Summary Judgment for Healthcare Client Affirmed by Alabama Supreme Court

The Alabama Supreme Court recently affirmed without opinion a summary judgment motion obtained by Huie partner Phil Collins, on behalf of a healthcare client in a medical negligence case.

The Challenge

This case involved claims that the hospital client breached the standard of care in its care and treatment of the Plaintiff patient. The Plaintiff made a very sympathetic witness and claimed to have an eyewitness that saw the hospital staff drop the patient. The hospital argued that the Plaintiff’s two falls at home after discharge is what caused the Plaintiff’s injury.

Our Approach

Huie defended the case on two fronts. First, we argued in dispositive motion that the Alabama Medical Liability Act requires that a Plaintiff produce expert testimony that the hospital breached the applicable standard of care. The Plaintiff argued that this case fell under Alabama’s exception to the “expert” rule. Our second line of defense was that the Plaintiff could not dispute the hospital’s expert evidence that the supposed fall could not have possibly caused the Plaintiff’s claimed injuries.

Results

Summary judgment motion was granted by the trial court. The Plaintiff appealed the dismissal order to the Alabama Supreme Court. On August 16, the Alabama Supreme Court affirmed the dismissal without opinion.