Personal Injury Law

Case Law Update: Apparent Authority in Medical Malpractice

By Steven M. Levin and John J. Perconti

Wallace v. Alexain Brothers Medical Center, No. 1-08-2852 (4-24-09) affirmed that the mother of a deceased child who died after receiving emergency and surgical care at defendant hospital, failed to present sufficient evidence of apparent authority to withstand hospital's motion for summary judgment. Even though it was after emergency treatment of her daughter had already commenced, she signed consent acknowledging that physicians were independent contractors; and had previously signed several other of the same form consents at that hospital, as recently as a few months earlier. This case will greatly impact medical malpractice cases.

Full post as published by Illinois Medical Malpractice Blog on May 08, 2009 (boomark / email).