Potts v. Durrani

Citations

• 229 N.E.3d 792
• 2023 Ohio 4195

Syllabus

MEDICAL MALPRACTICE – EVID.R. 403 – EVID.R. 404 – ABUSE OF DISCRETION – HARMLESS ERROR – CUMULATIVE ERROR – EXPERT TESTIMONY – SETOFF – R.C. 2307.28 – CATASTROPHIC INJURY – R.C. 2323.43(A) – FUTURE DAMAGES – PAST MEDICAL EXPENSES – PREJUDGMENT INTEREST: The trial court did not abuse its discretion in denying defendants' motion for a new trial based on evidentiary errors where references to the revocation of defendant doctor's medical license were limited, other evidence challenging the doctor's credibility was admitted, and other substantial competent evidence existed to support the jury's verdict. Where the video-deposition testimony offered by plaintiffs' expert witness concerning plaintiff's cancer diagnosis was improper and should not have been played for the jury, but where the trial court appropriately handled the issue by stopping the video and providing a curative instruction and where plaintiffs did not attempt to link the cancer diagnosis to defendant doctor's treatment, any error in the admission of the testimony was harmless. The trial court did not abuse its discretion in admitting testimony from plaintiffs' expert witness referring to defendant doctor as a liar where the comments predominately related to the plaintiffs' claim that defendant doctor had misrepresented plaintiff's need for surgery. Where portions of testimony offered by plaintiffs' expert doctor witness concerning defendant doctor's performance of the surgery went beyond the scope of a radiologist's area of expertise, but where testimony from plaintiffs' other expert witnesses indicated that performance of the surgery was not problematic and where plaintiffs' counsel, in closing argument, focused on whether the doctor had misrepresented the need for the surgery and not whether he had botched the surgery, any error resulting from the admission of the expert's testimony was harmless. The trial court did not err in failing to disclose settlement agreements reached between plaintiffs and sett