Hospital Malpractice Claims Increase for Third Consecutive Year

Check out Leah Greene's post at Kroger Frisby.

Gannon v. Wyche; Petition for Review filed

The health care providers filed a Petition for Review in the Texas Supreme Court on November 5, 2010.

See the docket page at Docket DB.

See my summary of the appellate opinion at 14th COA; Gannon et al v.-Wyche; expert reports. 

Investing in Lawsuits

NYT Business Day

The New York Times has an article today on investors funding personal injury lawsuits, including medical malpractice cases.  The articles references the Texas cases filed by Jared Woodfill against BNSF for failing to provide safety equipment or warnings to employees working with creosote. 

What effect do you think this trend would have on resolving medical malpractice claims in Texas? 

SCOTX extends electronic briefing rules

SCOTX blog

Check out Don Cruse's post on the new electronic briefing rules in the Texas Supreme Court.

Supreme Court hears oral arguments in an expert report case

On Tuesday November 9, 2010, the Supreme Court heard oral arguments in an expert report/no report case.  Below is the summary from Osler McCarthy, the Court's staff attorney for public information.  Click on docket for links to the briefs and procedural history of this case. 

Tyler Scoresby, M.D. v. Catarino Santillan, No. 09-0497 (Docket)

In this appeal from a trial court’s failure to dismiss a health-care liability suit, a principal issue is whether an expert report can be so deficient in addressing the elements of a claim that it constitutes no report at all, requiring dismissal instead of an extension to cure the defects. Santillan sued over alleged mistakes during surgery on a minor son’s nasal tumors that led to bleeding and his partial paralysis. Dr. Scoresby, an ear-nose-throat surgeon, moved to dismiss the claim because Santillan’s expert report, by a neurologist, did not establish a care standard, show how the standard was breached or how the breach caused the son’s injuries. The report also did not include the expert’s credentials. Instead of dismissing the suit, the trial granted a 30-day statutory extension to cure a deficient report. Scoresby appealed that ruling, arguing to the court of appeals, as he does in this Court, that the expert report amounted to no report at all, requiring dismissal. The appeals court dismissed the doctor’s interlocutory appeal, holding that an extension to cure a deficient report could not be reviewed.

My thanks to Don Cruse and the Supreme Court of Texas blog.