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Medical malpractice suit

Attorneys fees add up fast!
I'm in the middle of a property dispute (fucked up family matter) and I've dropped over $40k so far and we haven't even started preparing for trial.
 
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OutlawRider said:
Here is the thing, possibly it is provable that it came from that one surgery 10 years ago? Maybe he decided he wanted to try placing his own catheter a couple weeks prior. They have no way of knowing the insertion area/date/time. They can assume pretty readily that it did come from that but any good lawyer is going to poke holes through both cases. It is a he said/she said.

As far as did the doc know at the time he did it, I would say not a chance. Do I think maybe a nurse knew because he most likely didn’t pull it out, possibly. Maybe it was a new chick and she didn’t know to look for the red tip? I don’t know. But I would like to think no doctor would just shove it down the road and say good luck to ya. I’m sure it happens.

So this case will be lawyers win and anything pt gets will be paid to the lawyer because he gets 40% just to settle outside of court. Which he knows will happen and is his best bet (the lawyers). It’s a no time hardly invested easy “win” for him and pumps up his I’ve won clients “this much money” number.
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Agreed. It’s designed and destined to settle.
 
ESC said:
Attorneys fees add up fast!
I'm in the middle of a property dispute (fucked up family matter) and I've dropped over $40k so far and we haven't even started preparing for trial.
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99.99% of people who threaten suit don’t know this. Plan for $20-$50,000 and 1-2 years before it starts.

I was taught that because of statutes of limitations, you have time to let the emotions settle, it may be best to wait 6-12 months then have a meeting of the minds involved to see if you still think a suit is worth pursuing. Most times you’ll walk away with a valuable lesson
 
Deuce 40s said:
I found the picture my mom sent of the thing.

There's an article on the .gov somewhere that discusses the rarity of this scenario. Can't find it now because I'm on my phone. There's only been 7 reported cases of broken catheters being left inside the body without notifying the patient. Normally they're extracted immediately. In two of those cases, the catheter traveled through the heart.

IMG_20230720_112419.jpg
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That’s like winning the shit sandwich lotto. Sorry man.
 
Poke said:
99.99% of people who threaten suit don’t know this. Plan for $20-$50,000 and 1-2 years before it starts.

I was taught that because of statutes of limitations, you have time to let the emotions settle, it may be best to wait 6-12 months then have a meeting of the minds involved to see if you still think a suit is worth pursuing. Most times you’ll walk away with a valuable lesson
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Yeap. My lawyer told me up front that this could cost me up to $100k when it's all over.
 
ESC said:
Attorneys fees add up fast!
I'm in the middle of a property dispute (fucked up family matter) and I've dropped over $40k so far and we haven't even started preparing for trial.
Click to expand...

Poke said:
99.99% of people who threaten suit don’t know this. Plan for $20-$50,000 and 1-2 years before it starts.
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Not applicable to personal injury lawsuits.

Duece, you're getting a lot of weird replies here, but you're handling this exactly the way you should be.
 
CJF said:
Not applicable to personal injury lawsuits.

Duece, you're getting a lot of weird replies here, but you're handling this exactly the way you should be.
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Depends on the state.

Texas.... You're fucked. The legislature has limited the damages so much that the lawyer is the only one who comes out on top.
I don't think he's in Texas, so he does have that going for him.
 
Five days later, my dad is out of the hospital from his second stint. Still weak with partially collapsed lungs from taking small breaths for so long. He's working on getting them back up to spec. The initial bills from 4 weeks ago are starting to roll in. $1k for the ambulance ride after insurance, etc. I'm really happy he's doing better though. My gut says these blood clot masses are from the original issue, but time will tell.

Maybe I'll try to keep this updated with the lawsuit endeavor. To say he's pissed is an understatement. My dad will hold a grudge for life.
 
Our vehicle accident was taken on by an attorney friend of my sister. Didn’t cost us a dime. We forwarded him all of our medical bills, instructed not to answer the phone, and 18 months later he paid all our medical bills (they offer a one-time payment for a discount), he keeps his fees, and cuts a check. I did ask him to pay my chiropractor 100% as he was a local good ol’ boy and didn’t charge me a DIME the whole time he treated me.

Sorry about your Pops.
 
A little update on this since it's almost been a year. My dad is fairly back to normal. I believe he still has a partially collapsed lung from the hospital doctors just throwing the book at him because they didn't know what was wrong.

The shit doctor that left the catheter, was served with a notice of intent to sue last month. His insurance company said they won't settle out of court and want to take it to arbitration.

Next week is one year from "discovery" of the foreign object. My dad's attorneys have until that date to formally file suit, otherwise the statute of limitations expires. I think the insurance company is half hoping the attorneys miss the date so they don't have to come out of pocket.

Supposedly, if they were to settle out of court, insurance companies generally pay more than the state statute maximum of like $500k to avoid court costs. Since this is likely going to arbitration or court, my dad will get substantially less recourse due to additional attorney costs and the state statute maximum being applied.
 
§ 90‑21.19. Liability limit for noneconomic damages.

(a) Except as otherwise provided in subsection (b) of this section, in any medical malpractice action in which the plaintiff is entitled to an award of noneconomic damages, the total amount of noneconomic damages for which judgment is entered against all defendants shall not exceed five hundred thousand dollars ($500,000).

Judgment shall not be entered against any defendant for noneconomic damages in excess of five hundred thousand dollars ($500,000) for all claims brought by all parties arising out of the same professional services. On January 1 of every third year, beginning with January 1, 2014, the Office of State Budget and Management shall reset the limitation on damages for noneconomic loss set forth in this subsection to be equal to five hundred thousand dollars ($500,000) times the ratio of the Consumer Price Index for November of the prior year to the Consumer Price Index for November 2011.

The Office of State Budget and Management shall inform the Revisor of Statutes of the reset limitation. The Revisor of Statutes NC General Statutes - Chapter 90 Article 1B 11shall publish this reset limitation as an editor's note to this section. In the event that any verdict or award of noneconomic damages stated pursuant to G.S. 90‑21.19B exceeds these limits, the court shall modify the judgment as necessary to conform to the requirements of this subsection.

(b) Notwithstanding subsection (a) of this section, there shall be no limit on the amount of noneconomic damages for which judgment may be entered against a defendant if the trier of fact finds both of the following:
(1) The plaintiff suffered disfigurement, loss of use of part of the body, permanent injury or death.
(2) The defendant's acts or failures, which are the proximate cause of the plaintiff's injuries, were committed in reckless disregard of the rights of others, grossly negligent, fraudulent, intentional or with malice.

(c) The following definitions apply in this section:
(1) Consumer Price Index. – The Consumer Price Index – All Urban Consumers, for the South urban area, as published by the Bureau of Labor Statistics of the United States Department of Labor.
(2) Noneconomic damages. – Damages to compensate for pain, suffering, emotional distress, loss of consortium, inconvenience, and any other nonpecuniary compensatory damage. "Noneconomic damages" does not include punitive damages as defined in G.S. 1D‑5.(3) Same professional services. – The transactions, occurrences, or series of transactions or occurrences alleged to have caused injury to the health care provider's patient.

(d) Any award of damages in a medical malpractice action shall be stated in accordance with G.S. 90‑21.19B. If a jury is determining the facts, the court shall not instruct the jury with respect to the limit of noneconomic damages under subsection (a) of this section, and neither the attorney for any party nor a witness shall inform the jury or potential members of the jury panel of that limit. (2011‑400, s. 7; 2015‑40, s. 9.)
 
Deuce 40s said:
§ 90‑21.19. Liability limit for noneconomic damages.

(a) Except as otherwise provided in subsection (b) of this section, in any medical malpractice action in which the plaintiff is entitled to an award of noneconomic damages, the total amount of noneconomic damages for which judgment is entered against all defendants shall not exceed five hundred thousand dollars ($500,000).

Judgment shall not be entered against any defendant for noneconomic damages in excess of five hundred thousand dollars ($500,000) for all claims brought by all parties arising out of the same professional services. On January 1 of every third year, beginning with January 1, 2014, the Office of State Budget and Management shall reset the limitation on damages for noneconomic loss set forth in this subsection to be equal to five hundred thousand dollars ($500,000) times the ratio of the Consumer Price Index for November of the prior year to the Consumer Price Index for November 2011.

The Office of State Budget and Management shall inform the Revisor of Statutes of the reset limitation. The Revisor of Statutes NC General Statutes - Chapter 90 Article 1B 11shall publish this reset limitation as an editor's note to this section. In the event that any verdict or award of noneconomic damages stated pursuant to G.S. 90‑21.19B exceeds these limits, the court shall modify the judgment as necessary to conform to the requirements of this subsection.

(b) Notwithstanding subsection (a) of this section, there shall be no limit on the amount of noneconomic damages for which judgment may be entered against a defendant if the trier of fact finds both of the following:
(1) The plaintiff suffered disfigurement, loss of use of part of the body, permanent injury or death.
(2) The defendant's acts or failures, which are the proximate cause of the plaintiff's injuries, were committed in reckless disregard of the rights of others, grossly negligent, fraudulent, intentional or with malice.

(c) The following definitions apply in this section:
(1) Consumer Price Index. – The Consumer Price Index – All Urban Consumers, for the South urban area, as published by the Bureau of Labor Statistics of the United States Department of Labor.
(2) Noneconomic damages. – Damages to compensate for pain, suffering, emotional distress, loss of consortium, inconvenience, and any other nonpecuniary compensatory damage. "Noneconomic damages" does not include punitive damages as defined in G.S. 1D‑5.(3) Same professional services. – The transactions, occurrences, or series of transactions or occurrences alleged to have caused injury to the health care provider's patient.

(d) Any award of damages in a medical malpractice action shall be stated in accordance with G.S. 90‑21.19B. If a jury is determining the facts, the court shall not instruct the jury with respect to the limit of noneconomic damages under subsection (a) of this section, and neither the attorney for any party nor a witness shall inform the jury or potential members of the jury panel of that limit. (2011‑400, s. 7; 2015‑40, s. 9.)
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Good news is, with current inflation, he's up to $700k from the 2011 CPI. :shaking:

Seems like you could argue the red and orange parts to get more out of them.


I'd guess if you can prove gross negligence, punitive damages could come in to play too.
 
bgaidan said:
Good news is, with current inflation, he's up to $700k from the 2011 CPI. :shaking:

Seems like you could argue the red and orange parts to get more out of them.


I'd guess if you can prove gross negligence, punitive damages could come in to play too.
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I'm a math fella, but I couldn't decipher what they mean by the $500k x (the "ratio" of the CPI from last year to 2011). What are they saying?

Are they multiplying the 500k by the cumulative inflation rate since 2011?

My dad really wants to push the gross negligence to segue into punitive damages. His attorney said doctors are rarely ever punished like that. To us it's a clear-cut case of gross negligence.
 
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