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Indiana Appeals Court Tosses Out Suit For Failing to Follow Med Mal Guidelines
Plaintiff Ricardo S. Trevino, who was hurt when stacked exercise steps slipped out from under him during an examination at Comprehensive Care Inc. (CCI) back in December of 2014. Trevino originally suffered the injury in a work-related incident. Trevino filed a standard negligence action complaint against CCI. The Lake County Superior Court granted a motion filed by CCI to dismiss the suit because Trevino’s case fell underneath the Indiana Medical Malpractice Act, which would have required him to file a proposed complaint with a medical review panel before filing his complaint in court. Trevino appealed.
The Indiana Court of Appeals of Indiana held in a December 30, 2016 ruling that the lower court correctly tossed the litigation because it fell within the scope of Indiana’s Medical Malpractice Act. The Appeals Court stated that “in summary, we hold that there was a causal connection between the conduct of which Trevino complained and the nature of the patient healthcare provider relationship. Therefore, Trevino’s complaint falls within the scope of the Medical Malpractice Act.” Also, “because Trevino did not submit his claim to a medical review panel, the trial court was without jurisdiction to hear Trevino’s claim.”