Plaintiff Receives Nine Figure Personal Injury Settlement. Oh My.

In Illinois, a jury awarded a plaintiff $148 million. The state’s previous record was a $47 million medical malpractice settlement in 2017. The defendant, the Chicago Department of Aviation, was able to negotiate the verdict down to $115M. Whew. The plaintiff accepted to avoid the risk of an appeal… Now, about the case. The plaintiff … Read more

Informed Consent? Sure. We’ve Got All the Time in the World…

It’s a long standing medico-legal principle that before a patient undergoes a non-emergent procedure, he must understand the risks, benefits, and options, and provide consent. This is informed consent. It’s also a long standing medico-legal principle that informed consent is more than a signature on a piece of paper. It’s a process. Done right, the … Read more

Close up of woman with blue camera phone

Urgent Client Alert: Yelp Forced to Disclose Identities of People Alleged as Posting Fake Reviews

The litany of complaints doctors have compiled against Yelp is long. Frustration is based on (a) filtering of reviews – many of which are positive; (b) the perception (right or wrong) that refusal to purchase advertising on Yelp leads to score manipulation; and (c) Yelp appears to “prioritize” reviews of those who post frequently (“Yelpers”) and is perceived to be a non- level playing field.

Hadeed Carpet Cleaning, Inc. had had enough.

He noticed 7 anonymous reviews on Yelp which slammed his business. He asked Yelp to help identify who wrote these reviews, because, after checking his database, he could find no record the negative reviewers were Hadeed’s customers. Yelp fought the subpoena.  Hadeed moved to hold Yelp in contempt of court. The circuit court agreed with Hadeed and imposed monetary sanctions and awarded attorney’s fees. Yelp appealed.

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A Tale of Woe. A Bad Asset Protection Plan.

Doctors are at risk for being sued. They are targets for litigation. Sure, insurance provides a defense. But, it doesn’t take much imagination to see how a judgment can exceed policy limits. And the risks go beyond professional liability. How about a car accident? Slip and fall at your house? Worker on your roof falls … Read more

Large Insurance Carrier Outs Patients With HIV

By now, doctors have been trained to think about the ramifications of patient privacy before taking action. We make sure that first name and last initial are on the operating room scheduling board. On hospital room doors – same thing. We ask for authorization before posting a patient’s picture on social media. It has not … Read more

Law Pushing for Cameras in the Operating Room

“Julie’s Law” is a Wisconsin bill named in honor of Julie Ayer. The patient had breast augmentation surgery in 2003. Sadly, the patient flatlined during the procedure. CPR was initiated, but too late. The patient was transported back to Wisconsin where she died three months later.   According to the patient’s brother:  “The doctor had no license in anesthesia. … Read more

Doctors Flummoxed by DNR Tattoo

A recent report in the New England Journal of Medicine highlighted a case of a patient who presented to the Emergency Department, unconscious, with a Do Not Resuscitate tattoo sprawled across his chest. The 70 year old man was quite ill on arrival. His blood alcohol level was high. He had COPD, diabetes, and atrial fibrillation. In the … Read more

Not Mastering the Art of Being in Two Places at One Time

Dr. Reinaldo de los Heros was practicing as a psychiatrist in Maine.   On October 10, 2017, the Board of Medicine suspended his license for 30 days. (He had multiple interactions with multiple Boards of Medicine throughout the years. For example, in 1999, he pleaded guilty in Massachusetts for Medicaid fraud and grand larceny.)  On August 31, Dr. de los Heros was evaluating … Read more

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