Defense Verdict in Queens County

Austa S. Devlin received a defense verdict in an orthopedic case in Queens County Supreme Court on April 28, 2009.

Plaintiff underwent extensive orthopedic surgery to correct numerous deformities of the right foot.  A year after surgery, deformities again developed in the foot.  Plaintiff claimed that our client did far more extensive surgery than required, and that there was a lack of informed consent.

The defense explained the plaintiff’s severe pre-surgery deformities.  Plaintiff was advised that the surgery might not solve all of his problems, and deformity could recur, requiring further surgery.  The evidence showed that the surgery was properly performed and that it was successful.  Plaintiff’s expert testified that the defendant’s surgery was overly extensive and should have been performed in 2 stages.

The defense expert explained that the surgery was properly done in one procedure.  He stated that the patient had an acceptable post-operative result as of the last visit to our client and that his deformity recurred later.  If plaintiff had continued to see our client, several methods of conservative treatment were available to try and particularly prevent deformity in the great toe, including splinting and taping.

After deliberations, the jury returned a unanimous defense verdict on behalf of our client.