Posts Tagged ‘wrongful birth and wrongful life’

Wrongful birth (cont’d)

Yorba Linda, Calif.: The basic fact pattern underlying this wrongful-birth suit will be familiar to longtime readers of this site (Aug. 22-23, 2001, Jul. 1, 2003, etc.): little Leilani Duff’s parents say they love her, but also say they’d have aborted her if they’d realized she was at risk of spina bifida, so they’re suing their obstetrician, Dr. William Dieterich, for unspecified damages. (Claire Luna, “If Only We’d Known, Parents Say”, Los Angeles Times, Sept. 9). The L.A. Times’s account includes the following comment about the incentives this burgeoning field of litigation may be sending to doctors practicing in the field:

The rise in wrongful-life suits and the threat of legal responsibility for a child’s defects puts obstetricians in the uncomfortable position of recommending, if not insisting on, abortion when there is the slightest doubt, said one physician.

“On one side you have a liability mess that puts you on the hook for the rest of the child’s life,” said Dr. T. Murphy Goodwin, chief of maternal-fetal medicine at USC’s Keck School of Medicine [and also, as the article notes, a member of the American Assn. of Pro-Life Obstetricians and Gynecologists].

“The other side, you have carte blanche to avoid the potential for these kinds of problems by shading the discussion to advocate abortion. There’s almost no adverse reaction if a doctor tells someone to terminate a pregnancy based on faulty information.”

Filed under: medical, obstetric, wrongful birth and wrongful life

“60 Minutes” on wrongful birth

The CBS show takes a look at the Jade Fields case from New Jersey, which we covered last July (Jul. 1-2, 2002; Aug. 22-23, 2001 and links from there). The show interviews an ultrasound specialist who “has testified as an expert witness in many wrongful birth cases for both doctors and patients” and who appears to doubt that the doctors’ supposed inattention to danger signs was in fact malpractice. Also on camera is the girl’s mother who insists that “Jade is the best thing that could have ever happened to us” but also says in the lawsuit that she would have aborted the girl in a moment had the extent of her disabilities been clear. The show gives the plaintiff’s lawyer the last word (CBS News, “Is ‘Wrongful Birth’ Malpractice?”, Jun. 23).

Filed under: family law, medical, New Jersey, wrongful birth and wrongful life

Archived family law items, pre-July 2003

[probate and estate law cases]

“Decorating for reconciliation“, May 29, 2003.

“Pet custody as legal practice area“, Feb. 17, 2003; “Officious intermeddlers, pet division” (lawyers intervene on behalf of couple’s cats and dogs), May 14-15, 2002.

Custody and visitation, 2003: “‘The Politics of Family Destruction’” (Stephen Baskerville), Jan. 7-8. 2002: “Rethinking grandparent visitation“, Oct. 21; “‘Avoiding court is best defence’“, Jan. 14-15. 2001: “Columnist-fest” (John Tierney), May 25-27; “Solomon’s child“, Jan. 26-28. 1999: “Spreading to Australia?” (smoking and child custody), Dec. 29-30; “Chicago’s $4 million kid” (custody battle royal), Sept. 17-19.

Child support, 2003: “‘The Politics of Family Destruction’” (bans on fathering more children), Jan. 7-8 (& Nov. 28, 2001). 2001: “Wrong guy? Doesn’t seem to matter“, Aug. 7-8; “‘Judge orders parents to support 50-year-old son’“, Aug. 7-8. 2000: “State errors unfairly cast some dads as deadbeats“, Sept. 8-10; “Not child’s father, must pay anyway” (plus: “throwaway dads”), May 22; “Pilloried, broke, alone” (Donna LaFramboise on “deadbeat dads”), Apr. 10. 1999: “Beating up on ‘deadbeat dads’“, Aug. 23.

“Lawyers fret about bad image“, Oct. 3, 2002.

“Hizzoner’s divorce, settled at last“, Jul. 16-17, 2002.

“Lawyer’s 44-hour workday” (social service agency, uncontested adoptions), Jun. 28-30, 2002.

“Anti-circumcision suit advances“, Aug. 19, 2002; “By reader acclaim: suing over circumcision“, Feb. 28-March 1, 2001; “Folk medicine meets child abuse reporting” (“coining” of skin), May 31-Jun. 2, 2002.

Restraining orders: “‘The Politics of Family Destruction’“, Jan. 7-8, 2003; “A menace in principle“, Mar. 4, 2002; “Fateful carpool“, Aug. 23-24, 2000; “Stay away, I’ve got a court order“, Aug. 11-13; “Recommended reading” (Dan Lynch in Albany Times-Union), Jan. 25, 2000; “Hitting below the belt“, Oct. 26, 1999; “Injunctive injustice“, Oct. 14; “Weekend reading” (“Why is Daddy in jail?…For the crime of wanting to see his child”), Sept. 25-26, 1999; “Hitting below the belt” (Cathy Young, Salon).

“Mom wants to be sued” (for negligent injury to fetus), Jan. 4-6, 2002.

“‘Wrongful life’ comes to France“, Dec. 11, 2001; “Meet the ‘wrongful-birth’ bar“, Aug. 22-23 (& letter to the editor, Sept. 3; more on wrongful birth/life: Jan. 9-10, May 20-21, Jul. 1-2, 2002; Nov. 22-23, Sept. 8-10, June 8, May 9, Jan. 8-9, 2000).

“Women’s rights: British law, or Islamic?“, Nov. 13, 2001.

“Rush to reconcile“, Sept. 27, 2001.

“Why she’s quitting law practice” (Canadian lawyer Karen Selick), Aug. 13-14, 2001.

“Canadian court: divorce settlements never final“, May 15, 2001; “Down repressed-memory lane II: distracted when she signed” (separation agreement), Dec. 29-30, 1999.

“‘Halt cohabiting or no bail, judge tells defendants’” (1805 N.C. law), May 8, 2001; “Dusting ’em off” (old laws against “alienation of affection”, cohabitation), May 18-21, 2000.

“‘State running background checks on new parents’” (Michigan), Apr. 3-4, 2001; “Expanding definitions of child abuse“, Feb. 16-19, 2001; “Battered? Hand over your kids“, July 13, 2000.

“‘Victim is sued for support’” (Canada: husband shot by wife may have to pay her), Feb. 9-11, 2001; “Pay us for this service” (husband dunned for cost of defending wife charged with murdering their kids), Dec. 22, 1999.

“Do as the Douglases do” (pre-nuptial agreements), Jan. 10, 2001.

“Behind the subway ads” (1-800-DIVORCE, etc.), Dec. 18-19, 2000; “State of legal ethics” (ad for will-contest litigation), Oct. 5-6; “Honey, you’ve got mail” (solicitations from divorce lawyers arrive before unsuspecting spouses know they’re being divorced), July 15, 1999.

“Family law roundup” (English couple’s divorce costs ?840,000; frequent flier miles argued over; charges of clubby Marin County, Calif. courts), Nov. 7, 2000.

“Dangerous divorce opponents” (when spouse is lawyer), Sept. 21, 2000.

“The asset hider“, May 16, 2000; “No, honey, nothing special happened today” (woman seeking divorce fails to tell husband she just won California lottery), Nov. 20-21, 1999.

“Columnist-fest: liberal aims, illiberal means” (Stuart Taylor on same-sex marriage, William Raspberry on grandparents’ rights), Feb. 24, 2000.

“Scorched-earth divorce tactics? Pay up” (Massachusetts decisions adopt loser-pays as sanction), Jan. 31, 2000.

“Dear Abby: Please help…” (sue married man for breach of promise to follow through on divorce?), Jan. 11, 2000.

“Christmas lawyer humor” (Richard Crouch, “Joys of the season for divorce lawyers”), Dec. 23-26, 1999.

“Splitsville, N.Y.” (New York magazine cover story), Dec. 17-18, 1999.

“Weekend reading” (some celebrities tuck nondisclosure contracts into the envelope with wedding invitations), Aug. 7-8, 1999.

Articles by Overlawyered.com editor Walter Olson:

“Free To Commit” (Louisiana covenant marriage law), Reason, October 1997.

“At Law: Divorce Court New York Style“, City Journal, Spring 1993.

“Kidlib and Mrs. Clinton: The Hand that Rocks the Cradle” (children’s rights), National Review, May 11, 1992.

“Suing Ourselves to Death“, (vagueness of custody standards; excerpt, The Litigation Explosion), Washington Post, April 28, 1991.

Countless websites deal with divorce, custody and other family-law topics. A great many of these are put up by persons outraged at what they’ve gone through in their own experiences in court. Among sites with a reformist focus, many align themselves with one or another camp among family roles: thus there are sites that focus on husbands’ legal woes and those that focus on wives’; sites for custodial and for non-custodial parents, for birth parents, for adoptive parents and for adoptees; and so forth. Yet dissatisfaction with the legal system’s handling of family breakup, and outrage at exorbitant costs, tactical gamesmanship, judges with too much arbitrary power, unreliable expert opinion, and outright perjury and invention, are themes that weave through sites from all sides. Indeed, one lesson from comparing a variety of sites is that innocent parties of every sex, age and condition are victimized by legal hardball — and that the process produces many more losers than winners.

Books of interest:

Karen Winner, “Divorced from Justice : The Abuse of Women and Children by Divorce Lawyers and Judges”
Cathy Young, “Ceasefire! Why Women and Men Must Join Forces to Achieve True Equality“.
Richard Ofshe and Ethan Watters, “Making Monsters: False Memories, Psychotherapy, and Sexual Hysteria”
Margaret Hagen, “Whores of the Court: The Fraud of Psychiatric Testimony and the Rape of American Justice” (currently unavailable)

Filed under: Australia, Canada, divorce, family law, France, Louisiana, Massachusetts, Michigan, The Litigation Explosion, wrongful birth and wrongful life

Archived disabled rights items, pre-July 2003

Multiple complaints and filing mills, 2003: “Disabled-access suit could stop Super Bowl“, Jan. 7-8. 2002: “‘Disability rights attorney accused of having inaccessible office’” (the one who sued Eastwood), Apr. 25; “Florida’s ADA filing mills grind away“, Mar. 29-31. 2001: “ADA’s busiest complaint-filer“, July 20-22. 2000: “Eastwood trial begins“, Sept. 21 (& Oct. 2: jury declines to award damages); “On the Hill: Clint Eastwood vs. ADA filing mills“, May 18-21; “Mass ADA complaints“, Mar. 7; “Bill introduced to curb opportunistic ADA filings“, Feb. 15 (& Sept. 5, 2001: Sen. Inouye co-sponsors); “Florida ADA complaint binge“, Jan. 26-27.

“Maybe crime pays dept.” (hemorrhoids not a protected disability), Apr. 1, 2003.

Sports, 2003: “Disabled-access suit could stop Super Bowl“, Jan. 7-8. 2001: “By reader acclaim: football’s substance-abuse policy challenged“, Nov. 19-20; “‘A disabling verdict for organized sports’“, June 1-3 (Casey Martin case; & see June 22-24, May 30, 2001; Sept. 29-Oct. 1, April 10, 2000). 2000: “‘NCAA Can Be Sued Under ADA, Federal District Judge Rules’“, Nov. 28; “Wheelchair marathon suit“, Oct. 23. 1999: “Update: ADA youth soccer case“, Nov. 13-14; “After Casey Martin, the deluge“, Nov. 5-7; “ADA protection for boozing student athletes“, Sept. 29.

“‘Court waives deadline as ‘reasonable accommodation’ for disabled litigator’“, Dec. 24-26, 2002.

Website accessibility: “‘Judge: Disabilities act doesn’t cover Web“, Oct. 22, 2002; “Website accessibility law hits the U.K.” (Scotland), May 7, 2001; “Olympics website’s accessibility complaint“, Aug. 16-17, 2000; “Disabled accessibility for campaign websites: the gotcha game“, July 19-20; “Welcome readers” (Intellectual Capital), June 19; “ADA & the web: sounding the alarm“, May 24; “Access excess“, May 2; “ADA & freedom of expression on the Web“, Feb. 10-11; editor’s testimony before House Judiciary Committee, Feb. 9, 2000; “Accessible websites no snap“, Dec. 21, 1999; “AOL sued for failure to accommodate blind users“, Nov. 5, 1999.

“A belt too far“, Oct. 29, 2001; “‘Sorry, Slimbo, you’re in my seats’“, June 7, 2001 (& updates Dec. 15-16, 2001, Oct. 25-27, 2002); “Obese fliers“, Dec. 20, 2000.

Safety, 2002: “Australia: ‘Blind, disabled should be able to fly’“, Sept. 30; “‘St- st – st- st- stop’“, Apr. 22; “Right to yell ‘fire’“, Apr. 5-7; “Entitled to jobs that kill?” (Echabazal v. Chevron), March 1-3 (& Jun. 19-20, 2002, Apr. 22, 2002, Nov. 5, 2001). 2001: “EEOC approves evacuation questions for disabled“, Nov. 16-18; “A belt too far“, Oct. 29; “‘Colorblind Traffic-Light Installer Gets Fired, Sues County’“, June 28. 2000: “Coffee-spill suits meet ADA“, Aug. 10; “Prospect of injury no reason not to hire“, Jul. 5; “Disabled vs. disabled” (strobe alarms pit deaf against epileptic), May 17; “Ability to remain conscious not obligatory for train dispatcher, EEOC says“, March 21; “Warn and be sued“, Jan. 12. 1999: “Indications of turbulence” (pilot’s mental state), Dec. 1; “Death by mainstreaming” (retarded boy’s fatal fall from amusement park ride), Aug. 31 (& Oct. 29, 2001); & see “Kingdom of the One-Eyed,” Reason, Jul. 1998.

“Right to break workplace rules and then return“, Sept. 16-17, 2002; “Soap star: ABC wrote my character out of the show” (“medical leave” for drug rehab), Apr. 10; “Parole board’s consideration of drug history could violate ADA“, Mar. 11, 2002; “ADA requires renting to addiction facility“, Dec. 21, 2000.

Structures: “‘ADA Goes to the Movies’“, Jan. 30, 2003; “‘Disabled entitled to same sight lines in theaters’“, Sept. 5, 2002; “There’ll always be a California” (Santa Monica accessibility law for private homes), Dec. 4, 2001 (& similar ordinances in Ill. and Ariz.: Feb. 6-7, Mar. 6, 2002)(& letter to the editor, Apr. 11); “Crowded drugstores illegal?“, Jun. 29-Jul. 1, 2001 (& letter to the editor, July 6); “Do as we say, cont’d” (Mass.), Mar. 20, 2000; “‘Dune’ as we say” (ADA on Nantucket), Jul. 17-18, 1999.

Testing under siege, 2002: “Hence, loath?asterisk“, Jul. 22-23. 2001: “Update“, Aug. 20-21 (bar exam) (& letters, Oct. 22); “Litigators vs. standardized tests, I: the right to conceal“, Feb. 9-11. 2000: “Court okays suit against ‘flagging’ of test conditions“, May 10; “Disabled test-accommodation roundup“, Feb. 16; “Disabled accommodation in testing“, Jan. 12; “Lawsuits over failing grades” (“exam phobia” claim), Jan. 4. 1999:“Disabled accommodation vs. testing fairness“, Sept. 21, 1999; and see special education.

“Disabled lap dancing just the start“, Jul. 19-21, 2002; “By reader acclaim: quadriplegic sues strip club over wheelchair access“, Jul. 16-17, 2002; “Blind customers want to touch club lapdancers“, Sept. 27-28, 2000.

“Paper currency should accommodate blind, suit argues“, Jul. 15, 2002.

“Supreme Court clarifies ADA“, Jun. 19-20, 2002.

Media, performance accessibility, 2002: “11th Circuit reinstates ‘Millionaire’ lawsuit” (suit against “Millionaire” TV show over telephone-based screening), Jun. 21-23 (& Mar. 24-26, June 12, June 19, Nov. 7, 2000; Nov. 5, 2001). 2001: “‘Panel backs deaf patron’s claim against club’” (interpreter demand at comedy club), Mar. 9-11. 2000: “Seats in all parts” (theaters), Dec. 29, 2000-Jan. 2, 2001; “Movie caption trial begins” (assistive devices aid concert bootleggers), Aug. 1; “Complaint: recreated slave ship not handicap accessible“, Jul. 21-23; “Preferred seating” (theaters), Apr. 25-26; “Newest disabled right: audio TV captioning“, Mar. 22; “‘Deaf group files suit against movie theaters’” (closed captioning demand), Feb. 19-21; “The fine print” (sue Boston Globe for reducing type size?), Feb. 17; and see website accessibility.

“Flowers, perfume in airline cabins not OK?” (Canada), May 17-19, 2002.

“Right to yell ‘fire’“, Apr. 5-7, 2002; “Compulsive grooming as protected disability“, March 16-18, 2001; “More Tourette’s discrimination suits“, March 12, 2001; “A thin-wall problem” (condo owner with Tourette’s vs. association), Aug. 21-22, 2000; “Update: Tourette’s bagger case“, Jul. 26-27, 2000; “Customer offense” (supermarket bagger with Tourette’s), Jun. 9-11, 2000.

“‘O’Connor Criticizes Disabilities Law As Too Vague’“, Mar. 22-24, 2002.

“Inability to get along with co-workers“, Mar. 8-10, 2002.

“Minimum GPA for study abroad said unfair to disabled“, Jan. 9-10, 2002.

“Mass., Ill., NYC tobacco fees” (law firm sued by attorney with cancer), Jan. 2-3, 2002.

“Segway, the super-wheelchair and the FDA“, Dec. 12, 2001.

Special ed: see schools page.

U.K.: “European workplace notes” (harassment of dyslexic), Feb. 25-26, 2002; “Website accessibility law hits the U.K.” (Scotland), May 7, 2001; “Britain’s delicate soldiery” (UK military pressed to put disabled recruits on front lines), Dec. 22-25, 2000 (& Sept. 29-Oct. 1); “European roundup” (British hiring of disabled police), Oct. 16-17; “Blind customers want to touch club lapdancers“, Sept. 27-28; From the U.K.: watch your language” (job bureau restricts use of words like “hardworking”, “enthusiastic”), June 13, 2000.

“Meet the ‘wrongful-birth’ bar“, Aug. 22-23, 2001 (more on wrongful birth/life: Dec. 11, 2001; Nov. 22-23, Sept. 8-10; June 8, May 9, Jan. 8-9, 2000).

“‘Businesses bracing for flood of lawsuits after state court ruling’” (Calif. law may apply retroactively), Aug. 1, 2001.

“N.J. court declares transsexuals protected class“, July 30, 2001.

“Six-hour police standoff no grounds for loss of job, says employee“, May 21, 2001; “‘Killer’s suit alleges job discrimination’“, Jan. 15, 2001; “‘Belligerent’ Worker Is Covered by ADA, Says Federal Court“, Dec. 18-19, 2000; “Accommodating theft” (N.J. lawyer discipline), Nov. 11, 1999; “‘Judge who slept on job faces new allegations’“, Oct. 4, 1999.

“‘2000’s Ten Wackiest Employment Lawsuits’” (reverse-bias claim by worker with no mental disability), April 13-15, 2001.

“Put out that match” (ADA invoked against agricultural burning), Feb. 28-March 1, 2001.

“Anorexia as disability“, Jan. 26-28, 2001.

“Sidewalk toilets nixed again” (Boston), Oct. 5, 2000.

“Disabled rights roundup” (sign interpreters at doctor’s offices), Sept. 29-Oct. 1;

“Welcome Toronto Star readers” (Ontario considers ADA-like law), Sept. 27-28, 2000.

“Movie caption trial begins” (Steve Chapman on ADA anniversary), Aug. 1, 2000; “‘How the ADA handicaps me’” (backfire effect in job interviews; ten year anniversary of ADA), Jul. 28-30; “ADA’s unintended consequences” (workplace losses for disabled), July 11, 2000.

“Penalty for co.’s schedule inflexibility: 30 years’ front pay” (ADA case), June 16-18, 2000; “What ADA was written for“, March 15, 2000.

“From our mail sack: ADA enforcement vignettes“, May 31, 2000. See also letter to editor, December 1, 2000.

“‘ADA’s good intentions have unintended consequences’” (John Elvin, Insight), March 3-5, 2000.

“Latest excuse syndromes“, Jan. 13-14, 2000; “Down repressed-memory lane II: distracted when she signed“, Dec. 29-30, 1999; “Mow’ better ADA claims” (disability exemption from cutting one’s lawn?), July 26, 1999.

“Blind newsdealer charged with selling cigarettes to underage buyer“, Sept. 16, 1999.

“Weekend reading” (“disability studies” in academia), Aug. 21-22, 1999.

“Be sensitive to Fluffy, or else” (obligation to accept emotional-support dog into store), July 9, 1999.

Articles by Overlawyered.com editor Walter Olson:

“Supreme Court Rescues ADA From Its Zealots,” Wall Street Journal, Jun. 18 (online subscribers only).

“Access Excess“, Reason, May 2000.

?Under the ADA, We May All Be Disabled?, ?Rule of Law?, Wall Street Journal, May 17, 1999.

“Standard Accommodations” (rise of universal disability), Reason, Feb. 1999.

“Kingdom of the One-Eyed,” Reason, July 1998.

“Still Crazy” (Casey Martin case; ADA in the courts), Reason, May 1998.

“Disabilities Law Protects Bad Doctors,” New York Times, November 28, 1997.

“Life, liberty, and the pursuit of a good beer,” excerpt from The Excuse Factory, Washington Monthly, September, 1997.

“Time to Get Off the Tenure Track”, New York Times, July 8, 1997.

“Disabling America“, National Review, May 5, 1997.

Other resources:

U.S. Department of Justice ADA home page
U.S. Access Board home page
Equal Employment Opportunity Commission regulations (1630: ADA implementation; 1640: coordination of ADA with Section 504; 1641 government contractors).
Text of ADA (Cornell LII)

Online ADA Handbook
NBER: ADA employment effects study (Daron Acemoglu, Joshua Angrist)
Boston Univ.: Pike Institute on Law & Disability
ABA Commission on Mental and Physical Disability Law

“Disability Debate” (Reason Online, “Breaking Issues”)
“A good law gone bad” (Trevor Armbrister, Reader’s Digest)
“Handicapping Freedom” (Ed Hudgins, Regulation mag/Cato Institute)
“ADA: Time for Amendments” (Robert O’Quinn, Cato Institute, Aug. 9, 1991)

Filed under: Australia, Chevron, disabled rights, Europe, The Excuse Factory, tobacco, wrongful birth and wrongful life

Archived medical items, pre-July 2003

“Texas’s giant legal reform“, Jun. 18-19, 2003.

Malpractice suit crisis, 2003: “Letter to the editor“, Jun. 20-22; “Docs leaving their hometowns“, Jun. 12-15; “Juggling the stats“, Jun. 4-5; “Malpractice studies“, May 12; “Public Citizen’s bogus numbers“, Apr. 10-13; “Malpractice crisis hits sports-team docs” (& general roundup), Apr. 7-8; “Would you go into medicine again?“, Mar. 18; “‘Public deceit protects lawsuit abuse’“, Mar. 15-16; “One solution to the malpractice crunch“, Feb. 19; “Feinstein set to back Bush malpractice plan“, Feb. 12; “State of the Union“, Jan. 29; “Malpractice-cost trends“, Jan. 24-26; “ATLA’s hidden influence“, Jan. 21-22; “Playing chicken on malpractice reform“, Jan. 9; “‘Doctors strike over malpractice costs’” (W.Va., Pa.), Jan. 3-6. 2002: “Campaign roundup“, Nov. 4-5; “Pennsylvania House votes to curb venue-shopping“, Oct. 11-13; “Rumblings in Mississippi“, Oct. 9-10 (& Sept. 9-10); “Let ’em become CPAs“, Oct. 7-8; “Tour of the blogs“, Sept. 24; “You mean I’m suing that nice doctor?“, Aug. 1; “‘Bush urges malpractice damage limits’“, Jul. 29; “‘Trauma center reopens doors’“, Jul. 18; “Malpractice crisis latest” (Pa., Tex.), Jun. 11-12; “Sick in Mississippi? Keep driving“, Jun. 3-4 (& Apr. 5-7); “‘Rocketing liability rates squeeze medical schools’“, May 28-29; “‘The trials of John Edwards’“, May 20-21; “Ob/gyns warn of withdrawal“, May 17-19; “‘The Tort Mess’” (Forbes, etc.), May 13; “Texas doctors’ work stoppage“, Apr. 11 (& Mar. 15-17); “No more ANZAC Day marches?” (Australia), Apr. 1-2; “Scenes from a malpractice crisis“, Mar. 5; “Med-mal: should doctors strike?“, Jan. 21-22. 2001: “Soaring medical malpractice awards: now they tell us“, Sept. 11; “‘Valley doctors caught in “lawsuit war zone”‘“, May 3; “Pennsylvania MDs drop work today“, Apr. 24; “Philadelphia juries pummel doctors“, Jan. 24-25. 2000: “Trial lawyers’ clout in Albany“, Oct. 4; “Malpractice outlays on rise in Canada“, Oct. 2.

Ob/gyn, 2003: “Juggling the stats“, Jun. 4-5; “Malpractice studies“, May 12; “‘Edwards doesn’t tell whole story’“, Mar. 4 (& letter to the editor, Mar. 31); “‘Delivering Justice’“, Feb. 27. 2002: “Ob/gyns warn of withdrawal“, May 17-19 (& see Jun. 11-12); “‘Support case hinges on failed sterilization’” (Ind.), Apr. 26-28; “Med-mal: should doctors strike?“, Jan. 21-22. 2001: “Fleeing obstetrics, again“, Dec. 21-23; “‘Wrongful life’ comes to France“, Dec. 11 (& updates Jan. 9-10, May 20-21, Jul. 1-2, 2002); “Meet the ‘wrongful-birth’ bar“, Aug. 22-23 (& letter to the editor, Sept. 3; more on wrongful birth/life: Nov. 22-23, Sept. 8-10, June 8, May 9, Jan. 8-9, 2000); “Pennsylvania MDs drop work today“, April 24; “Caesarean rate headed back up“, Feb. 5. 2000: “Birth cameras not wanted“, Oct. 18; “Plastic surgeons must weigh patients’ state of mind, court says” (roundup: anti-abortion suits), Aug. 15. 1999: “‘Trial lawyers on trial’” (Norplant, etc.), Dec. 23-26; “‘Your perfect birth control…blocked?’“, Aug. 11 (Norplant) (& update Aug. 27; company to settle 36,000 suits); “Yes, this drug is missed” (hospital admissions for hyperemesis tripled after lawyers drove Bendectin off market), Jul. 21.

“Malpractice studies“, May 12, 2003; “Radiologists: sue them enough and they’ll go away“, Nov. 2, 2000 (& see Sept. 24, 2002).

Nursing homes, geriatrics, 2003: “Florida: ‘New clout of trial lawyers unnerves legislators’“, Mar. 20; “$12,000 a bed“, Mar. 19. 2001: “Soaring medical malpractice awards: now they tell us“, Sept. 11; “‘Doctor liable for not giving enough pain medicine’“, Jun. 15-17; “‘Nursing homes a gold mine for lawyers’“, Mar. 13-14. 2000: “‘Litigation grows in ailing nursing home industry’“, Jun. 20 (& see Mar. 2-4, 2001).

“Incoming link of the day“, Mar. 5-7, 2003.

Emergency medicine: “‘Trauma centers warn lives could be at risk’” (Orlando), Feb. 28-Mar. 2, 2003; “Ambulances, paramedics sued more“, Oct. 28-29, 2002; “Let ’em become CPAs“, Oct. 7-8; “Avoid having a medical emergency in Mississippi“, Apr. 5-7; “Scenes from a malpractice crisis” (closure of trauma centers), Mar. 5, 2002 (& see Jun. 11-12); “That’ll teach ’em” (Chicago EMS), Dec. 26-28, 2000; “Highway responsibility” (ambulance, hospital sued in Derrick Thomas crash), Nov. 28, 2000.

“The jury pool he faced“, Feb. 25, 2003.

“Take care of myself? That’s the doc’s job“, Feb. 14-16, 2003; “Claim: docs should have done more to help woman quit smoking and lose weight” (Pa.), Sept. 18-19, 2002.

“Medical mistakes” estimates, 2001: “Report: ‘medical errors’ study overblown“, July 27-29. 2000: “‘Report on medical errors called erroneous’“, July 11; “Medical mistakes, continued“, March 7; “‘Medical errors’ study“, Feb. 28; “Against medical advice” (Clinton proposals), Feb. 22 (& see malpractice law section below).

“Mercury in dental fillings“, Jul. 16-17, 2002 (& Nov. 4-5, 2002).

Psychiatry and allied fields, 2002: “‘Mom who drugged kids’ ice cream sues’“, Nov. 1-3; “‘Patient sues hospital for letting him out on night he killed’” (Australia, psychiatric case), Oct. 16-17; “‘After stabbing son, mom sues doctors’“, May 31-June 2; “Counseling center may face closure” (Okla.), May 24-26. 2000: “Killed his mother, now suing his psychiatrists“, Oct. 2; “Not my fault, I” (woman who murdered daughter sues psychiatrists), May 17; “Legal ethics meet medical ethics” (lawyers advise schizophrenic murder defendant to go off his medication for trial), Feb. 26-27 (update, Mar. 2: he’s reported to have punched a social worker twice since going off medication; Mar. 29: jury convicts him anyway); “Latest excuse syndromes” (“Internet intoxication”, etc.), Jan. 13-14; “Warn and be sued” (clinical psychologist loses confidentiality suit after warning of patient’s dangerousness), Jan. 12. 1999: “Doctor sues insurer, claims sex addiction“, Oct. 13; see also personal responsibility.

“Artificial hearts experimental? Who knew?“, Oct. 23, 2002.

“U.K.: ‘Dr. Botch’ sues hospital for wrongful dismissal“, Oct. 18-20, 2002; “Let them sue us!” (hospitals get sued if they withdraw privileges from questionable doctors), Mar. 23, 2000.

“Lawyers fret about bad image” (lawyers’ own poll finds public has much more confidence in doctors than in lawyers), Oct. 3, 2002.

“‘Patient pays price for suing over cold’” (U.K.), Sept. 20-22, 2002.

“‘Doctors hope fines will curb frivolous lawsuits’“, Sept. 6-8, 2002; “The doctor strikes back” (neurosurgeon countersues), June 14-15, 2000; “‘Truly egregious’ conduct” (court cites misconduct by attorney Geoffrey Fieger in suit against cardiologist), Sept. 14, 1999.

“Accident medicine”, 2002: “‘How to spot a personal injury mill’“, Aug. 19. 2001: “Lawyers (and docs) block cleanup of Gotham crash fraud“, April 2. 2000: “‘How do you fit 12 people in a 1983 Honda?’“, Aug. 23-25; “His wayward clients“, May 25; “Less suing = less suffering” (NEJM whiplash study), Apr. 24 (& update Jun. 26).

“‘The NFL vs. Everyone’” (medical privacy laws could restrict sports teams from commenting on players’ injuries), Jun. 13, 2002; “Promising areas for suits” (sports medicine), Dec. 7, 2000; “Doctor cleared in Lewis cardiac case“, May 15, 2000.

“‘Remove child before folding’” (AEI-Brookings study on defensive medicine), Jun. 5, 2002.

Managed care/HMOs, 2002: “‘Bad movie, bad public policy’” (John Q), Mar. 19; “Washington Post blasts HMO class actions“, Jan. 30-31. 2001: “Managed care bill: Do as we say…“, Sept. 7-9 (& Dec. 6, 1999); “Contrarian view on PBR“, Aug. 17-19; “Chapman, Broder, Kinsley on patients’ rights“, June 28; “Managed care debate“, June 26; “Columnist-fest” (Morton Kondracke), June 22-24; “Docs and Dems“, June 19; “Roundup“, May 21. 2000: “Patients’ Bill of Wrongs” (Richard Epstein), Oct. 27-29; “Fortune on Lerach“, Aug. 16-17; “Arm yourself for managed care debate“, April 20; “Employer-based health coverage in retreat?“, March 31-April 2. 1999: “Weekend reading: columnist-fest” (John McCarron), Dec. 11-12; “Actions without class” (Wash. Post editorial: “extortion racket”), Dec. 2; “Who’s afraid of Dickie Scruggs?“, Dec. 2; “Aetna chairman disrespects Scruggs“, Nov. 18-19; “World according to Ron Motley” (world’s richest lawyer plans to sue HMOs, nursing homes, drugmakers), Nov. 1; “Deal with us or we’ll tank your stock” (managed care stock prices plunge), Oct. 21; “‘Health care horror stories are compelling but one-sided’“, Oct. 16-17; “After the HMO barbecue“, Oct. 12; “Power attracts power” (Boies joins anti-HMO effort), Sept. 30; “Impending assault on HMOs“, Sept. 30; “Rude questions to ask your doctor” (why are you helping trial lawyers make it easier to sue health plans?), Sept. 4-6; “From the fourth branch, an ultimatum” (leading trial lawyer vows to “dismantle” managed care), July 16.

“Hospital rapist sues hospital“, May 22-23, 2002 (& Mar. 5-7, 2003: court dismisses case).

“Bush’s big mistake on mental health coverage“, May 13, 2002.

“‘Big government ruined my long weekend’” (tide-over weekend prescribing), May 7, 2002.

“Lawyers stage sham trial aimed at inculpating third party“, Mar. 22-24, 2002.

“All things sentimental and recoverable” (veterinarians), Jan. 30-31, 2002.

Public health follies: “Infectious disease conquered, CDC now chases sprawl“, Nov. 9-11, 2001; “Letter to the editor” (activist doctors vs. gun ownership), May 18, 2001; “‘P.C., M.D.’“, Feb. 23-25, 2001.

“Bioterrorism preparedness” (laws hobble hospitals), Oct. 30, 2001.

“Letter to the editor“, Sept. 3, 2001 (can/should doctors avoid lawyers as patients?) (responses, Oct. 22).

“Clinical trials besieged“, Aug. 27-28, 2001; “Bioethicist as defendant” (Arthur Caplan, Jesse Gelsinger case), Oct. 6-9, 2000.

“‘Doctor liable for not giving enough pain medicine’“, Jun. 15-17, 2001.

“The unconflicted Prof. Daynard” (British Medical Journal and tobacco lawyer), April 21-23, 2000 (& update: letters, Jan. 2001, June 2001).

“To destroy a doctor” (lawyer’s campaign against laparoscopic surgeons), June 6, 2001.

“Mommy, can I grow up to be an informant?“, July 30, 2001; “A case of meta-False Claims” (overzealous prosecution of hospitals), Sept. 9, 1999.

“Updates” (Lawyers’ cameras in trauma ward), Dec. 26-28, 2000 (& Oct. 18).

“Promising areas for suits” (laser eye surgery), Dec. 7, 2000.

Plastic surgery: “Plastic surgeons must weigh patients’ state of mind, court says“, Aug. 15, 2000 (& June 11, 2001: she loses); “Strippers in court“, Jan. 28, 2000; “No spotlight on me, thanks” (leading breast-implant lawyer obtains gag order against lawyers for dissatisfied clients), August 4, 1999; “Never saying you’re sorry” (implants), July 2, 1999.

“Turn of the screw” (pedicle screw lawsuits), Oct. 24, 2000.

“Disabled rights roundup” (obligatory sign interpreters at doctor’s offices), Sept. 29-Oct. 1, 2000; “From our mail sack: ADA enforcement vignettes” (interpreters, guide dog allergy case), May 31, 2000.

“Embarrassing Lawsuit Hall of Fame” (intimate injury; misdiagnosis charge), Aug. 14, 2000.

“Senator Lieberman: a sampler” (cost of defensive medicine), Aug. 8-9, 2000.

“And don’t say ‘I’m sorry’” (nurse’s first-person account), June 21, 2000.

“Can’t sue over affair with doctor” (court rules it was consensual), June 13, 2000.

“Jumped ahead, by court order” (residency), May 31, 2000.

“‘Case’s outcome may spur more lawsuits’” (Mississippi fen-phen trial), Dec. 10, 1999; “‘Dieters still want fen-phen’“, August 18, 1999.

“Rhode Island A.G.: let’s do latex gloves next“, Oct. 26, 1999.

“Michigan high court upholds malpractice reform“, August 6, 1999.

Other resources on medicine and litigation:

Good general links pages on health law are provided by the St. Louis University Center for Health Law Studies and by the whimsically named but highly useful Health Hippo.

The Litigation Explosion, the 1991 book by Overlawyered.com editor Walter Olson, was excerpted in two parts by Medical Economics [part one] [part two]

Marc Arkin, “Products Liability and the Threat to Contraception” (Manhattan Institute Civil Justice Memo, February 1999).

L. William Luria, M.D., and Dennis G. Agliano, M.D., “Abusive Medical Testimony: Toward Peer Review“, describes efforts under way in Hillsborough County, Florida, to apply principles of peer review to the control of irresponsible or unqualified forensic testimony by medical professionals.

Walter Olson, “Lawyers with Stethoscopes: Clients Beware” (Manhattan Institute Civil Justice Memo, 1996) (abusive litigation is also bad for the medical prognosis of claimants)

Breast implants: see separate page

Vaccines:

Health Hippo vaccines section.

Peter Huber, “Dan Quayle, the Lawyers and the AIDS Babies“, Forbes, October 28, 1991 (liability and an AIDS vaccine).

Peter Huber, “Health, Death, and Economics“, Forbes, May 10, 1993 (“investment in vaccines remains far lower than it should be, given the huge benefits that vaccines provide”)

Walter Olson, “California Counts the Costs of Lawsuit Mania“, Wall Street Journal, June 3, 1992 (liability slowing research on AIDS vaccine).

Malpractice law:

Daniel Kessler and Mark McClellan of Stanford won the Kenneth Arrow Award in Health Economics in 1997 for their article “Do Doctors Practice Defensive Medicine?”, which “found that when states reformed malpractice laws to put caps on damages for pain and suffering, or to eliminate punitive damages, hospital expenditures for heart disease patients were reduced by about 5 percent, yet did not leave the patients with worse health outcomes.”

Richard Anderson, M.D., “An ‘Epidemic’ of Medical Malpractice? A Commentary on the Harvard Medical Practice Study“, Manhattan Institute Civil Justice Memo, July 1996 (shortcomings of famous study of medical care in New York hospitals).

Forbes columns by Peter Huber on the issue include “Malpractice Law: A Defective Product” (1990) and “Rx: Radical Lawyerectomy” and “Easy Lawsuits Make Bad Medicine” (1997).

Walter Olson, “A Story That Doesn?t Have a Leg To Stand On,” Wall Street Journal, March 27, 1995 (the famous “wrong-leg amputation” case).

In 1993, in a paper given at the annual meeting of the Association for Health Services Research, Daniel Mendelson and Robert Rubin estimated that defensive medicine practices in three areas alone — pre-surgical testing, fetal monitoring and skull x-rays — probably exceeded $2 billion a year, and estimated likely savings from “aggressive malpractice reform” at more than twice that amount. Perhaps in contrast (or perhaps not), a 1995 study of obstetrics in Washington state by L. Baldwin et al found no differences in practice between doctors who had been named in suits and those who had not. And Mark Hauser et al, “Fear of Malpractice Liability and its Role in Clinical Decision-Making” studied doctors’ reaction to hypothetical cases in which a patient’s file did or did not reveal a history of having sued physicians. They found that in cases where an earlier suit had been reported the doctors were modestly more likely to call in other doctors, to recommend hospital admission, to document a case “by the book” rather than rely on judgment, and to predict a bad outcome. Surprisingly, they did not order more tests or withdraw from cases more often when informed that a patient had a record of suing. The Hauser paper notes one possible cost of an over-hasty resort to hospitalization: “In psychiatry a defensive response might include a needlessly low threshold for involuntary hospitalization, where the patient’s liberty and autonomy are, in essence, sacrificed in favor of conservative practice for the sake of self-protection.”

The Michigan law firm of Garan, Lucow, Miller & Seward, P.C., which has a specialty in medical malpractice defense, maintains a comprehensive links page of resources in the field.

Among reform groups, the Health Care Liability Alliance is a nationwide advocacy group whose website offers a variety of useful materials on the case for lawsuit reform. Californians Allied for Patient Protection defends the Golden State’s MICRA limits on malpractice liability. CLYSIS is a Minnesota group working for medical liability reform. State medical societies, such as the Medical Society of the State of New York, often maintain law-related information at their websites.

Filed under: Australia, Bill Lerach, Dickie Scruggs, fen-phen, France, Geoffrey Fieger, hospitals, John Edwards, Manhattan Institute, medical, Michigan, Minnesota, Mississippi, nursing home, obstetric, Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Public Citizen, Rhode Island, Richard Daynard, Richard Epstein, The Litigation Explosion, tobacco, vaccines, Washington state, wrongful birth and wrongful life