2 total
Medical malpractice appeal dismissed; trial judge properly found ER physician liable for failing to diagnose meningitis.
The appellant emergency room physician appealed a trial judgment finding him liable in negligence for the death of a patient from bacterial meningitis.
The trial judge found the appellant breached the standard of care by failing to consider meningitis, perform a lumbar puncture, or administer standard treatment when the patient presented with confusion, fever, and a history of decreased consciousness.
The Court of Appeal dismissed the appeal, finding no palpable and overriding error in the trial judge's factual findings regarding the patient's mental status, her reliance on an infectious disease specialist's standard of care evidence, or her causation analysis applying the 'but for' test.
A Sanderson costs order against the appellant was also upheld.
Motion to sever liability from damages granted in complex $20 million boating accident claim.
The defendant Hamilton brought a motion to sever the issue of his liability from the damages assessment in a $20 million personal injury action arising from a boating accident.
The court found that the liability issue was straightforward and distinct from the complex damages assessment, which would require extensive medical evidence.
Applying the factors for bifurcation, the court concluded that severing liability would promote the just, most expeditious, and least expensive determination of the claim.
The motion was granted and the action was assigned to case management.
