Defense verdict reached in $2M medical malpractice claim
Type of action: Medical malpractice Name of case: Self v. Centra Medical Group, et al. Court: Lynchburg Circuit Court Case no.: CL-17000520 Tried before: Jury Name of judge or mediator: Judge F. Patrick Yeatts Date resolved: 4/1/2022 Demand: $2,000,000 Verdict or settlement: Verdict Amount: $0 (defense) Attorneys for defendant (and city): Ed McNelis and Chris […]
Right-of-way at issue in motorcycle accident case — $475,000 verdict
Type of action: Personal injury Injuries alleged: Punctured lung, grade 1 AC joint separation, displaced fracture of proximal phalanx of left middle finger, sprain of metacarpophalangeal joint of left thumb, rupture of ulnar collateral ligament of left thumb Name of case: Watts v. Giganti Court: Lynchburg Circuit Court Case no.: CL19-000503-00 Tried before: Jury Name […]
Lynchburg jury returns verdict in man’s drunken driving case — $1M verdict
Type of action: Personal injury, auto accident Injuries alleged: Crushed urethra; bulbar urethral stricture Name of case: Perkins v. Brown Court: Lynchburg Circuit Court Case no.: CL15000979-00 Tried before: Jury Name of judge or mediator: Judge F. Patrick Yeatts Date resolved: 8/27/2021 Special damages: $22,413.42 Demand: $250,000 Offer: $90,000 Verdict or settlement: Verdict Amount: $1,000,000 [[...]
Statute precludes gun range closing under COVID-19 order
Where the governor’s executive order, issued under Code § 44-146.17 in response to the COVID-19 pandemic, ordered the closure of indoor gun ranges, the power to do so is limited by § 44-146.15(3), which provides that the governor’s emergency powers cannot be used to limit the right to keep and bear arms under U.S. and […]
Man injured in two-motorcycle collision – $450,000 Verdict
On July 27, 2015, the plaintiff and defendant were each riding Suzuki sport motorcycles in Lynchburg, when they collided in the left travel lane of southbound Fort Avenue, near the intersection with Fenwick Drive. The parties did not know each other prior to the accident. Due to the trauma of the collision, the plaintiff had […]
Jury rejects claim in patient’s fall from window
After a five-day trial marked by a series of evidence rulings, a Lynchburg jury rejected the negligence claims of a nursing home patient who was injured when he leapt from a third-floor window. Despite claims that the nursing home staff had warning of his prior escape attempts at other facilities, the jury apparently felt the […]
Man in rehab removed window, fell – Defense Verdict
Plaintiff Dana Jones filed suit on behalf of her husband, Raymond Jones, against a Lynchburg-area hospital system alleging various theories of medical malpractice. In January 2013, Mr. Jones suffered a stroke to the right side of his brain. Three months later in April, Mr. Jones suffered a debilitating stroke to the left portion of his […]
Judge: No sovereign immunity for regional jails
In a decision that one lawyer says will create two separate classes of Virginia jail employees, a circuit judge has ruled that Virginia’s regional jails and their staff are not entitled to sovereign immunity. The decision appears to be the first from a state court judge addressing the issue. Federal judges have split 3-1 on […]
False confessions: Lawyer attacks police interrogation, gains acquittal
A Lynchburg jury has acquitted a jailor accused of having sex with an inmate despite the jail guard’s alleged confession during a police interrogation session. “The devil is always in the details,” observed the jailor’s lawyer, who said he poked holes in the state’s evidence and persuaded jurors that his client had been coerced into […]
Woman had bad headache, later suffered aneurysm and died – Defense Verdict
Decedent presented to Lynchburg General Hospital’s emergency department on July 19, 2013, complaining of “one of the worst headaches” she had ever experienced. Decedent’s symptoms included a week-long headache unaffected by over-the-counter medication, dizziness upon standing, nausea, and vomiting. Decedent’s treating ER physician diagnosed tension headache and instructed decedent to[...]
Med-Mal Plaintiff Sues for Negligent Credentialing
A Lynchburg Circuit Court says a plaintiff suing for medical malpractice by defendant physician also has stated a claim for negligent credentialing and privileging with allegations that he reasonably relied on defendant’s credentialing process and that such reliance caused him injury; no expert certification is needed for this claim. Plaintiff’s amended complaint alleges “negligent credentia[...]
Patient’s Rights Statute Supports Negligence Per Se
In a psychiatric patient’s suit alleging sexual assault by a hospital staff member, the Lynchburg Circuit Court overrules defendant hospital’s demurrers and holds that plaintiff has stated a claim under the Virginia Consumer Protection Act and a claim for negligence per se based on Va. Code § 37.2-400, the “Rights of Individuals Receiving Services.” No […]
Verdicts & Settlements
- Jury reaches defense verdict in $4M med mal action
- Dental hygienist tripped, fractured right wrist, foot — $190,000 settlement
- Couple contracted Hepatitis A after dining at restaurant — $5.5M settlement
- Elderly man suffers hip fracture after attack by neighbor’s dog — $350,000 settlement
- Motorcyclist injured when vehicle abruptly changed lanes — $300,000 verdict
- Passenger ejected from car in high-speed chase crash — $685,000 settlement
- Defense verdict reached in fraud suit
- 8-year-old killed in crash involving tractor-trailer — $1,100,000 settlement
- Plaintiff conceived child after vasectomy — $250,000 settlement
- Delay in diagnosis of ectopic pregnancy led to surgery — $283,432.18 settlement
- Golfer stepped in sinkhole, fractured ankle — $442,000 verdict
- Jury sides with woman injured in rear-end collision — $300,000 verdict
Viewpoint
- The promise and peril of artificial intelligence in patent law
- Keys to becoming an unfrazzled lawyer
- Confused about federal COVID-19 emergencies ending? You’re not alone
- Generative AI in law: New survey of lawyer perspectives and plans
- Four misconceptions about appeals
- Font choice exposes fabricated document
- USPTO launches first-time filer expedited exam pilot program
- In times of crisis, the ‘tug of war’ is over
- The ever-evolving Fourth Circuit
- Federal protections for pregnant, nursing employees coming
- It’s time for employers to embrace the ‘Big Quit’ and adapt
- Tell the whole truth? I’ll do better than that