Posts by Christopher Nace
“Dr. Death” Gets Life Sentence for Intentionally Harming a Patient
The botched surgery for which Duntsch was convicted was a spinal fusion surgery on the 74-year-old patient, which took place in 2012. Duntsch was found directly responsible for intentionally harming the patient, who is now confined to a wheelchair because she is unable to walk, and has chronic pain from the procedure. He was said…
Read MoreWorkplace Wellness Programs and Employee Privacy: Do I Have to Share My Medical Records with My Boss?
What if you lived in a world where your boss could require you to undergo genetic testing–tests that reveal deeply personal information about you and your health–and then require you to share the results of those tests with them or face steep fines? Does this all sound like a creepy, Orwellian nightmare to you? Well,…
Read MoreOptometry Malpractice: How Much is Your Sight Worth?
When you think of how precious your eyesight is, you might become livid to think that an eye doctor’s negligent treatment caused you to lose it. You trust your doctor to have the training and expertise to treat you when you have an illness or an injury, and you trust him/her to refer you to…
Read MoreThe NFL Concussion Settlement is Now Open for Registration for Injured Former Players
In December of 2016, the National Football League (NFL) came to an agreement with retired players who are suffering from debilitating brain ailments caused by serious blows and multiple less-severe blows to the head during their football careers. The settlement, which might be worth as much as $1 billion and will cover almost every former…
Read MoreMaternal Mortality Rate on the Rise in the U.S.
In a country like the United States, that prides itself on a sophisticated health care system, maternal mortality rates in the U.S. are rising while the numbers are declining in almost everywhere else in the world. A study conducted by the Institute of World Health Metrics and Evaluation reports that there were 28 pregnancy complication…
Read MoreContaminated Medical Scopes Cause Potentially Deadly Infections
Duodenoscopes are small, tube-shaped medical devices used in a procedure called an endoscopic retrograde cholangiopancreatography (ERCP) to diagnose health problems in the digestive tract. Due to a problem with cleaning these scopes, they can become infected with bacteria after being used on one patient which can then be transferred to the next patient. The U.S.…
Read MoreBotched Tonsillectomy Causes Brain Damage, and the Medical Malpractice Lawsuit Resulted in $12.7 Million Verdict
You might think that a tonsillectomy is a routine surgery that gets performed thousands of times each year without incident, and you would be correct. However, a Pennsylvania woman suffered brain damage after her breathing tube was removed too quickly after a routine tonsillectomy. A Montgomery County jury awarded her $12.7 million in compensatory damages…
Read MoreAnother Abilify Lawsuit Linked to Compulsive Gambling Losses
On November 1, 2016, a California woman named Chrystal Austin filed a lawsuit against Bristol Meyers-Squibb after having suffered excessive financial losses linked to a compulsive gambling problem caused by the drug Abilify. Ms. Austin claims that the drug maker failed to warn consumers about the impulse control side-effects before it caused her significant financial…
Read MoreApps Are to Blame for the Largest Spike in Traffic Fatalities in Decades
The National Highway Transportation Safety Administration (NHTSA) has reported that after almost fifty years of steady decline, the number of highway fatalities increased by the largest annual percentage last year. The numbers so far for 2016 look to be even worse. The NHTSA reports that in the first six months of 2016, the rate of…
Read MoreSon Files a Wrongful Death Prilosec Lawsuit on Behalf of Deceased Dad
Prilosec is an over-the-counter treatment for frequent heartburn. In November 2016, a man filed a wrongful death lawsuit against AstraZeneca, who manufactures Prilosec, claiming that the pharmaceutical giant failed to warn consumers about the risks of developing acute interstitial nephritis (AIN). Mr. Rodriguez’s wrongful death lawsuit (Rodriguez v. AstraZeneca Pharmaceuticals LP et al) was filed…
Read MorePaulson & Nace, PLLC, Named to Tier 1 Status in the 2017 Edition of Best Law Firms
Paulson & Nace, PLLC, is proud to announce that we have been awarded a “Best Law Firms” Tier 1 Status for our work in Plaintiffs Medical Malpractice Law and Personal Injury Litigation, by U.S. News – Best Lawyers for 2017. Attorneys Barry J. Nace and Christopher T. Nace have also been selected for the 23rd…
Read MoreFour Common Myths about Medical Malpractice
Medical malpractice lawsuits receive a tremendous amount of news coverage when there are large verdicts involved. When there is a lot of publicity about a verdict in the millions of dollars, the general public might begin to get a distorted idea about the truth when it comes to real world medical malpractice lawsuits. Clearly there…
Read MoreAndroGel Testosterone-Replacement Defective Drug Bellwether Trials Set to Start
In August 2016, eight lawsuits were filed by people who used the testosterone-replacement therapy, AndroGel. In those lawsuits, the plaintiffs claim they experienced a number of adverse effects, including heart attacks, blood clots and strokes. These suits were approved to go to trial in 2017. United States District Judge Matthew Kennelly has approved four heart…
Read MoreWhat A Train Crash in Spain Can Teach Us in Washington, D.C.
On September 9, 2016, a Portuguese train derailed right at a station on the border of Spain and Portugal. The causes of the derailment are still under investigation. Two passengers (one from the U.S.), the driver and the conductor all died in the crash, but the rest of the passengers survived. “The front portion of…
Read MoreCosmetic and Plastic Surgery Medical Malpractice
If you think that cosmetic surgery and plastic surgery were just two different names for the same specialty, you would be incorrect, but you would have plenty of company. It is a common misconception that cosmetic and plastic surgery are the same. The American Board of Cosmetic Surgery describes cosmetic surgery as focused on enhancing…
Read MoreCan a Doctor be Held Liable for a Patient’s Opioid Abuse? A $17.6 Million Verdict Says “Yes”
A St. Louis jury awarded $17.6 million in damages to a couple who had filed a medical malpractice lawsuit against a doctor for overprescribing opioid pain medication. The plaintiff, Brian Koon, was awarded $1.4 million and Michelle Koon, his estranged wife, was awarded $1.2 million. The remaining $15 million was awarded as punitive damages against…
Read MorePreventable Medical Errors Made in the Emergency Department
By their nature, emergency rooms are chaotic places. Medical staff receive patients from all walks of life with a range of injuries from cuts and lacerations to heart attack or stroke. Even in an environment of chaos and confusion, doctors call upon their years of study and training, and their skill acquired over their years…
Read MoreWashington, D.C. Lawmakers Are at Odds Over a Bill That Could End Contributory Negligence
There is a new bill in front of legislators that could put an end to the contributory negligence law as it applies to bicyclists and pedestrians. The bill has stalled for the moment, according to an article in GreaterGreaterWashington.com, but it is one we should all be behind in the end. Contributory negligence has been…
Read MoreThe Consequences of Traumatic Birth Syndrome
Ideally, the birth process is easy and uneventful. Every few seconds, somewhere on earth a baby is born, and most of those journeys from the mother’s womb into the world will be largely uneventful. In a small percentage of cases, birth injury occurs that creates trauma –physical and emotional, for both infant and mother. Traumatic…
Read MorePatient Sues Her Doctor for Removing the Wrong Rib and Trying to Cover it Up
When a doctor makes a big mistake during surgery, do you think that they should apologize for the error? One doctor at Yale New Haven Hospital allegedly made a big surgical error, but not only did they not apologize, they lied and tried to cover up the mistake. Deborah Crave, a 60-year-old patient had surgery…
Read MoreGreat Leaders Like Matthew A. Nace Are Made at Paulson & Nace, PLLC
At Paulson & Nace, PLLC, we value education. It is what has allowed our attorneys to rise to leadership positions in both local community organizations and within the legal community as well. That is why we are proud to announce that attorney Matthew A. Nace has been accepted into the American Association for Justice’s Leadership…
Read MoreNew York Hospital Agrees to a $2.2 Million Penalty for Filming Patients without Authorization
Imagine how traumatizing it might be to watching a TV show filmed in an emergency room, only to realize that the footage you are watching is of your husband’s death from the year before? This actually happened to Anita Chanko in 2012. The hospital that allowed the film crew from the ABC network program “NY…
Read MoreLaundry Detergent Pods Poisoning Cases Involving Young Children on the Rise
You may remember hearing about the tragic cases of small children getting poisoned when they mistook their mom’s laundry detergent pods for candy. Laundry pods are small, brightly colored packets of clear plastic and filled with highly concentrated laundry soap and fabric softener. Children are biting into them because they think it looks like an…
Read MoreTainted Scopes Cause Deadly Superbug Infections
A duodenoscope is a flexible tube that doctors thread through the mouth, throat and stomach and into the beginning of the small intestine, which is the duodenum. In a procedure called, endoscopic retrograde cholangiopancreatography (ERCP), doctors use the duodenoscope to get a look at the digestive system of the patient and it allows them to…
Read MoreTexas Family Wins $124.5 Million Verdict in Audi Seat Back Failure Case
An 11-year-old boy who suffered brain damage in a rear-end collision was awarded a $124.5 million verdict in a products liability lawsuit against Volkswagen AG’s Audi unit. Jesse Rivera Jr’s head was injured as he sat in the back seat of his father’s 2005 Audi, which had come to a stop behind a school bus…
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