Because nursing homes generally offer medical care to residents, Maryland medical malpractice claims may arise in the nursing home setting. In a recent medical malpractice case, a family brought a medical malpractice claim after their elderly mother fell. The eighty-nine-year-old patient fell after she got out of her hospital bed,…
Proving damages is an essential part of any Maryland nursing home claim. In a recent case before a federal appeals court, the court upheld a punitive damages award of over $4 million in a case where the compensatory damages award totaled just $650,000. The Facts of the Case In that…
These days, nursing homes in Maryland and throughout the country often require nursing home residents to sign arbitration agreements upon admission. In a recent case before a state appellate court, the court allowed a case against a nursing home to proceed after the family disputed the validity of the arbitration…
Recently, a state appellate court issued a written opinion in a personal injury case that illustrates a key issue that arises in many Maryland nursing home negligence cases. The case presented the court with the opportunity to discuss the validity of an arbitration clause contained in the nursing home’s pre-admission…
A state appellate court recently ruled on a case in which a nursing home’s arbitration agreement failed to strictly comply with the state’s requirements concerning arbitration agreements. In that case, when the patient had moved into the nursing home, she received an admissions packet with forms that included an arbitration…
The right of unhindered access to the court system is one of the bedrock principles the founding fathers enshrined in the United States Constitution. At its essence, the concept stands for the proposition that anyone who has been harmed by another party should have equal access to a neutral forum…
Earlier this month, a state appellate court issued a written opinion in a wrongful death case brought by a woman whose mother died a short time after being released from the defendant nursing home. The issue was whether the plaintiff, who was named as an alternate attorney-in-fact in her mother’s…
Over the past few years, Maryland nursing home arbitration agreements have become very common. Essentially, an arbitration agreement is a contractual term between the resident and the nursing home in which the parties agree that, in the event a claim arises, neither party will file a case in the court…
Earlier this month, an appellate court issued a written opinion in a personal injury lawsuit discussing the validity of an arbitration agreement. The court ultimately concluded that the arbitration agreement, which was signed by the plaintiff on behalf of his deceased father, was not enforceable against the plaintiff to preclude…
Earlier this month, an appellate court in Mississippi issued a written opinion in a personal injury case that illustrates an important point for those considering filing a Maryland medical malpractice case. The issue presented in the case was whether the plaintiff should have had an expert prepare an affidavit in…