Accident and Injury Law Blog

In Jackson v. Sunforest OB-GYN Associates, the Ohio Court of Appeal affirmed the trial court’s decision in a medical malpractice shoulder dystocia/brachial plexus case not to strike for cause two jurors who said they were biased towards doctors. The jury then found that an OB-GYN was not negligent in delivering a baby who suffered a brachial plexus injury.

I do not like this opinion. The Ohio Court of Appeal believes, as most jurisdictions do, that as long as the juror says they can be fair and reasonable in spite of their bias, it is not an abuse of discretion of the trial judge to sit the jurors. But the truth is that even if you are Rush Limbaugh biased, you are going to say that you can be fair and reasonable. So practically, you are tipping off your bias as much as you can when you say “I have a bias.”

One question I would have for the plaintiff’s medical malpractice lawyer is why not use a preemptive challenge against the jurors? Unless the rest of the jury panel was awful – I’m thinking doctors and nurses awful – I cannot imagine why these jurors were not stricken.

Posted by Ronald V. Miller, Jr. | Permalink | Email This Post

Posted In: Medical Malpractice , Ohio

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People who live or have loved ones who live at Westside Health Care and Nursing Home, a long term care nursing home that recently received a surprise inspection, will have to wait a little longer before receiving the Cincinnati City Council’s health committee has been canceled report on how Westside Health Care and Nursing Home is caring for its patients. A report had been expected today, according to the Cincinnati Enquirer.

Cincinnati police described conditions at the Westside as “deplorable,” and reports showed residents living with fleas, flies and filth. Residents told police that laundry had not been done in three months. In the affidavit filed to secure the search warrant, Cinncinnati Police Office Aaron Layton said wrote that the conditions presented "a safety, health and fire hazard to the occupants of the premises and surrounding properties." Upon inspection, according to the Cinncinnati Enquirer, a fire door tied shut, accumulation of vomit was in an entryway, smoking was permitted near oxygen tanks, the sprinkler system did not work, and there were loads of structural defects.

When I was a kid, I was bouncing around in the back of my parents car without a car seat in sight. Today, that is child abuse but it was normal back then. If you are wondering what was seem awful 10 years from now, I think it will be the way we treat our elderly. I don't think the Westside Health Care and Nursing Homes of the world will exist in 10 years.

Posted by Ronald V. Miller, Jr. | Permalink | Email This Post

Posted In: Nursing Home Abuse , Ohio

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The Ohio Supreme Court has concluded that Ohio’s statutory caps on damage awards in personal-injury lawsuits are constitutional in a 5-2 decision today.

Like most states with caps, the cap applies to pain and suffering damages and other intangible injuries. The Ohio cap is particularly restrictive: $350,000 unless the injured person lost a limb or bodily organ. Ohio also has a punitive damages rule that restricts punitive damages to twice the amount of damages awarded as the judge or jury awards in compensation for the plaintiff’s injuries, minus any reductions as a result of the cap on pain and suffering damage. (Actually, the formula is a little more complicated than that but this is the gist of it.)

In this case, the plaintiff filed a product liability case against Johnson & Johnson claiming she suffered blood clots as a result of having used the Ortho Evra Birth Control Patch, a hormonal birth-control patch.

Two justices dissented. Justices Paul E. Pfeifer wrote that, "Today is a day of fulfilled expectations for insurance companies and manufacturers of defective, dangerous or toxic products that cause injury to someone in Ohio… But this is a sad day for our Constitution and this court. And this is a tragic day for Ohioans, who no longer have any assurance that their Constitution protects the rights they cherish."

Interesting, Justice Pfeifer also noted that in deciding to cap damages, the Ohio legislature relied on studies which were not "peer-reviewed" or "published in a scholarly journal." While this might not be a reason to ignore the legislative intent, because presumably the legislature can decide what they decide for any reason they want, it does underscore the faulty data that insurance companies and big business uses to rig or construe the data in such a way to create a crisis when one does not exist. For a great example of this from medical malpractice insurers, click here.

Posted by Ronald V. Miller, Jr. | Permalink | Email This Post

Posted In: Car Accidents , Medical Malpractice , Nursing Home Abuse , Ohio , Product Liability , Truck Accidents

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Welcome to our blog covering injury law and policy throughout the United States.

Posted by Ronald V. Miller, Jr. | Permalink | Email This Post

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