R.B., acting on behalf of her child B.N., filed a personal injury lawsuit in Suffolk County Supreme Court, against Dr. R.L. and others, alleging medical malpractice.
The crux of the complaint was that Dr. L. failed to diagnose an aneurysmal bone cyst in B.N.'s left fibula during a visit back in January 2017. This oversight purportedly led to the cyst remaining untreated for several months, ultimately necessitating intensive surgery at Memorial Sloan Kettering. R.B. claimed that this delay in diagnosis and treatment resulted in B.N.’s permanent injuries.
After the judge assigned to the matter dismissed the case in response to the defendants’ request for pre-trial relief in their favor (via a motion for summary judgment), R.B. appealed to the Appellate Division, Second Department. And upon its review, the appellate court found that the defendants had not met their burden of proof. Specifically, the expert opinion they provided failed to address critical evidence, such as the visibility of a bone lesion on the X-ray reviewed by Dr. L. in January 2017, nor did it address the allegation that Dr. L. failed to diagnose the bone lesion during that visit.
As a result, believing that the defendants’ motion should have been denied, the underlying dismissal order was reversed, and the dispute was permitted to proceed.
Would you consider that a bony outcome?
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DECISION