Written By Oliver Schrumpf
On September 9, 2011, 14th Judicial District Court Judge Clayton Davis issued written reasons and on September 16,2011,he 'signed a judgment in the consolidated cases of _ Arrington v. Galen-Med, Inc. and Health Care Indemnity, Inc. and Taylor v. Clement, declaring the provisions of La. R.S. 40:1299.42(B)(1)and (2) (the medical malpractice cap) unconstitutional insofar as the statute limits the liability of healthcare providers and their insurers for damages caused by the negligence of those providers.
The judgment does not affect Patient's Compensation Fund (PCF) procedures or limitations, only the liability of the negligent health-care provider (HCP) and its insurer. Defengarits will now likely appeal the judgments to the Louisiana Supreme Court.
This article highlights some of the evidence heard by the trial court. I represented the Arrington and Taylor plaintiffs throughout the proceedings. Ned Miltenberg provided plaintiffs representation on constitutional issues initially and Valerie Nannery of the Center for Constitutional Litigation in Washington, D.C., provided representation on constitutional issues in trial briefing and at closing argument. Both cases arose seventeen years ago and have been up and down the appellate process over and over. Louisiana had - and still has - a $100,000/$500,000cap on medical malpractice awards.
Read the full article below:
Medical-Malpractice-Cap-Declared-unconstitutional-article.pdf
