Battling over culpability, calculating the price of a life.Dozens of attorneys handle medical malpractice Improper, unskilled, or negligent treatment of a patient by a physician, dentist, nurse, pharmacist, or other health care professional. cases in L.A. Count, but only a relative few specialize full-time. Some of the best, based on Business Journal research and conversations with their peers, are listed below. Richard Carroll Partner Carroll Kelly Trotter Franzen & McKenna Specially: Defense in cases related to anesthesia, heart problems and brain damage, particularly of babies. Notable Cases: Gathers v. Loyola Marymount University Marymount University is a coeducational, four-year Catholic university whose main campus is located in Arlington, Virginia. History Marymount was founded in 1950 by the Religious of the Sacred Heart of Mary (RSHM) as Marymount College, a two-year women's school. (1990): Represented Kerlan-Jobe Orthopedic Group and Dr. Benjamin Shaffer, the doctor on duty when Loyola Marymount University basketball player Hank Gathers Eric "Hank" Gathers (February 11, 1967, in Philadelphia – March 4, 1990 in Los Angeles) was an American college basketball star at Loyola Marymount University who collapsed and died during a game. died after collapsing during a game. Filed for $32.5 million, the case against his clients was dismissed at trial. Ochoa v. Goldstein (1992): Represented the cardiac surgeon A cardiac surgeon is a surgeon who performs cardiac surgery - operative procedures on the heart and great vessels. Training In the United States and Canada, a cardiac surgery residency typically comprises anywhere from six to nine years (or longer) of training to become of a diabetic man who lost both his legs due to an infection following heart surgery. "Over the course of the trial, I became good friends with the plaintiff himself," Carroll said. "You don't often develop a friendship with the guy you're against." Most Challenging Aspect of Practice: Quickly learning the medical intricacies of each case in a way that allows him to explain doctors' decisions to juries. "You represent someone who spends four years in medical school and nine years in practice, and in seven to eight days you have to convey to the jury why the judgment they made was appropriate under the circumstances," he said. On the Nature of the Business: "I have little kids. So when you're trying a case for a doctor against parents of a child with profound brain damage, and a victory for you is sending that child home with no money, it tugs at your heartstrings," he said. "When you have little kids they want to know what you did all day. And you have to tell them in a way that characterizes you as a good guy." --Amanda Bronstad Michael Trotter Partner Carroll Kelly Trotter Franzen & McKenna Specially: Defense in cases involving necrotizing fasciitis necrotizing fasciitis n. Tissue death such as that associated with group A streptococcus infection. Necrotizing fasciitis (flesh eating bacteria), AFP (1) (AppleTalk Filing Protocol) The file sharing protocol used in an AppleTalk network. In order for non-Apple networks to access data in an AppleShare server, their protocols must translate into the AFP language. See file sharing protocol. (alpha-fetoprotein) blood tests that detect problems in unborn babies, and failure to diagnose failure to diagnose, n a failure to assess a patient's condition. Harm may be inflicted by the failure to administer treatment to a potentially treatable condition. cancer. Notable Cases: Yanes v. Wood (1997): Defense in a wrongful birth A Medical Malpractice claim brought by the parents of a child born with birth defects, alleging that negligent treatment or advice deprived them of the opportunity to avoid conception or terminate the pregnancy. lawsuit alleging a radiologist failed to detect dwarfism dwarfism, condition in which an animal or plant is less than normal in size and lacks the capacity for normal growth. Dwarfism is deliberately produced and perpetuated in certain species (e.g., in breeding miniature dogs and cultivating dwarf plants). in an unborn baby during an ultrasound test. Ramirez v. Flores Flores, town, Guatemala Flores (flōrəs), town (1990 est. pop. 2,200), capital of Petén department, N Guatemala. Flores was built on an island in the southern part of Lake Petén Itzá and on the site of the (2004): Defended a surgeon in the case of a 30-year-old man who died from necrotizing fasciitis. Defense of Dr. Ernest Carlsen in an investigation by the state Attorney General (1993): Carlsen was the subject of allegations he sexually molested mo·lest tr.v. mo·lest·ed, mo·lest·ing, mo·lests 1. To disturb, interfere with, or annoy. 2. To subject to unwanted or improper sexual activity. dozens of patients during breast exams. The case settled out of court. Most Challenging Aspect of Practice: Seeing "sad, sad" cases. "It' s seeing how there are bad diseases out there, bad conditions, that even the best doctor can't fix. You have to be sensitive to it or you don't do a good job." On the Nature of the Business: "You come to learn that there are really some bad outcomes that have nothing to do with the care that was provided. We learn that it happens in spite of the doctor's best efforts. A lot of people think a bad outcome means somebody did something wrong. That's the biggest fundamental flaw people have when judging care. What makes it easier is when you get to know the doctor you're representing, and then you find out about the success stories where somebody is cured. Thankfully, we do get exposed to that a little bit." --Amanda Bronstad Louis 'Duke' De Haas Shareholder La Follette Johnson De Hass Fesler & Ames Specially: Defending malpractice claims, with emphasis on cases involving brain-damaged babies. Notable Cases: O'Rourke v. Kaiser (1988): Heather O'Rourke, who appeared in three "Poltergeist poltergeist (pōl`tərgīst) [Ger.,=knocking ghost], in spiritism, certain phenomena, such as rapping, movement of furniture, and breaking of crockery, for which there is no apparent scientific explanation. " films, died of intestinal stenosis stenosis /ste·no·sis/ (ste-no´sis) pl. steno´ses [Gr.] stricture; an abnormal narrowing or contraction of a duct or canal. , a congenital obstruction of the digestive tract digestive tract n. See alimentary canal. Digestive tract The organs that perform digestion, or changing of food into a form that can be absorbed by the body. , a few weeks after her 12th birthday. Her mother alleged Kaiser Permanente doctors misdiagnosed the condition and that a simple surgical procedure could have saved the child. The case went to arbitration and was settled for an undisclosed sum. Pierce v. Summit Medical Center (2005): Successfully defended the medical center in a case brought by a 24-year-old woman who was left paralyzed par·a·lyze tr.v. par·a·lyzed, par·a·lyz·ing, par·a·lyz·es 1. To affect with paralysis; cause to be paralytic. 2. To make unable to move or act: paralyzed by fear. from the neck down. He also defended Daniel Freeman Memorial Hospital in litigation An action brought in court to enforce a particular right. The act or process of bringing a lawsuit in and of itself; a judicial contest; any dispute. When a person begins a civil lawsuit, the person enters into a process called litigation. that resulted from the death of Loyola Marymount University basketball star Hank Gathers in 1990. Most Challenging Aspect of Practice: The realization that risk is inherent in all medical procedures. "Everyone thinks having a baby is all dandy, but you have a surgery. Things can be tenuous and in a flash, you can have a catastrophic injury." Facing the parents of a child in the wake of such an event is especially hard. "I can relate to them personally because I had a sister who suffered brain damage," he said. "It is always painful." On the Nature of the Business: "No matter how much we improve medicine, or how sophisticated it becomes, like any endeavor in human life, it will be fraught with human error. So we will always have medical malpractice litigation. When you have a parent of a brain-damaged child filing a lawsuit, either outcome is a no-win situation for them." --Aarthi Sivaraman Steven C. Glickman Partner Glickman & Glickman Specially: Representing plaintiffs in personal injury/medical malpractice cases. Notable Cases: Garstang v. UCLA UCLA University of California at Los Angeles UCLA University Center for Learning Assistance (Illinois State University) UCLA University of Carrollton, TX and Lower Addison, TX (2000). Glickman's client developed an infection following breast reconstruction Breast Reconstruction Definition Breast reconstruction is a series of surgical procedures performed to recreate a breast. Reconstructions are commonly done after one or both breasts are removed as a treatment for breast cancer. surgery. The defendant, chief of plastic surgery at UCLA, refused to settle for an amount below $30,000. The jury awarded $455,000. Also, obtained a confidential settlement agreement in 2004 for a client who suffered a lack of oxygen to the brain after heart bypass surgery Bypass surgery A surgical procedure that grafts blood vessels onto arteries to reroute the blood flow around blockages in the arteries (arteriosclerosis). , after be was taken off a respirator respirator /res·pi·ra·tor/ (res´pi-ra?ter) ventilator (2). cuirass respirator see under ventilator. . Though nothing in the records indicated negligence, Glickman established that the hospital and the doctor in charge failed to follow correct procedures. The case settled for about $1 million. Most Challenging Aspect of Practice: The state's Medical Injury Compensation Reform Act The Medical Injury Compensation Reform Act (MICRA) of 1975 was a California law designed lower medical malpractice premiums for Californians. Parts Micra Consists of the following parts: On the Nature of the Business: "There are fewer lawyers handling medical malpractice cases on a regular basis now because of the economics," he said. "For each case, you have to be prepared to advance costs of at least $50,000 for experts, depositions, trial expenses and exhibits. So with a $250,000 cap on non-economic damages it often doesn't make sense to advance this much money. Juries understand that when you have a significant injury that was caused by a preventable medical mistake, the plaintiff should be compensated. But juries for these kinds of cases need to be educated in general, and by the lawyers in particular, because the issues are often so complicated. And getting to a jury can be expensive." --Eric Berkowitz Shirley K. Watkins Senior Associate Michels & Watkins Specialty: Representing malpractice plaintiffs, mostly infants with significant injuries. Notable Cases: Jane Doe Jane Doe female counterpart of John Doe. [Am. Usage: Misc.] See : Everyman v. Roe Hospital (2000): Secured a $1 million confidential settlement with an area hospital after it failed to diagnose a brain tumor Brain Tumor Definition A brain tumor is an abnormal growth of tissue in the brain. Unlike other tumors, brain tumors spread by local extension and rarely metastasize (spread) outside the brain. in a teenage girl who later died. Helen Patchen v. County of Riverside (1995): A jury trial resulted in a $300,000 verdict in favor of a teenage girl with schizophrenia who died in county custody after a reaction to an anti-psychotic drug. Bernard Rosenzweig v. Mohammed Gharavi (1997): Jury trial resulted in a $1 million verdict on behalf of a man who had unnecessary bypass surgery because of a misread mis·read tr.v. mis·read , mis·read·ing, mis·reads 1. To read inaccurately. 2. To misinterpret or misunderstand: misread our friendly concern as prying. angiogram an·gi·o·gram n. An angiographic x-ray of blood vessels used in diagnosing pathological conditions of the cardiovascular system.//An x-ray of one or more blood vessels produced by angiography and used in diagnosing pathology in the cardiovascular . Most Challenging Aspect of Practice: Over coming the biases that jurors have when they walk into the courtroom. "The public has been inundated in·un·date tr.v. in·un·dat·ed, in·un·dat·ing, in·un·dates 1. To cover with water, especially floodwaters. 2. with media representations of this so-called malpractice insurance crisis," Watkins said. Another challenge: dealing with the most severely disabled children, many of whom are very poor. "We have to serve not only as their lawyers but as de facto [Latin, In fact.] In fact, in deed, actually. This phrase is used to characterize an officer, a government, a past action, or a state of affairs that must be accepted for all practical purposes, but is illegal or illegitimate. case managers," she said. On the Nature of the Business: "A lot of people who have been victims of malpractice don't have health insurance. Who has to bear the expense of providing care to people who are victims of malpractice? The taxpayers. We are basically holding the doctors and the hospital responsible and making them pay for what they did wrong instead of having the government pay for it. It's a fundamental fairness issue. It shifts the cost of care back to the person responsible for causing it." --Laurence Darmiento Philip Michels President Michels & Watkins Specialty: Representing malpractice plaintiffs, mostly infants with significant injuries. Notable Cases: Marquez v. Community Hospital of San Bernardino (2002): Litigated for a $7 million verdict in favor of an infant brain damaged during birth after his mother was allowed to have a vaginal delivery without a doctor present even though she had two previous Caesarian caesarian n. Variant of cesarean. sections. Rodriguez v. Community Hospital of San Bernardino and Muhtasub (2000): Represented plaintiff who received an $11 million verdict in a case in which an infant suffered brain damage when the umbilical chord was squeezed during a risky delivery and there was difficulty finding the attending physician. Most Challenging Aspect of Practice: California's Medical Injury Compensation Reform Act, which caps pain and suffering awards at $250,000. The 30-year-old law "is not indexed to inflation" and has changed the nature of the business, including the kind of cases lawyers can take. The result is that fewer people are knowledgeable and resourceful in the practice and some cases, like the death of an older son who is not a wage earner, are often not taken on. On the Nature of the Business: "One thing that stands out is the inequities in medical care out there. People who are the least advantaged are pushed more into health care systems with less sophisticated doctors and hospitals that cut corners. Not only do they get poorer care in general, but they have less ability to deal with the problems. I think we try to help people who have either been abused by the system or neglected or don't even realize what is happening to them." --Laurence Darmiento Robert Reback Partner Reback McAndrews & Kjar Specialty: Defending health care providers in cases involving major neurological injuries, brain or spinal cord spinal cord, the part of the nervous system occupying the hollow interior (vertebral canal) of the series of vertebrae that form the spinal column, technically known as the vertebral column. damage, or wrongful death The taking of the life of an individual resulting from the willful or negligent act of another person or persons. If a person is killed because of the wrongful conduct of a person or persons, the decedent's heirs and other beneficiaries may file a wrongful death action . Notable Cases: Byrd v. Inglewood Women's Hospital, Morton Burke and Steven Pine (1989): Defended the doctors and the hospital against claims by the family of Belinda Byrd, who died after an abortion. Trial resulted in a hung jury, and the case was subsequently settled. Terms were confidential. Garrett v. Young (2002): Defended Dr. William Young in 2002 against claims by Eufala Garrett that he violated the California Medical Information Act. Judgment for defendant was upheld on appeal, clarifying the reading of the law. Most Challenging Aspect of Practice: The cases tend to be very complex. Malpractice lawyers have to learn medicine while juggling the legal issues presented and trying to put everything together in a way that will be persuasive to the jury. "The business side of malpractice law is a matter of developing a sufficient reputation and a sufficient amount of experience so people will want you to represent them and their interests," he said. "Insurance carriers are very specific about who they pick because they have to satisfy shareholders." On the Nature of the Business: "It's a low form of improvisation. The jury is the audience and they .judge your performance with their verdict. For me, with every case that comes in, I'm working it up as though it's going to trial because doctors must consent to a settlement. Being accused of malpractice is something our clients take very seriously." --Christopher Keough James D. Nichols Vice President & Managing Shareholder Bonne n. 1. A female servant charged with the care of a young child. Bridges Mueller O'Keefe & Nichols Specialty: Medical malpractice defense of doctors, hospitals, nurses, technicians and other health care providers. Notable Cases: Chacone v. Mendoz (1990): Successfully defended a doctor whose patient got an infection after her knuckles were injected with vitamin K vitamin K Any of several fat-soluble compounds essential for the clotting of blood. A deficiency of vitamin K in the body leads to an increase in clotting time. In 1929 a previously unrecognized fat-soluble substance present in green leafy vegetables was found to be required despite it being an unrecognized practice. Bucholtz v. Drachenberg (1991): Successfully defended a pediatric pediatric /pe·di·at·ric/ (pe?de-at´rik) pertaining to the health of children. pe·di·at·ric adj. Of or relating to pediatrics. neurologist in a case involving an infant whose neck was fractured in delivery and who was left a quadriplegic quadriplegic /quad·ri·ple·gic/ (-ple´jik) 1. of, pertaining to, or characterized by quadriplegia. 2. an individual with quadriplegia. as a result. The neurologist died during trial and Nichols defended the estate (one of the toughest of his career). Woo v. Capuya (2002): Successfully defended a cardiac surgeon who left behind a guide wire in a patient's heart; the jury found negligence but decided it caused no harm. Most Challenging Aspect of Practice: Making people understand that a physician is not necessarily negligent when he makes a mistake. "When somebody is treated by a health care professional and they have a bad outcome. all too often they think somebody violated the standard of care," Nichols said. "The practice of medicine is an art. It's not an exact science." He sees his job as getting the jury to look at a case through the eyes of the physician at the time the patient is being treated. On the Nature of the Business: 'Its my job to take the facts and present them as honestly and with the best verbal skills I have." he said. "What I do is lay it on the jury. I win most of the cases I try, but sometime when you lose you say it was meant to be lost. I am a churchgoing church·go·er n. One who attends church. church  go ing adj. guy. That gives me a lot of comfort. You have to get up the next day and look at yourself in the mirror. I don't want my children to think I am a shyster, crooked, sleazy lawyer." --Laurence Darmiento David J. O'Keefe President & Senior Shareholder Bonne Bridges Mueller O'Keefe & Nichols Specialty: Medical malpractice defense of doctors, hospitals and other health care providers. Notable Cases: Looney et al. v. Birds (1994): Jury awarded $800,000 to three AIDS patients who claimed they were harmed by taking an experimental, non-FDA approved drug (a lower amount than the original $10 million demand by five initial plaintiffs). Anderson v. Regents (1989): Verdict for defense in a case involving patient who hallucinated and jumped out of a window at UCLA Medical Center UCLA Medical Center is a hospital located on the campus of the University of California, Los Angeles in Los Angeles, California. It is rated as one of the top three hospitals in the United States and is the top hospital on the West Coast according to US News & World Report. while taking an experimental anti-seizure medication. O'Keefe argued there was proper informed consent and the jump could not have been prevented. Most Challenging Aspect of Practice: Patients who have sustained catastrophic injury and present an empathetic em·pa·thet·ic adj. Empathic. em pa·theti·cal·ly adv. appearance to a jury. "I had a case with a child born with no arms and two deformed legs, which had not been picked up with ultrasound testing and genetic testing Genetic Testing DefinitionA genetic test examines the genetic information contained inside a person's cells, called DNA, to determine if that person has or will develop a certain disease or could pass a disease to his or her offspring. ," he said. "The child was in court scooting scooting a form of behavior limited largely to dogs. Sliding along on the ground while sitting on the perineal area and with the hindlimbs extended forwards. Caused usually by irritation in the perineal area, chiefly anal sac irritation. around in a tour-wheeled little cart that she would try to push with her legs. Then she would be up in the cafeteria feeding herself with one foot. The jury saw all this, yet the jury in that case elected to find in favor of my client and not award any damages." There are occasions, he said, when it's better to have the injured plaintiff in court. "The jury becomes too acclimated to seeing them and the emotional edge wears off," he said. On the Nature of the Business: "A competent plaintiffs attorney looks for catastrophic injury, and then they look to see whether or not they can link that injury causally to what a doctor or a health care institution did. What I am always trying to do is persuade a jury that whatever the complication, it is something that is a recognized risk of whatever procedure the patient underwent and it occurs in a certain percentage of cases irrespective of how careful a health care provider is." --Laurence Darmiento Steven A. Heimberg Partner Heimberg & Zohar Specialty: Cases that change or challenge existing laws. Notable Cases: Allen v. HealthCare Partners Medical Group (2002): Represented a man who died of an undiagnosed infection and obtained a $1.5 million jury verdict, including $800,000 in non-economic damages. The case carved out a legal exception for health care providers to the state's $250,000 cap on non-economic damages under the Medical Injury Compensation Reform Act of 1975. Akins v. Women's Medical Group of Santa Monica (1999): Represented a toddler who suffered brain damage after doctors tailed to perform a Caesarian section. He got a $16 million verdict award, the largest in Los Angeles County. Most Challenging Aspect of Practice: Limits on recoveries and fees make the margin for profit razor thin. Compounding that, the $250,000 MICRA cap allows the defense to hire "lots and lots of experts," making it hard for a plaintiff to match if the potential award is capped. Another problem for plaintiffs' lawyers is that juries tend to favor doctors and hospitals to start with because the plaintiff has the greater burden of proving that negligence occurred and that it caused the injury. On the Nature of the Business: "It's a tremendous toll on one's life. In an auto accident case, the jury knows that it is not standard to drive at 100 miles per hour and drink a bottle of scotch. But when they bring in a (doctor) with a thick resume willing to protect his or her brethren, it's essentially so much techno-babble. You have this enormous burden to de-assemble these concocted defenses. That amount of work takes a toll, and with the profit margins that are left, it makes it a difficult lifestyle that very few attorneys want to pursue." --Amanda Bronstad |
|
||||||||||||||||||||
Printer friendly
Cite/link
Email
Feedback
Reader Opinion