Medical negligence claims may not have a deadline any longer in Ohio. This would mean lawsuits against health professionals could go on indefinitely.
The idea that there is not a deadline to file a medical negligence lawsuit is an interesting concept. This is good for a plaintiff to say the least; but not so wonderful for the medical health professional if they had committed medical negligence.
A lower court in Ohio overturned a law that mandated a four-year deadline for medical malpractice claims. It is not clear if the Supreme Court of Ohio will review the lower court’s decision or not, but they are certainly being asked to do so by a large number of people, including a panicked Ohio State Medical Association. They insist that the lower court’s ruling will expose doctors to the never-ending risk of negligence claims.
If you happen to be a victim of medical negligence, this might appeal to you for the simple reason that you may not think to file a case right away if you are not sure your bad medical result really was medical malpractice. You might not take action on your situation until you have finally decided to speak to a personal injury lawyer and find out that what happened to you is actionable in court.
The case that started this stampede of worried doctors was an appellate court decision, Ruther v. Kaiser. The court allowed a family’s lawsuit to proceed even in light of the fact that the alleged negligence happened 10 years ago. The state medical association felt differently and filed a friend-of-the-court brief stating how the ruling would directly impact every medical health provider and hospital. They asserted that it would be hard to plan for the future due to the possibility of unknown medical claims that could pop up at any time.
The actual legal question here has to do with something referred to as the statute of repose, which works hand-in-hand with the statute of limitations to enforce deadlines for filing claims. In Ohio, their statute of limitations gives a plaintiff one year to file after learning they are a victim of medical malpractice. The statue of repose says if the plaintiff has not found out about an alleged injury or medical negligence after four years, they cannot sue.
The key point to note in the Ohio case is that the plaintiff had a unique situation. Lab tests over multiple years showed he was not informed of the likelihood that he had liver cancer. When he found out, it was too late to do anything about treatment as he was in Stage IV cancer, and subsequently died. The courts indicated that had the doctor informed him about his lab results, the patient may have had a chance to get the proper treatment.
If you happen to have a claim in Ohio it is not wise to count on this case as precedent. It is always best to act promptly and consult Ohio counsel, or ask a New Hampshire injury lawyer with connections in Ohio to do it for you. Do not wait too long and blow the statute of limitations guidelines, no matter what they are.
This is an interesting precedent though, and if it finds favor in other jurisdictions, we may see medical malpractice lawsuits years after the actual negligent act. Is this a good thing – it certainly would be for the victims.
Charlie Donahue is a New Hampshire personal injury lawyer located in Keene. Donahue handles injury cases in New Hampshire and across the United States. To learn more about New Hampshire injury attorney, Charlie Donahue, visit Donahuelawfirm.com.
