On September 25, 2020, in Savino v. Charlotte-Mecklenburg Hospital Authority, the North Carolina Supreme Court issued a 5-1 ruling in favor of the Plaintiff in a medical negligence lawsuit, reinstating a $5.5 million dollar jury verdict that had previously been set aside by the North Carolina Court of Appeals. The plaintiff in the case, Anthony Savino, died of a heart attack after the hospital prematurely discharged him from its emergency department. Savino’s estate brought a medical negligence action against the hospital on the theories that it was negligent in providing medical care and performing its administrative duties. The jury found the hospital acted with reckless disregard for the safety of the patient – a finding that … [Read more...]
Zaytoun & Ballew Wins NC Supreme Court Victory to Uphold $5.5 Million Dollar Jury Verdict in Medical Malpractice Case
Zaytoun Law Firm attorneys featured in TBJ article on current trends in Medical Malpractice Litigation in North Carolina
Zaytoun Law Firm attorneys Robert Zaytoun and Matthew Ballew were interviewed by the Triangle Business Journal in an article examining the impact of medical malpractice "tort reform" passed by the North Carolina General Assembly in 2011. Here's what they had to say: "Ultimately, it is the public who has suffered by the unfortunate impact of denial of access to the courthouse. There may be less malpractice litigation today but certainly no less malpractice," says Robert Zaytoun, principal of Zaytoun Law Firm, a Raleigh group that represents victims of medical malpractice. "Good doctors are not defining their practices by fear of lawsuits or so-call defensive medicine," he says. "What drives them every day is a true concern for the … [Read more...]
“Defensive medicine” myth continues to be debunked by recent studies
Legal blogger Max Kennerly recently wrote a great post explaining the myth of "defensive medicine"--the false idea that health care costs are high because doctors constantly order unnecessary tests out of a fear of being sued. In addition to pointing out the flawed logic with this idea, the post cites to a new wave of medical studies confirming that the "tort reform" laws passed to stop this purported problem have failed to make medical care any cheaper or safer for patients in states across the nation. This is certainly true here in North Carolina. Check out Max's post here: http://www.litigationandtrial.com/2014/10/articles/attorney/medical-malpractice-1/defensive-medicine/ … [Read more...]
Cleveland Clinic study finds that the savings from ‘tort reform’ are mythical
The LA Times and Pulitzer Prize winning journalist Michael Hiltzik report on a recent Cleveland Clinic study further debunking the myth of tort reform and the costs of defensive medicine. The North Carolina Medical Malpractice lawyers at Zaytoun Law Firm believe that so-called "tort reform" is nothing more than a bar to justice for ordinary citizens of our state. North Carolina has been affected by recent reform legislation that has stripped injured people of their rights to seek full redress in our civil courts. Studies like these are further confirmation of the real truth about medical care in this state and country: that meritorious claims for medical negligence have nothing to do with the predictable and steady rise of healthcare costs. … [Read more...]
