Massachusetts Jury Verdict - Medical Malpractice

The Lowell Sun reports on a case in Lowell Superior Court involving a woman who died 19 days after having surgery to remove ovarian cysts in a wrongful death lawsuit, calling it "one of the largest jury verdicts in the Merrimack Valley [Massachusetts]." A jury decided after 3 days of deliberations and an 11-day trial.

Attorney for the plaintiff Suzanne McDonough said that:

"the lawsuit, filed in 2002, arose from the June 6, 1999, death of .... the mother of an 11-year-old daughter, who went into Lowell General Hospital a few weeks earlier on May 13 to remove an ovarian cyst. But while in the hospital, Edwards developed pneumonia.

McDonough alleges that at trial, the attorneys representing the doctors argued that the ovarian problems were making the pneumonia worse, so surgery was necessary even though Edwards had not been a candidate for surgery five days earlier."

She further comments in the article: "The jury found that both doctors were negligent and their negligence caused Edwards' death." The jury awarded $2 million to the daughter of the deceased, and $500,000 to the estate. Boston attorney Andrew Meyer who also represented the family said, "This was a big verdict," and with interest, the verdict could rise to $4.1 million, he said."

See full account here.