Simone Finau as Guardian ad Litem for Fatafehi Finau, a minor v. Manisha Sanghvi
Published: Dec. 3, 2005 | Result Date: Oct. 12, 2005 | Filing Date: Jan. 1, 1900 |Case number: PC027573W Verdict – $0
Judge
Court
L.A. Superior
Attorneys
Plaintiff
Defendant
Experts
Plaintiff
John H. Menkes
(medical)
Susan Hall
(medical)
Hugh R. Adams
(medical)
Facts
In December 1993, plaintiff Fatafehi Finau was born by emergency c-section. She was not breathing but was resuscitated by medical personnel at Holy Cross Hospital in Mission Hills. Defendant Dr. Manisha Sanghvi, the on-call pediatrician, arrived 14 minutes later. She cared for plaintiff until the on-call neonatologist arrived two hours later. The plaintiff was diagnosed with brain damage.
Injuries
The plaintiff is now age 11. She suffers from a seizure disorder, mental retardation and speech difficulties. The plaintiff sought $800,000 in loss of earnings and $3.5 million in past and future medical damages, which includes 24-hour nursing care. She also sought the full $250,000 MICRA cap on noneconomic damages. The defendant asserted that $1.5 million would be reasonable.
Result
The defendant was granted a pretrial motion to try the immunity issue. In a bifurcated trial, the jury found the defendant was protected under Section 1317 for the entire time while she cared for plaintiff. Thus, the defendant was immune from the negligence claims.
Deliberation
two hours
Poll
9-3
Length
eight days
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