West Virginia Jury Awards $17 Million in Medical Malpractice Verdict, Holding Doctor Accountable for Reckless Shortcuts
In a victory for justice and accountability, Bailey Glasser secured a $17 million jury verdict on behalf of its client, Mike Rodgers, who instead of receiving proper care for a spinal column injury, was rendered a paraplegic. Bailey Glasser partners Greg Haddad and Sharon Iskra tried the case over eight days in Charleston, West Virginia state court, in a matter that was heavily fought by the defendant who sought to avoid responsibility for his negligence.
Mr. Rodgers originally sustained injuries to his spinal column in a vehicle accident and went to CAMC where he was seen by a neurosurgeon. Instead of properly testing Mr. Rodgers before surgery and using appropriate safety equipment during surgery, the doctor recklessly and negligently operated on Mr. Rodgers’ sensitive spinal column. When Mr. Rodgers emerged from surgery, he was rendered a paraplegic and is now wheelchair-bound for the rest of his life.
BG partners Greg Haddad and Sharon Iskra tried the case in Charleston, West Virginia. “This case sets an important precedent because it shows that when medical professionals provide substandard care to their patients, then they can expect to be held to account for their carelessness,” said Greg Haddad, a partner in Bailey Glasser’s Morgantown office with over 30 years of medical malpractice experience. “We are very grateful to the jury who saw through the attempts to rationalize the defendant’s conduct and delivered a jury verdict that will take care of Mr. Rodgers and provide the services he will need. Although his health will never be restored, this verdict sends a message to doctors and institutions who try to take shortcuts with patients and by doing so, play with their lives.”
About Bailey & Glasser, LLP
Bailey Glasser was founded in 1999 by Ben Bailey and Brian Glasser in Charleston, West Virginia. Now a national firm with 18 offices across the country, Bailey Glasser handles our clients’ most challenging and consequential legal issues, in litigation and in corporate matters.
We bring a trial-focused approach to litigation for plaintiffs and defendants that vigorously protects the interests of our clients – businesses in many industries and of all sizes (from Fortune 500 companies to family offices), individuals, governmental entities and government servants, and even law firms that call upon us to help them in matters because of our unique blend of resources and trial experience. Some of our areas of particular litigation focus include complex commercial litigation, in finance and energy; class action and mass tort cases; multi-district litigation involving medical devices, pharmaceuticals and automobiles; bankruptcy and insolvency proceedings; and individual negligence cases.
Bailey Glasser's sophisticated corporate practice provides strategic guidance, counseling, and innovative solutions in virtually every type of corporate, real estate, and financial transactions. Those projects include business formations, public and private securities offerings, corporate finance transactions, mergers and acquisitions, spinoffs, real estate development, leasing, personal property transactions, executive hiring and compensation, ownership disputes, and commercial lending. For more information, please visit www.BaileyGlasser.com.