA-R3-CV (Tenn. Ct. App. February 16, 2012), the Court of Appeals engaged in a lengthy discussion of whether Plaintiff ’s expert was qualified to testify under Tenn. Code Ann. § 29-26-115(a). The court’s reasoning was guided by the recent Tennessee Supreme Court case of Shipley v. Williams, 350 S.W.3d 527 (Tenn. 2011). In Shipley, the Supreme Court rejected the notion that an expert must have personal, first-hand knowledge of the standard of care by actually practicing in a community. The Supreme Court also held that “expert medical testimony regarding a broader regional standard or a national standard should not be barred, but should be considered as an element of the expert witness’ knowledge of the standard of care in the same or similar community.”
These two holdings in Shipley gutted the majority of Defendants’ objections to the competency of Plaintiff ’s expert in this case.
The Pop Tort has done a nice job collecting information about Americans Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC), the corporate, right-wing group that sponsors a terrible array of legislation that has found its way to the Tennessee General Assembly.
Read and learn about the dirty underside of our poliltical process.
You cannot try to murder your ex-wife and then avoid a judgment against you for compensatory or punitive damages by filing bankruptcy.
The Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit rejected the effort of David Larsen to use the bankruptcy system to avoid his financial obligation to his former wife. Larsen tried to kill Teri Jendusa-Nicolai and, although his effort was unsuccessful, she suffered a miscarriage and the amputation of all of her toes. The toes were amputated secondary to frostbite – the jerk beat her with a baseball bat and left her in a garbage can filed with snow, secreting the can in an unheated storage facility.
A civil suit was filed, resulting in a judgment of $3.4 million for her and $300,000 for her (then) husband and daughters for loss of consortium. Larsen then filed a Chapter 7 proceeding seeking to discharge the judgment debts.
Tennesse law limits damages that may be recovered in personal injury and wrongful death cases. The limits apply only to cases that arise from events that occur on or after October 1, 2011.
Medical expense and lost wages claims are not limited. However, damages for pain, suffering, disfigurement, disability, loss of enjoyment of life and loss of consortium are limited to $750,000 unless one of the following apply to the case:
If one of the exceptions apply, the damage limit is increased to $1,000,000.
Social networking by jurors can result in a new trial, creating increased expense for the parties.
The American College of Trial Lawyer has issued a brief report on this issue, and has proposed several instructions to prospective and empaneled jurors.
For example, ACTL recommends that this language be included on summonses to prospective jurors:
Tennessee law permits the recovery of punitive damages when a defendant has engaged in reckless conduct. Because the standard for criminally negligent homicide mirrors the standard for recklessness necessary to recover punitive damages, the Tennessee Court of Criminal Appeals’ affirmation of the guilty verdict against a criminal defendant in a recent case could be pertinent to a punitive damages claim in a personal injury or wrongful death case.
Leading up to the incident, the proof showed that Appellant and the victim had a rather torrid relationship. The victim was staying with a friend because she had been arguing with Appellant. The two were seen arguing on the day of the offense and at least one witness saw Appellant swipe his open hand toward the victim, causing
