Marianne DePaulo Plant and James Phelan Robinson achieved a significant defense victory on behalf of a local hospital on January 22, 2025. The medical malpractice trial involved a minor Plaintiff with permanent neurologic injuries claiming damages of $15.5M. Plaintiff alleged delay in evaluation, triage, and c-section of a patient with placental abruption. The 34-week pregnant patient came to the hospital by ambulance after rupture of membranes and bleeding at home and was taken directly to Labor and Delivery rather than being assessed in the emergency department. In the triage area of L&D, the patient became diaphoretic, dizzy, and passed blood clots in the toilet. The clinical team assessed the pregnant patient and her fetus, and fetal bradycardia was detected by ultrasound. Delivery by STAT c-section was effectuated within 20 minutes of the patient’s clinical change, but experts for Plaintiff asserted the fetus’s brain was deprived of oxygen and permanently damaged in the interim. The jury heard testimony from 21 fact and expert witnesses, including obstetricians, neuroradiologists, and geneticists, and the minor Plaintiff was brought into the courtroom to demonstrate his condition. After five hours of deliberation, the jury returned a unanimous verdict in favor of the hospital, finding that the registration process, triage, and timing of the c-section were appropriate and within the standard of care.