Thomas, Thomas & Hafer Attorney Dan Grill Wins Defense Verdict in Medical Malpractice Case

A TT&H team led by partner, Dan Grill,  won a defense verdict in a medical malpractice case in the Court of Common Pleas of Dauphin County in December 2022. Following an appeal, the Pennsylvania Superior Court has now issued a three-judge panel unanimous opinion rejecting the appeal and upholding the verdict.   A summary of the case follows.

Dan and his team represented a family physician who was accused of malpractice in connection with the death of a 52-year-old patient.  The patient died due to a pulmonary embolism (a blood clot that traveled to the lungs) that killed him instantaneously.  The patient had previously suffered a blood clot and pulmonary embolism in connection with a hip replacement surgery he underwent some nine years prior to his death.  At that time, the patient received an IVC filter, which remained in place until his death.

In the action filed following the patient’s death, it was claimed that IVC filters must be removed after the threat of another post-operative pulmonary embolism has passed and the patient is out of the “zone of danger.”  The matter ultimately proceeded to trial, where the patient’s family and Estate sought some $1.3 million in economic losses, in addition to claims for non-economic losses.  The trial lasted four days and included testimony from expert witnesses in family medicine, hematology and interventional radiology.

Ultimately, countering the Plaintiff’s theory of the case, the defense was able to establish that IVC filters are designed to be permanent and that, in many cases, they are left in place for years, often for the lifetime of the patient.  At the conclusion of the trial, the jury returned a verdict in favor of TT&H’s client, finding an absence of any negligence.

Questions about this case can be directed to Dan Grill at (717) 237-7115 or dgrill@tthlaw.com.