Maryland Jury awards $55 million to parents in record birth injury lawsuit against Johns Hopkins

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A jury in Baltimore on Monday ordered Johns Hopkins Hospital to pay a Maryland couple $55 million in a medical malpractice lawsuit that alleged that negligence by doctors caused their son to be born with severe physical and mental injuries.

In March 2010, the child's mother, Rebecca Fielding, was rushed to Johns Hopkins Hospital after an  unsuccessful attempt to deliver the baby at home with the help of a midwife.

During birth, Enzo Martinez, now 2, suffered from a lack of oxygen to the brain and now has "severe and permanent global developmental delays, severe and permanent brain damage, multiple physical and mental disabilities, and cerebral palsy," according to the parents' lawsuit.

A compressed umbilical cord caused the lack of oxygen to the baby while waiting more than two hours for an urgent cesarean section to be performed, the parents argued.

The hospital, which has vowed to appeal the verdict, unsuccessfully argued that the lost oxygen occurred during prior stages of the mother's labor.

Because of a state imposed cap on damages, the parents will receive less than $30 million of the $55 million verdict, which is believed to be one of the largest medical malpractice awards ever in the state.

Philadelphia birth injury attorneys at Ross Feller Casey, LLP have built a remarkable record of victories, amassing a long list of seven- and eight-figure verdicts and settlements. They include:

$22 million verdict in a birth injury case involving blood arriving late for a transfusion
$12 million recovery in a birth injury case
$8 million settlement for a child who suffered a brain injury due to a delay in delivery
$7 million recovery for a child left with cerebral palsy as a result of obstetrical negligence
$7 million settlement for a woman who died just after delivering a baby
$6 million settlement for an infant who suffered brain damage because a nurse midwife and nurses failed to manage fetal distress during labor
$5.5 million recovery for a child who was brain injured at birth because an obstetrician failed to recognize signs of placental abruption
$5.5 million settlement for the family of a 23-year-old woman who died after giving birth to her daughter

Disclaimer: Ross Feller Casey, LLP provides legal advice only after an attorney-client relationship is formed. Our website is an introduction to the firm and does not create a relationship between our attorneys and clients. An attorney-client relationship is formed only after a written agreement is signed by the client and the firm. Because every case is unique, the description of awards and summary of cases successfully handled are not intended to imply or guarantee that same success in other cases. Ross Feller Casey, LLP represents catastrophically injured persons and their families in injury and wrongful death cases, providing legal representation in Pennsylvania and New Jersey.