Caps on noneconomic damages, enacted in many states under the banner of “tort reform,” have brought uncertain results. While the stated purpose is to prevent litigation from driving up the cost of medical care, damage caps often lead in practice to injustice for victims of medical malpractice. A family in…
The family of a man who was killed in an altercation with off-duty sheriff’s deputies at a Maryland movie theater have filed an amended complaint in their wrongful death and survival lawsuit. Estate of Saylor, et al, v. Regal Cinemas, Inc., et al, No. 1:13-cv-03089, am. complaint (D. Md., Mar.…
A Texas hospital failed to supervise a man known to have mental health problems, resulting in the man’s death, according to a lawsuit filed by the man’s family. Martinez, et al v. Oak Bend Medical Group, et al, No. 14-DCV-212068, 2nd am. pet. (Tex. Dist. Ct., Ft. Bend Co., March…
A lawsuit alleges that sheriff’s deputies negligently placed a locksmith in an unreasonably dangerous situation by bringing him along on an eviction without warning him of specific known risks, resulting in his death. Engert, et al v. Stanislaus County, et al, No. 1:13-cv-00126, 2nd am. complaint (E.D. Ca., Oct. 23,…
Maryland state law imposes a cap on noneconomic damages in all personal injury and wrongful death cases. This applies to “nonpecuniary” damages like pain and suffering, mental anguish, disfigurement, physical impairment, and loss of consortium. MD Cts & Jud Pro Code §§ 3-2A-01(h), 11-108(a)(2). Advocates of damage caps, commonly known…
A civil lawsuit was recently filed in the case of a man with Down Syndrome who was killed by Sheriff’s Deputies following a misunderstanding after his attempt to view a movie twice without paying. The altercation happened last January, when the man and his caretaker had just finished watching a…
A Superior Court judge recently ruled to allow a wrongful death lawsuit to proceed against a church and its pastor. The lawsuit arises out of the circumstances surrounding the brutal rape and killing of a 35 year old church day-care employee by the church’s janitor. The woman’s husband and children…
The West Virginia Record recently reported about the disposition of a lawsuit regarding the wrongful death of a local man, who was electrocuted while working. The decedent’s wife originally filed the lawsuit in 2011 on behalf of husband’s estate against Potomac Construction Industries and Sumersett Construction. The man was killed…
With the warmer weather encouraging outdoor activities, many individuals are taking part in challenging races which as their hallmark involve obstacles, mud, or somehow getting dirty as part of the festivities. One of the most popular types of these races, called the “Tough Mudder,” describes itself as “probably the toughest…
According to news reports, last week a Maryland jury awarded $90 million to a family who lost their 13-year-old daughter 4 years ago. The wrongful death verdict, reached by a jury of six, is one of the largest in the court’s history. The girl was struck by a Lincoln Continental…