Mega Verdicts Continue; Philadelphia Sees Medical Liability Cases Soar!

March 12, 2024

ISMIE routinely monitors legal cases relevant to the practice of medicine. Here are some recent court activities of interest.

2023 was a busy year for medical liability lawsuit filings in Philadelphia. Courts there saw an increase of 33% in filings because of a change in the rules that now allows “venue shopping.” That means cases can be filed in any Pennsylvania county rather than the county where the incident occurred. As expected, plaintiffs and their lawyers have been seeking county courts (“venues”) in Pennsylvania where jurors are considered more sympathetic to plaintiffs and have routinely produced larger verdicts, such as Philadelphia. Last year 544 cases were filed in Philadelphia, a marked increase from the average caseload pre-pandemic. In 2023, The city’s courts last year yielded four “nuclear” verdicts of more than $10 million.

 

Meanwhile in Illinois, three medical liability cases rulings have resulted in mega verdicts. In recent months we witnessed a Cook County jury award $75.8 million, another Cook County jury award of $39.9 million and an Illinois state appeals panel upheld a Cook County Circuit Court jury’s $42.4 million verdict. The trend of mega verdicts continues in a concerning environment.

For those impacted by lawsuits, whether now or in the future, ISMIE’s Litigation Resource Center offers strategies that will help you navigate or prepare for the psychological pressures often associated with being served with a lawsuit.