wrongful birth and wrongful life – Overlawyered https://www.overlawyered.com/ Chronicling the high cost of our legal system Mon, 27 Mar 2017 15:55:07 +0000 en-US hourly 1 Medical roundup https://www.overlawyered.com/2017/03/medical-roundup-48/ https://www.overlawyered.com/2017/03/medical-roundup-48/#comments Mon, 27 Mar 2017 10:55:08 +0000 https://www.overlawyered.com/?p=63395 “Texas Bill Would End ‘Wrongful Birth’ Suits Against Doctors” [Insurance Journal, earlier on wrongful birth] Worse outcomes mean more risk of being sued: “Doctors are refusing to operate on smokers.” [Karen Garloch, Charlotte Observer/Macon Telegraph] 2015 breakdown by state of medical malpractice suits per capita and aggregate payouts (the latter not broken down per capita, […]

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  • “Texas Bill Would End ‘Wrongful Birth’ Suits Against Doctors” [Insurance Journal, earlier on wrongful birth]
  • Worse outcomes mean more risk of being sued: “Doctors are refusing to operate on smokers.” [Karen Garloch, Charlotte Observer/Macon Telegraph]
  • 2015 breakdown by state of medical malpractice suits per capita and aggregate payouts (the latter not broken down per capita, but with Northeastern states, as usual, far overrepresented) [Becker Hospital Review] Note: figures challenged, see comments;
  • “…and the medical board voted to dismiss the complaint against you.” [Birdstrike, White Coat]
  • Britain considers limiting cost (legal fee) awards in lower value medical claims [John Tingle, Harvard “Bill of Health”]
  • Will not surprise those who’ve been around: pharma cos. might fight attempts at easing FDA drug introduction rules [Bloomberg] Muscular dystrophy patients can see the case for drug importation [Alex Tabarrok who is interviewed on the subject by Robert Gebelhoff] Related on FDA: Ronald Bailey, Reason.
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    Medical roundup is a post from Overlawyered - Chronicling the high cost of our legal system

    ]]>     https://www.overlawyered.com/2017/03/medical-roundup-48/feed/ 1     Seattle jury awards $50 million in wrongful birth case https://www.overlawyered.com/2013/12/seattle-jury-awards-50-million-wrongful-birth-case/ https://www.overlawyered.com/2013/12/seattle-jury-awards-50-million-wrongful-birth-case/#comments Fri, 13 Dec 2013 16:11:57 +0000 http://overlawyered.com/?p=43022 His parents say they would have aborted little Oliver Wuth, now 5, had they been given proper genetic counseling. [Seattle Post-Intelligencer] Tags: Washington state, wrongful birth and wrongful life

    Seattle jury awards $50 million in wrongful birth case is a post from Overlawyered - Chronicling the high cost of our legal system

    ]]>     His parents say they would have aborted little Oliver Wuth, now 5, had they been given proper genetic counseling. [Seattle Post-Intelligencer]

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    Seattle jury awards $50 million in wrongful birth case is a post from Overlawyered - Chronicling the high cost of our legal system

    ]]>     https://www.overlawyered.com/2013/12/seattle-jury-awards-50-million-wrongful-birth-case/feed/ 16     Medical roundup https://www.overlawyered.com/2013/05/medical-roundup-10/ Wed, 15 May 2013 04:05:37 +0000 http://overlawyered.com/?p=37942 Hit by stray bullet, wakes from anesthesia fighting, hospital told to pay $17 million [Georgia; Insurance Journal] Study: physician’s previous paid claims history has no impact on odds of catastrophic med-mal payout [Bixenstine et al, JHQ via PoL] Overall, med-mal payouts have fallen steadily in past decade; $3.6 billion figure last year follows strongly regionalized […]

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  • Hit by stray bullet, wakes from anesthesia fighting, hospital told to pay $17 million [Georgia; Insurance Journal]
  • Study: physician’s previous paid claims history has no impact on odds of catastrophic med-mal payout [Bixenstine et al, JHQ via PoL] Overall, med-mal payouts have fallen steadily in past decade; $3.6 billion figure last year follows strongly regionalized pattern with top per capita figures all in Northeast [Diederich analysis of annual payouts via TortsProf] Florida law now requires that testifying medical witness be in same specialty as defendant [Business Week]
  • In lawsuits alleging “wrongful birth,” what’s the measure of damages? [Gerard Magliocca, Concurring Opinions]
  • ObamaCare exchanges in D.C., California and Connecticut declare smoking “pre-existing condition,” say insurers can’t base higher rates on it [Kevin Williamson, NR]
  • “The Crime of Whitening Teeth with Over-the-Counter Products” [Caleb Brown, Bluegrass Institute]
  • How not to die: Jonathan Rauch on end-of-life overtreatment [The Atlantic]
  • “I’m going to start a rumor that Sudafed is an abortifacient. Then the feds will finally have to allow reasonable access to it.” [me on Twitter]
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    Medical roundup is a post from Overlawyered - Chronicling the high cost of our legal system

    ]]>         October 27 roundup https://www.overlawyered.com/2011/10/october-27-roundup-3/ https://www.overlawyered.com/2011/10/october-27-roundup-3/#comments Thu, 27 Oct 2011 12:41:10 +0000 http://overlawyered.com/?p=25293 “Table Saw without ‘saw stop’ technology defective: First Circuit” [George Conk, Ted Frank, earlier here, here] Court OKs burned patron’s flaming-rum suit against Bacardi [Reuters] Feds won’t pursue Title IX complaint against 60 Oregon school districts [Oregonian] IRS putting the squeeze on small tax preparers [WaPo] How the incinerator (and decades of bad decisions) bankrupted […]

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  • “Table Saw without ‘saw stop’ technology defective: First Circuit” [George Conk, Ted Frank, earlier here, here]
  • Court OKs burned patron’s flaming-rum suit against Bacardi [Reuters]
  • Feds won’t pursue Title IX complaint against 60 Oregon school districts [Oregonian]
  • IRS putting the squeeze on small tax preparers [WaPo]
  • How the incinerator (and decades of bad decisions) bankrupted Harrisburg [Bond Girl]
  • “The most thoughtful, reasonable guy in the whole symposium” — aw [Greenfield on law licensing, earlier] P.S. And similarly from David Lat;
  • Adam Freedman and readers on Florida “wrongful birth” case [Ricochet, earlier]
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    October 27 roundup is a post from Overlawyered - Chronicling the high cost of our legal system

    ]]>     https://www.overlawyered.com/2011/10/october-27-roundup-3/feed/ 5     Florida couple wins $4.5 million “wrongful-birth” award https://www.overlawyered.com/2011/10/florida-couple-wins-4-5-million-wrongful-birth-award/ https://www.overlawyered.com/2011/10/florida-couple-wins-4-5-million-wrongful-birth-award/#comments Tue, 11 Oct 2011 14:29:01 +0000 http://overlawyered.com/?p=25089 They say they’d have aborted their disabled son if they’d known. [Palm Beach Post] Tags: wrongful birth and wrongful life

    Florida couple wins $4.5 million “wrongful-birth” award is a post from Overlawyered - Chronicling the high cost of our legal system

    ]]>     They say they’d have aborted their disabled son if they’d known. [Palm Beach Post]

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    Florida couple wins $4.5 million “wrongful-birth” award is a post from Overlawyered - Chronicling the high cost of our legal system

    ]]>     https://www.overlawyered.com/2011/10/florida-couple-wins-4-5-million-wrongful-birth-award/feed/ 24     February 8 roundup https://www.overlawyered.com/2010/02/february-8-roundup-3/ https://www.overlawyered.com/2010/02/february-8-roundup-3/#comments Mon, 08 Feb 2010 13:28:53 +0000 http://overlawyered.com/?p=15988 Cleverer approach NFL might have taken in “Who Dat” affair [Schwimmer, HuffPo, earlier here, here, etc.] Justice Anthony Kennedy: influence of unionized prison guards in passing California’s three-strikes law “sick” [LA Times] Federal prosecutors going after poster designer Shepard Fairey for untruth in civil lawsuit? How strange is that? [Kennerly] Plaintiff in complaint against Mark […]

    February 8 roundup is a post from Overlawyered - Chronicling the high cost of our legal system

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  • Cleverer approach NFL might have taken in “Who Dat” affair [Schwimmer, HuffPo, earlier here, here, etc.]
  • Justice Anthony Kennedy: influence of unionized prison guards in passing California’s three-strikes law “sick” [LA Times]
  • Federal prosecutors going after poster designer Shepard Fairey for untruth in civil lawsuit? How strange is that? [Kennerly]
  • Plaintiff in complaint against Mark Steyn before Canadian rights tribunal boasted of having “increase[d] the cost of publishing anti-Islamic material” [NRO “Corner”; earlier here, here, here, etc.]
  • Federal jury rejects wrongful birth suit against Elkton, Maryland obstetrician [Miller, more on wrongful birth]
  • Forced-reincarnation suit against Oprah Winfrey dismissed, George W. and Laura Bush off hook too [WV Record]
  • “How to Report the News”: funny plug-and-use TV reporting template [YouTube/Charlie Brooker, Newswipe, UK]
  • “Virginia Legislators Kill Bills to Mandate Child Support for Adult College Students” [Hans Bader/CEI “Open Market”, earlier here and here]
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    February 8 roundup is a post from Overlawyered - Chronicling the high cost of our legal system

    ]]>     https://www.overlawyered.com/2010/02/february-8-roundup-3/feed/ 1     May 7 roundup https://www.overlawyered.com/2009/05/may-7-roundup/ https://www.overlawyered.com/2009/05/may-7-roundup/#comments Thu, 07 May 2009 12:09:07 +0000 http://overlawyered.com/?p=10999 New court allegations that disgraced Luzerne County, Pa. judges fixed civil cases as well [Legal Intelligencer; earlier here and here] Half-hopeful, half-sad story of Florida town’s efforts to live down “Nub City” insurance-fraud notoriety [St. Petersburg Times a while back, but new to me; Errol Morris film; my review of Ken Dornstein’s book] Evidence continues […]

    May 7 roundup is a post from Overlawyered - Chronicling the high cost of our legal system

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  • New court allegations that disgraced Luzerne County, Pa. judges fixed civil cases as well [Legal Intelligencer; earlier here and here]
  • Half-hopeful, half-sad story of Florida town’s efforts to live down “Nub City” insurance-fraud notoriety [St. Petersburg Times a while back, but new to me; Errol Morris film; my review of Ken Dornstein’s book]
  • Evidence continues to roll in against once-touted theory that bans on smoking in public places result in dramatic overnight drop in heart attack rates [Sullum, Reason “Hit and Run”, earlier here and here]
  • Maybe everyone’s too used to such things by now to get riled up by that pic of garishly painted “1-800-LAWYERS” van [Ron Miller; earlier]
  • Magazines often found on scene at law enforcement raids = guilty magazines that should be banned from mails? [McClatchy “Suits and Sentences” blog; earlier on cockfighting periodicals Apr. 24, etc.]
  • Lawprofs: Let’s carve bigger religious-conscience exemptions into antibias laws [Robin Wilson, L.A. Times; Dale Carpenter series at Volokh; Ira Lupu, ConcurOp via Orin Kerr]
  • UK: “Parents sue NHS over ‘wrongful birth’ of disabled son” [Times Online, our earlier coverage of concept]
  • Throw bloggers in prison because their posts cause emotional distress? Have fifteen members of Congress gone completely mad? [David Kravets, Wired “Threat Level”, earlier]
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    ]]>     https://www.overlawyered.com/2009/05/may-7-roundup/feed/ 3     Sues over having twins https://www.overlawyered.com/2007/10/sues-over-having-twins/ https://www.overlawyered.com/2007/10/sues-over-having-twins/#comments Sun, 14 Oct 2007 00:06:19 +0000 http://overlawyered.com/wpblog/?p=5452 An Australian woman asked that her in vitro fertilization (IVF) result in a single baby but two embryos were mistakenly implanted. Now she wants $A400,000 for the cost of raising the child to adulthood. (“Mother sues doctor over twin birth”, ABC (Australian) News, Sept. 18)(via KevinMD). The local branch of the Australian Medical Association says […]

    Sues over having twins is a post from Overlawyered - Chronicling the high cost of our legal system

    ]]>     An Australian woman asked that her in vitro fertilization (IVF) result in a single baby but two embryos were mistakenly implanted. Now she wants $A400,000 for the cost of raising the child to adulthood. (“Mother sues doctor over twin birth”, ABC (Australian) News, Sept. 18)(via KevinMD). The local branch of the Australian Medical Association says the law should be changed to prevent damage claims over the birth of unimpaired babies: “We’re very concerned [at] the concept that a healthy life is wrongful.” (“Doctors should not be liable for mistake births: AMA”, Sept. 22). More on wrongful birth lawsuits here.

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    ]]>     https://www.overlawyered.com/2007/10/sues-over-having-twins/feed/ 2     July 27 roundup https://www.overlawyered.com/2007/07/july-27-roundup/ https://www.overlawyered.com/2007/07/july-27-roundup/#comments Fri, 27 Jul 2007 00:14:56 +0000 http://overlawyered.com/wpblog/?p=5154 Grand jury declines to indict Dr. Anna Pou in Katrina hospital deaths, despite heavy breathing from Louisiana AG Charles Foti and TV’s Nancy Grace [Times-Picayune, more; 2005 CNN transcript; Health Care Blog, GruntDoc, Vatul.net] Protection from lawsuits for “John Doe” security informants is back in anti-terror legislation moving through Congress, despite back-door effort to eliminate […]

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    • Grand jury declines to indict Dr. Anna Pou in Katrina hospital deaths, despite heavy breathing from Louisiana AG Charles Foti and TV’s Nancy Grace [Times-Picayune, more; 2005 CNN transcript; Health Care Blog, GruntDoc, Vatul.net]

    • Protection from lawsuits for “John Doe” security informants is back in anti-terror legislation moving through Congress, despite back-door effort to eliminate it earlier [Fox News, Malkin; earlier] Addendum: but it’s in altered, much-weakened form, says commenter Bob Smith;

    • U.K.: Top law firm Freshfields earns millions advising clients on employment compliance, yet “omitted to check that changes to its own pension scheme were legal” [Times Online]

    • Thinking of doing some guestblogging, for us or another site? Some good advice here [Darren Rowse via Kevin O’Keefe]

    • Even Conrad Black can have trouble affording lawyers, at least with feds freezing his accounts [PoL on Steyn]

    • Shouldn’t have let us become parents again: Florida jury awards $21 million in “wrongful birth” case [Fox News]

    • Possibility of gigantic reparations claims adds intensity to big lobbying fight in Washington over whether Turkey’s slaughter of Armenians in 1915 amounted to genocide [Crowley, New Republic]

    • Updating colorful coverage case (Jun. 22, 2005): dentist wins $750K verdict on insurer’s duty to defend him for taking gag photos of sedated employee with boar tusks in mouth [Seattle Times, more; dissent in PDF; Althouse]

    • Giuliani might use federalism to defuse culture wars [Brownstein, L.A. Times; disclaimer]

    • Virginia’s enactment of harsh traffic fines (Jul. 6) follows tryouts of the idea in Michigan and New Jersey, where effects included rise in unlicensed driving [Washington Post]

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    July 27 roundup is a post from Overlawyered - Chronicling the high cost of our legal system

    ]]>     https://www.overlawyered.com/2007/07/july-27-roundup/feed/ 3     “Wrongful birth” in Boston https://www.overlawyered.com/2007/03/wrongful-birth-in-boston/ https://www.overlawyered.com/2007/03/wrongful-birth-in-boston/#comments Thu, 08 Mar 2007 00:16:47 +0000 http://overlawyered.com/wpblog/?p=4630 We’ve covered a number of cases over the years in which parents sue physicians and others over the “wrongful birth” of perfectly healthy children, demanding, as part of the claimed damages, the cost of raising the youngsters to adulthood: May 9, 2000 (Phoenix), Jun. 8, 2000 (Revere, Mass., outside Boston), Apr. 9, 2006 (Scotland), and […]

    “Wrongful birth” in Boston is a post from Overlawyered - Chronicling the high cost of our legal system

    ]]>     We’ve covered a number of cases over the years in which parents sue physicians and others over the “wrongful birth” of perfectly healthy children, demanding, as part of the claimed damages, the cost of raising the youngsters to adulthood: May 9, 2000 (Phoenix), Jun. 8, 2000 (Revere, Mass., outside Boston), Apr. 9, 2006 (Scotland), and Nov. 1, 2006 (Germany). Many such cases arise from failed sterilizations or other efforts at birth control, but a new suit by Jennifer Raper of Boston against Planned Parenthood and two doctors claims that an abortion went awry. “The [Massachusetts] high court ruled in 1990 that parents can sue physicians for child-rearing expenses, but limited those claims to cases in which children require extraordinary expenses because of medical problems, medical malpractice lawyer Andrew C. Meyer Jr. said. Raper’s suit has no mentions of medical problems involving her now 2-year-old daughter.” (“Boston woman sues for child-rearing costs after failed abortion”, AP/Boston Globe, Mar. 7; Jonathan Saltzman, “Suit seeks compensation for botched abortion”, Boston Globe, Mar. 7). More: “One day Jennifer Raper’s daughter will punch her mother’s name into Google and discover that she was the result of ‘a failed abortion.'” (Taranto)

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