Appellate Court Reduces $25 million dollar verdict by $2 million for Brain Damaged Baby
On August 17, 2016 an Appellate Court covering Kings County decided to uphold a jury verdict in favor of an incapacitated child who suffered a severe form of jaundice known as hyperbilirubinemia which caused damage to the infant's brain and cerebral palsy. The jury determined that a hospital pediatrician discharged the baby less than 2 days after he was born without testing bilirubin levels and despite: the mother having observed and reported yellowness in the infant's eyes to the attending pediatrician within 24 hours; and, the mother's plea not to discharge her baby from the hospital before he was seen by a physician. The jury agreed this an was avoidable needless tragedy with life long consequences requiring extraordinary medical care and financial support for the rest of the child's life.
The Brooklyn jury awarded $24,813,260 to the child which included $4 million for past pain and suffering and $7 million for future pain and suffering in addition to lost wages and medical expenses. The Appellate Court refused to overturn the verdict and found that the verdict was not contrary to the weight of the evidence. However, it gave the plaintiff a choice: either agree to accept a reduction of $2 million off the $4 million awarded for past pain and suffering ($23 million v $25 million) or it would reject the entire damages award and require a retrial on the issue of damages only
See also--Medical Malpractice
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