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Nielson v. Spanaway General Medical Clinic Inc.5/28/1998
Oral Argument Date: 01/14/98
Dissenting: Richard B. Sanders Gerry L. Alexander Charles W. Johnson
EN BANC
In this case we consider whether a plaintiff who is awarded a judgment for damages in a medical malpractice action in federal court has a state constitutional right to have a jury redetermine the damage issue in a subsequent action in state court, based on the same injuries, against a second defendant.
FACTS
On the evening of July 28, 1989, when Christina Nielson was 7 days old, her mother brought her to the Spanaway General Medical Clinic because the infant seemed to be breathing abnormally, had gradually stopped nursing during the day, and was sleeping more than usual. At the Clinic, Christina was examined by Dr. Karel Pokorny. Dr. Pokorny's notes indicate that he prescribed a medication for thrush and told the mother to take the child to Mary Bridge Children's Hospital if the child's symptoms did not improve or if she developed further problems.
Because she was not satisfied with Dr. Pokorny's diagnosis, Christina's mother telephoned the emergency room at Madigan Army Medical Center (Madigan) within a short time after leaving the Spanaway Clinic. Madigan told Christina's mother to bring the child to Madigan's emergency room immediately.
The infant and her mother arrived at Madigan approximately 20 minutes later. Delays in diagnosing and treating Christina for cardiac problems during the 6 hours she was at Madigan's emergency treatment facility caused Christina to suffer increasing shock and respiratory failure, which ultimately resulted in permanent brain damage.
Christina and her parents (hereafter referred to collectively as Nielsons) filed an action against the Spanaway Clinic and Dr. Pokorny in Pierce County Superior Court, and filed an action against the United States, as owner and operator of Madigan, in Federal District Court for the Western District of Washington. The injuries and damages claimed in both actions are identical.
Although the complaint in state court was filed first, the action in federal court against the United States was tried and concluded before any proceedings occurred in the state court action. An action against the United States under the Federal Tort Claims Act, 28 U.S.C. sec. 1346(b), must be tried to the court without a jury, 28 U.S.C. sec. 2402. The Nielsons' suit went to trial before United States District Court Judge William L. Dwyer. The Nielsons did not request the federal court to assert supplemental jurisdiction over the state court action, nor did they seek a stay of the federal proceeding so that the state court action could be tried first.
Under the Federal Tort Claims Act, liability and damages are determined under the law of the state where the tort occurred. Richards v. United States, 369 U.S. 1, 9, 82 S. Ct. 585, 7 L. Ed. 2d 492 (1962). Judge Dwyer applied Washington law in determining that the United States was liable for the injuries suffered by Christina and in determining the amount of compensation due to the child and her parents. The federal judge considered that "{t}he fundamental principle of damages in Washington is that tortiously injured parties are to be returned as nearly as possible to the condition in which they would have been had the wrong not occurred." Clerk's Papers at 96. He entered 16 findings of fact relating to damages suffered by Christina and her parents and awarded a total of $3,133,202 in damages to Christina and $100,000 to each of her parents. The United States appealed the federal court decision, and Christina cross-appealed the amount of damages awarded to her. The United States and Christina se
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