Rothstein v. Orange Grove Center5/25/2000
In this wrongful death action, the jury returned a verdict of $275,000.00 for the plaintiffs. The Trial Judge suggested a remittitur of $75,000.00 which plaintiffs accepted under protest. All parties have appealed, raising numerous issues, including whether plaintiffs should have been allowed to seek loss of consortium, and the propriety of directing a verdict for punitive damages, and whether a claim for negligent infliction of emotional distress should have been allowed, as well as issues relating to the admissibility of evidence.
Tenn. R. App. Appeal as of Right; Judgment of the Circuit Court Affirmed.
Franks, J., delivered the opinion of the court, in which Susano, J., and Swiney, J., joined.
OPINION
Plaintiffs brought this wrongful death action for the death of their daughter, Lisa, who was a 35 year-old woman with mental retardation and a mild seizure disorder. The action was filed against the Orange Grove Center, Inc. ("Orange Grove"), the group home where Lisa resided, and Dr. Christopher Prater ("Dr. Prater"), the physician employed by Orange Grove for the care of its clients.
The record establishes that Lisa Rothstein was enrolled at Orange Grove Center at age 14, where she lived until the date of her death at age 35, except for 36 therapeutic days per year when she lived with her family. In the month of November, prior to Thanksgiving, Lisa complained of headaches and was administered Tylenol by Debbie LaDuke, the house manager, pursuant to a standing order. The house manager consulted the nurses at Orange Grove about Lisa's headaches and fever which persisted, and Dr. Prater was consulted, who gave the nurse an order for ibuprofen. On Sunday, November 20, 1994, the Rothsteins called the center, inquiring about Lisa. On Tuesday, November 22, Mrs. LaDuke took Lisa to Dr. Prater, who ordered a complete blood count, as well as other blood tests. On Tuesday evening Mrs. LaDuke called the on-call nurse, Deborah LaRosh, to report a breathing problem which was of concern. It was reported that Lisa would emit a honking sound which would cease when people walked away. Dr. Prater advised Mrs. LaDuke to take Lisa to the emergency room if the honking noise persisted. On the morning of November 23, 1994, Lisa had stopped breathing, although her body was still warm when found. The autopsy revealed that Lisa had died of bacterial meningitis.
Prior to trial, various motions were filed by the defendants, and the Trial Court dismissed plaintiffs claims of spoliation of evidence, loss of consortium, and abandonment. At the close of the proof, the Trial Judge granted a directed verdict to defendants on the issue of punitive damages, and the jury returned a verdict in plaintiffs' favor of $275,000.00. The jury apportioned fault at 20% to Orange Grove and 80% to Dr. Prater.
Post-trial motions were filed by all parties, and in response to the motions, the Trial Judge suggested a remittitur of the award down to $200,000.00, which the plaintiffs accepted under protest, and the appeals ensued.
Plaintiffs claimed loss of consortium at the pleading stage, which the Trial Judge ruled were not allowed in wrongful death actions. On January 25, 1999, after the trial had concluded, the Supreme Court decided Jordan v. Baptist Three Rivers Hospital, 984 S.W.2d 593 (Tenn.1999), which reversed the earlier case law that held loss of consortium damages to be non-compensable in wrongful death actions in this State. The Jordan case held that the language of the wrongful death statute (Tenn. Code Ann. ยง20-5-113) entitled survivors to be compensated for their loss of consortium, and reversed its earlier ruling in Davidson Benedict Co. v. Se
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