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Iwanski v. Gomes6/9/2000
1. Summary Judgment. Summary judgment is proper only when the pleadings, depositions, admissions, stipulations, and affidavits in the record disclose that there is no genuine issue as to any material fact or as to the ultimate inferences that may be drawn from those facts and that the moving party is entitled to judgment as a matter of law.
2. Summary Judgment: Appeal and Error. In reviewing a summary judgment, an appellate court views the evidence in a light most favorable to the party against whom the judgment is granted and gives such party the benefit of all reasonable inferences deducible from the evidence.
3. Actions: Mental Distress. In order to recover on a cause of action for intentional infliction of emotional distress, a plaintiff must prove the following: (1) that there has been intentional or reckless conduct, (2) that the conduct was so outrageous in character and so extreme in degree as to go beyond all possible bounds of decency and is to be regarded as atrocious and utterly intolerable in a civilized community, and (3) that the conduct caused emotional distress so severe that no reasonable person should be expected to endure it.
4. ___: ___. A sexual relationship between two consenting adults is not outrageous conduct such as to give rise to a claim for intentional infliction of emotional distress.
5. Summary Judgment: Evidence: Proof. After the movant for summary judgment makes a prima facie case by producing enough evidence to demonstrate that the movant is entitled to judgment if the evidence were uncontroverted at trial, the burden to produce evidence showing the existence of a material issue of fact that prevents judgment as a matter of law shifts to the party opposing the motion.
6. Malpractice: Physician and Patient: Proof: Proximate Cause. In a cause of action alleging professional negligence, the burden of proof is upon the plaintiff to demonstrate the generally recognized medical standard of care, that there was a deviation from that standard by the defendant, and that the deviation was the proximate cause of the plaintiff's alleged injuries. The plaintiff must prove each essential element of the claim asserted by a preponderance of the evidence.
7. Malpractice: Physician and Patient: Liability. When there is a claim of medical malpractice based on unwanted sexual contact, the determination of liability should focus not solely on the locale of the alleged harm or the professional status of the actor, but, rather, on the context of the alleged medical service involved in the action. It is the physician's deviation from the recognized medical standard of care during the course of treatment that is the essence of a claim for medical malpractice, and there must exist a causal relationship between the alleged harm and the complained-of deviation from that standard of care in order for liability to attach.
Appeal from the District Court for Hall County: Teresa K. Luther, Judge. Affirmed.
INTRODUCTION
Judy Iwanski sued William Gomes, a physician, seeking damages resulting from a sexual relationship gone awry, claiming intentional infliction of emotional distress and professional negligence. After the district court granted partial summary judgment in favor of Gomes, the remaining allegations were dismissed by Iwanski, and she appealed.
The resolution of this appeal depends on our determination of two issues. The first issue is whether the district court erred by concluding that Gomes' conduct did not rise to the level of intentional infliction of emotional distress as a matter of law when Iwanski engaged in sexual relations with Gomes after confiding in him re
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