Medical Malpractice / Quadriplegia

9/16/1982 - $4,700,000

Revis v. Lee, et al.; Superior Court of Fulton County, Georgia. In a case of medical malpractice involving the failure to diagnose a spinal fracture resulting in quadriplegia, punitive damages of $960,000 were awarded. This verdict marked the largest in Georgia's history at the time and the State's first multi-million dollar verdict. The corporate veil was pierced to access the assets of the hospital chain that owned a shell "management" corporation. The Defendant hospital and management companies were held liable for retaining a known incompetent physician. Causation was established based on descriptions provided by lay witnesses regarding the decedent's physical capabilities at various pertinent times. The case was settled after the verdict.