In a recent hard-fought victory, Waranch & Brown’s Alexander Carlson and Neal M. Brown secured a defense verdict at trial on behalf of a local surgeon in a $1.5 million case.

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This case involved a claim of negligence arising from a laparoscopic gallbladder removal surgery that resulted in the severing of the common bile duct, requiring the plaintiff to undergo multiple follow-up surgeries. Acknowledging the seriousness of the injury, our defense centered on shifting the jury’s focus from the injury itself to the medical decisions made during the procedure.
The plaintiff argued that the surgeon should have used an intraoperative cholangiogram, but we demonstrated — through expert testimony and authoritative medical literature — that this was not the standard of care. We emphasized that cholangiogram is not the “silver bullet” the plaintiffs portrayed it to be, and the jury agreed. By compelling the plaintiff to pinpoint specific medical decisions they claimed violated the standard of care, we successfully defended the surgeon’s choices, which were grounded in his training and experience.
A key to our defense was the use of visual aids, which illustrated how such injuries can occur without negligence. In addition, our thorough preparation of the defendant surgeon paid off — several jurors noted that his professionalism and confident testimony reassured them of his competence and skill.
Bottom line: all surgery involves risk of unintended injury. The key is to show the jury how that can happen in the absence of medical negligence.
If you need skilled representation in a complex medical malpractice case, our experienced trial attorneys are ready to help.