A personal injury victim tried to make an end-run around MSP by having payment go directly to the victim. The trial court approved the settlement structure, but it was appealed. The case was reversed since “Liberty Mutual exposes itself to paying off Tripp’s Medicare lien in the event Tripp herself does not. Leaving Liberty Mutual […]
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After Plaintiff brought suit against a nursing home, the trial judge indicated that he was personally acquainted with three of the witnesses expected to testify at trial. One was a nursing home administrator; the other two were physicians. The trial judge described himself as being “very good friends” with one of the doctors. The judge […]
The Estate appealed after the trial court granted Manor Care’s motion to compel arbitration. Resident’s wife had signed admissions agreement and an arbitration and limitation of liability agreement. After the resident filed suit, Manor Care answered, making a demand for trial by jury. Later it moved to compel arbitration. On appeal, Plaintiff argued that Manor […]
Conservator initialed pages indicating she read arbitration agreement, but did not sign the agreement. Facility made two attempts to have her sign the arbitration agreement and each time she declined. Resident continued to receive care in the facility. Plaintiff submitted an affidavit stating: “To the best of her memory and knowledge she had a reservation […]
Resident was in two different nursing homes and after her death, Plaintiff sued both of them. Each was dismissed and Plaintiff appealed. The action against the first nursing home was beyond the limitations period. Plaintiff’s discovery argument was rejected. The trial court’s dismissal of the second nursing home was also sustained since the only evidence […]
Plaintiff sued the nursing home, its owner (an LLC) and the individual manger of the LLC. The manager was not a Florida resident and moved to dismiss the complaint on personal jurisdiction grounds. The manager contested each allegation that he was subject to jurisdiction in Florida, shifting the burden back to the Plaintiff. The Plaintiff […]
Order compelling arbitration was affirmed. Four days after admitting her mother to a nursing home, Ms. Coker, the resident’s daughter, signed documents which included an arbitration and limitation of liability agreement. The agreement was clearly worded, conspicuous and separate from other documents. “The Agreement was intended to be signed by “Resident, Guardian or Other Legal […]
The nursing home filed a Chapter 11 bankruptcy petition in January 2000. Plaintiff resided in the nursing home from November 1999 through February 2000. In November 2001, Plaintiff filed suit, followed by an individual defendant’s motion to dismiss. In June 2003, the trial court granted the motion to dismiss, but gave Plaintiff 30 days to […]
Trial court sustained defendants’ exception of prematurity. The trial court was reversed in part because violations of the nursing home resident rights bill prior to August 15, 2003 were not subject to the medical review panel process. Further, claims that the resident was not cleaned and was left in her own feces were not subject […]
Plaintiff appealed after trial court sustained patient liability fund’s exception of no cause of action on Nursing Home Bill of Rights claim and appealed trial court’s awards for damages. Plaintiff had settled with the nursing home and proceeded to trial against the fund. On appeal, the court found no error in sustaining the exception since […]
Plaintiff, the estate of a 92 year old resident sued for neglect. The resident was wheelchair bound and had Parkinson’s, Alzheimer’s and osteoporosis. When she began showing signs of abnormality, she was examined and X-rays revealed a non-displaced spiral fracture of the distal tibia in her right leg. She was hospitalized and died a month […]
Jury found that nursing home and hospital were equally at fault. On JNOV, the trial court awarded damages for survival, medical expenses, funeral expenses and attorney’s fees. Court of appeals rejected nursing home’s argument that the trial court erred by redacting conclusions in the medical review panel report to the effect that the nursing home […]
The trial court sustained defendants’ exception of prematurity. The medical review panels’ term was about to expire without having reached a decision so an agreed motion was entered extending the panel. The order was, apparently, not signed until after the panel term expired. Plaintiffs filed suit and Defendants filed their exception. The trial court sustained […]
Defendants appealed judgment against nursing home and the patient’s compensation fund because judgment was improperly modified, because it did not limit medical malpractice liability of a qualified health care provider to $100,000 and because it did not provide that fund was not liable for violations of nursing home resident rights bill. Court of appeals found […]
Summary judgment for Defendants was affirmed where the attorney’s certificate that the case was reviewed by an expert prior to filing was not attached to the complaint in compliance with Miss. Code. Ann. § 11-1-58. The court rejected Plaintiff’s substantial compliance argument. The court also rejected Plaintiff’s argument that Defendant waived this defense by failing […]
Summary judgment was affirmed in part and reversed in part. The statute of limitations for underlying acts of negligence applies in a wrongful death suit; thus, Plaintiff claims for negligent acts occurring more than three years prior to the time the lawsuit was filed were barred. The court reversed that part of the summary judgment […]
Plaintiff appealed the trial court’s order granting the motion for summary judgment. “During discovery, the Appellees proposed a request for admissions “asking the plaintiff to admit or deny whether each individual caregiver acted within the standard of care.” Jordan responded to the request with non-responsive answers. After receiving Jordan’s response, the Appellees filed a motion […]
Plaintiffs moved for JNOV after the jury failed to award wrongful death damages and allocated 70% of damages to the ambulance service that had previously been settled. The trial court modified the award by increasing medical expenses and funeral expenses to reflect the actual damages evidenced at trial. The trial court also awarded 40% of […]
Defendant nursing home moved to compel arbitration. The trial court denied the motion, and the nursing home appealed. The agreement provided that controversies would be arbitrated pursuant to Alternative Dispute Resolution Service Rules of Procedure for Arbitration of the American Health Lawyers Association. Rule 6.06 provided that the “arbitrator may not award consequential, exemplary, incidental, […]
Both parties appealed after the court severed limitations on damages but compelled arbitration. In 2004, Plaintiff filed suit for negligence and violations of the Assisted Living Facilities Act. Alterra moved to compel arbitration because the resident’s agent, who held a power of attorney, signed the Residency Agreement containing an arbitration provision. The court compelled arbitration […]
The nursing home appealed the decision denying its exception of prematurity and exception of no cause of action and non-joinder of a party. The defendant’s appeal was dismissed on procedural grounds, but it was given time to perfect its appeal with the proper application.
The personal representative of the resident’s estate sued multiple corporations for nursing home negligence including Residence Healthcare, a foreign corporation. Residence Healthcare moved to dismiss for lack of personal jurisdiction. Plaintiff is first required to demonstrate that the long-arm statute reaches the defendant; if so, then the court determines whether minimum contacts exist. In this […]
The decision of the trial court was reversed and arbitration was compelled. On September 17, 2002, Mann underwent a total gastrectomy for stomach cancer. On June 18, 2003, after the surgery but prior to surgery to repair a hernia, he signed an arbitration agreement. During the hernia surgery, his bowel was punctured. Following a third […]
Plaintiff brought suit and the nursing home filed an exception based on the immaturity of the claim as it had not been reviewed by the medical review panel. The trial court agreed, sustained the exception and it was affirmed on appeal. The court found six factors making the action subject to the medical malpractice statute: […]
Plaintiff’s daughter sued the nursing home after it asked EMTs to revive Doris Lee; Ms. Lee had a DNR. There were legal deformities and contradictions in three separate DNRs executed between 1996 and 2002. “The record was clear that Mrs. Lee had been under the care of several physicians and had several close calls with […]
After Plaintiff sued for negligence, Manor Care moved to disqualify Plaintiff’s counsel. The trial court denied the motion. An application for certiorari was filed and granted. From February 2001 through December 2004, Scott Fischer represented Manor Care defending nursing home cases. At the end of December 2004, Fischer left his prior firm and joined Gordon […]
Plaintiff filed suit alleging various claims: negligence; medical malpractice; malice and/or gross negligence; fraud; breach of fiduciary duty; statutory survival claim; and statutory wrongful death. After Defendants answered, Plaintiffs, moved to substitute parties and for leave to amend the complaint. Several incorrect defendants were dismissed. More than a year after the Plaintiffs’ motion was filed, […]
Prior to filing suit, Plaintiff opened an estate for resident in Tallahatchie County. After the suit was filed, Defendants filed a motion to render appointment of the administrator void ab initio, contending the estate should have been filed in Leflore county. Plaintiffs then filed a petition for the appointment of an administrator in Leflore county […]
The wife was a personal representative of the husband’s estate. The husband was killed in a vehicle collision. Medicaid paid $168,691.58 in medical expenses and had an automatic lien. Medicaid filed its lien with the Court alleging a right to full payment. After the wrongful death action was brought, the case settled for $900,000, plus […]
Two estates filed suit against Defendants, including fictitious parties alleging simple negligence, medical malpractice, malice and/or gross negligence, fraud, breach of fiduciary duty, survival claim, and wrongful death. The Defendants moved to dismiss, which was denied. On appeal, the issues centered on claims against the nursing home administrator. Although a nursing home can be liable […]
Defendants appealed an order compelling response to 195 requests to produce and requiring them to prepare a privilege log. On appeal, the court noted the requests were expansive and unlimited by any time frame. The requests included “all incident, occurrence, and/or accident reports” from all facilities operated by Life Care Center of America, Inc., nationwide; […]
Health Facilities Mgmt. Corp. v. Hughes A management company and a nursing facility appeals from a judgment entered against them in favor of the resident’s estate and her beneficiaries. Following a one-week trial, the jury assessed damages of $38,000, a violation of the resident rights statute with damages of $1.25 million against the management company […]
Alcoy v. Valley Nursing Homes, Inc. Resident, 79 years old, was admitted to nursing home following a stroke. She was unable to communicate verbally and was incapable of making decisions. Four days after admission, she was sexually assaulted, suffering vaginal bleeding and tearing. Her assailant was not identified. She died eight months later. Suit was […]
Raymond Davis, Sr., individually, and Raymond Davis, Jr., as an administrator of the Estate of Elsie T. Davis, sued First Healthcare Corporation d/b/a Savannah Convalescent Center (“Savannah Convalescent Center”), a nursing home, for wrongful death and negligence as a result of Elsie Davis falling out of bed while under its care. Savannah Convalescent Center moved […]
Curtis Peacock, the administrator of the estate of his mother, Nina Peacock, filed suit against HCP III Eastman d/b/a Heart of Georgia Nursing Home and Meadowbrook Management Company for aspects of the care his mother received while living at the nursing home. The complaint, which sought punitive damages, alleged that while his mother was a […]
Beverly Tutinas’s husband, Julian, was on Medicaid, but she was not. When Beverly died owning a home valued at $69,641.89 and a car worth $2,000, the State of Illinois filed a claim against Beverly’s estate, seeking to recover what Medicaid had invested in Julian’s care. The court found that, although the State clearly had a […]
Resident was sexually assaulted in a mental health facility. Plaintiff brought an action alleging negligent hiring, gross negligence, sexual assault, sexual exploitation, and premises liability. No expert report was filed. Defendants argued the claims sounded in malpractice and moved to dismiss based on failure to file an expert report. Because the duty to protect the […]
Defendant appealed following entry of judgment on verdict and denial of its motion for JNOV. Resident died after he went into a diabetic coma. His doctor had ordered insulin on a sliding scale with his blood sugar to be checked at least daily. Plaintiffs were able to show that on numerous occasions, insulin was not […]
Plaintiffs filed their expert report on August 29, 2005. The 120th day after filing the complaint was July 4th. Defendant assisted living facility moved to dismiss the complaint and the trial court denied the motion. On appeal, Plaintiffs argued that an abatement order extended the time for filing the report. The court held that the […]
Miller v. Levering Reg’l Health Care Ctr., LLC The resident had a history of falling, was left unattended in a dining hall, and fell, hitting her head. Following the fall, she was given a neurological assessment every four hours. However, testimony at trial showed that the standard of care was every two hours. Further, she […]
A survival action was brought against the nursing home and its corporate parent. A jury found that the nursing home, the parent, and three employees were negligent, awarding $2,204,000. The trial court denied motions for judgment notwithstanding the verdict and Defendants appealed. On appeal the court found there was insufficient evidence to support a verdict […]
B.T. Healthcare, Inc. v. Honeycutt Resident suffered from pressure ulcers at two different nursing homes. After filing suit, Plaintiff settled with one nursing home, but not the other. When the claim went to trial, the jury found that the non-settling nursing home was 51% liable. The Resident was found 49% liable. After entry of judgment […]
On admission to the nursing home, the resident’s granddaughter executed an admission contract that included an arbitration agreement. Later, after the resident died, the resident’s daughter filed a wrongful death action. The trial court denied the motion to arbitrate, finding that Missouri law applied, that it was not pre-empted by the Federal Arbitration Act, that […]
Plaintiff filed a negligence and wrongful death suit against the nursing home. Kindred filed a motion to dismiss or, in the alternative, stay litigation pending arbitration. The trial court denied the motion, finding that the resident’s daughter had no express or implied authority to bind the resident when the arbitration agreement was signed at admission. […]
Maria Rubio was a nursing home resident suffering from Alzheimer’s disease. While in the nursing home she was sexually assaulted by another resident. The suit followed alleging a failure to protect. Plaintiff alleged that the sexual assault was not a professional negligence claim that was time-barred since it was not filed within two years of […]
The Court affirmed a $24,300 civil penalty after a U.S. Departmental Appeals Board found that a nursing home violated regulations creating immediate jeopardy to residents’ safety. In this case, the nursing home was found to be non-compliant with minimum standards of care based on unsanitary conditions in a manner that created immediate jeopardy. “Federal regulations […]
Plaintiff appealed from trial court’s grant of summary judgment to Manor Care, its dismissal of claims against an individual, and its award of attorney’s fees to the defendants. Plaintiff originally sued the parent corporation. The case was removed to federal court where, after discovery, Plaintiff amended the complaint to sue the subsidiaries. The court granted […]
Thornburg v. El Centro Regional Medical Center The plaintiff requested medical records, and the hospital charged $2 per page. Plaintiff objected, citing California Evidence Code § 1158, which provides that a medical provider can charge no more than ten cents per page. Plaintiff then filed a class action alleging that the hospital systematically violated the […]
When contrasted with Hines and Smith, a different result was reached where the legislature had re-written the property code. In 1993, Jack Willingham transferred certain real property to his son, reserving a life estate. In 1997, he applied for medical assistance from the state, which he received until his death in 2002. There, a 1995 […]
The court of appeals affirmed the dismissal of the claim against the state for failing to assure compliance with the state nursing home regulations. “Even if the State could be said to have waived sovereign immunity so as to be potentially susceptible to the estate’s lawsuit here, we hold that: (1) chapter 18.51 RCW, the […]
