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Guides from Peter Anderson on the questions patients and families actually ask. Written for non-lawyers, drawn from 15+ years of trial experience.
The Biloxi VA Hospital Misdiagnosis Lawsuit: A Veteran Sent Home With a Cold, Dead by Morning, and What Families Should Know
A widow says the Biloxi VA Medical Center told her 53-year-old husband he had a cold and sent him home. He was dead by the next morning, with a heart attack listed as the cause. Her claim says no one ran the standard tests that rule out a heart attack. Here is what the allegations are, how a malpractice claim against a VA hospital actually works, and the two-year deadline that ends most of these cases before they start.
The $84 Million Fairview Malpractice Verdict: A Chest Pain Complaint, a Missed Cardiac Workup, and What Patients and Families Should Know
A Hennepin County jury awarded more than $84 million against Fairview Health Services after finding that a physician assistant failed to work up a 53-year-old man's chest pain. The man died of a heart attack roughly three months later. Fairview says it respectfully disagrees and is weighing its legal options. Here is what the jury found, the two theories the family used, and what the verdict means for other patients who were told their heart was fine.
The Lindsay Clancy Malpractice Lawsuits: Overmedication, a Missed Postpartum Diagnosis, and What Families Should Know
Lindsay Clancy and her former husband have each sued the psychiatrists, nurse practitioner, and hospitals who treated her before she killed her three children in 2023, alleging a 'disorganized, uncoordinated course of polypharmacy' and a failure to recognize postpartum psychosis. In October 2026 one of the hospitals denied the claims. Here is what the court filings show, what is still unproven, and what families who suspect psychiatric malpractice should do.
Virginia Nursing Homes Operated Without the Liability Insurance the Law Requires: What Injured Residents and Families Should Know
Internal emails obtained by CBS 6 show Virginia's health department was not enforcing a state rule that requires nursing homes to carry liability insurance, even as a facility with a long violation record kept its license. For a family whose loved one is injured in a nursing home, that insurance is often the only money that pays a claim. Here is what the public record shows and what it means.
Severe Violations at Virginia Nursing Homes Rose 77% After the State's 2025 Oversight Overhaul: What Families Should Know
After Virginia promised to fix its broken nursing home inspection system in August 2025, the most serious category of violation went up, not down. State data obtained by CBS 6 shows immediate jeopardy citations rose 77 percent in the year after the reform order, and three Virginia homes drew large federal fines in 2026. Here is what the record shows and what it means for families.
Community Health Centers and the Indian Health Service: Why Your Malpractice Claim Is Really Against the Federal Government
Millions of patients get care at neighborhood clinics and Indian Health Service facilities that look like any private practice. When something goes wrong, the malpractice claim usually is not against the clinic or the doctor at all. It is against the United States, under the Federal Tort Claims Act, with a two-year deadline and rules that catch people who assumed they were dealing with a private office.
A Second $5.5 Million Verdict Against Townhouse Center in Uniondale: What Families of Nursing Home Residents Should Know
A Nassau County jury has awarded $5.5 million to the family of Lucy Riker, a 91-year-old Franklin Square woman who fractured her hip after a fall at Townhouse Center for Rehabilitation and Nursing in Uniondale and later died. According to Newsday, it is the second $5.5 million verdict against the same facility this year, both won by the same attorney, and reported to be the highest ever against a Nassau nursing home. Here is what the verdict record shows, what the facility argued, and what other families with loved ones at Townhouse should know.
Dr. Sasa Espino Held Medical Licenses in Nine States Before Surrendering Her Virginia License: What Patients Should Know
CBS 6 reports that Richmond breast surgeon Dr. Sasa Grae Espino obtained active medical licenses in eight more states in late June 2026, days before she permanently surrendered her Virginia license on July 1. Her lawyers say she does not maintain an active clinical or surgical practice in any of them and deny all negligence. Here is what the record shows and what former patients should do.
The Lutronic DermaV Laser Recall: What Patients Burned During Treatment Should Know
In September 2026 the FDA classified a recall of the Lutronic DermaV, an aesthetic laser used to treat facial redness, rosacea, spider veins, and pigment. The reason, in the agency's words, is that higher energy settings at one of the laser's wavelengths, combined with the device's cooling parameters, may cause a spark and a loud noise during treatment and can burn the patient. Health Canada classified the same action a Type II recall after an adverse trend of burn complaints in North America. What the recall record shows, what a laser burn can do, and the legal options in D.C., Maryland, Virginia, and nationwide.
Three Staff Indicted After a Resident Choked to Death at The Grand at Mohawk Valley: What Families Should Know
New York Attorney General Letitia James has announced the indictment and arrest of three staff members at The Grand at Mohawk Valley in Ilion, in the choking death of a 34-year-old resident who prosecutors say was left unattended for roughly 90 minutes. A dietary aide is charged with manslaughter, and a nurse and the facility administrator with endangering a vulnerable person. The charges are accusations, not convictions. Here is what the record alleges and what the resident's family, and other families at the facility, should know.
Maryland Hospitals Reported 808 Serious Adverse Events in One Year: What Injured Patients and Families Should Know
The Maryland Department of Health's most recent hospital patient safety report counted 808 of the most serious adverse events in a single year, the fourth straight annual increase and nearly four times the 2019 figure. Pressure injuries, falls, and delayed treatment led the list. Here is what the numbers mean for patients, what they do not prove on their own, and how a Maryland hospital injury claim works.
The Federal Nursing Home Staffing Rule Was Repealed: What Families of Understaffed-Facility Residents Should Know
In 2024 the government set the first nationwide minimum staffing levels for nursing homes. A federal court struck down the core of it, Congress froze it for a decade, and in December 2025 the government repealed it. The understaffing that harms residents did not go away. Here is what changed, what did not, and what it means if your family member was hurt in an understaffed facility.
Ozone Gas Injections at Healing Hands of Virginia: What Patients of Dr. Jawad Bhatti Should Know
Federal prosecutors say a Richmond pain doctor, Jawad Bhatti, injected patients with a mix of ozone gas and lidocaine, a treatment the FDA calls a toxic gas with no accepted medical use, and that many patients were never told. He pleaded guilty to one count in February 2026, but a federal judge rejected the plea deal as too lenient in May. Here is what the public record shows and what former patients should do.
Texas Renewed Dr. Dare Ajibade's Medical License After a Board Order Tied to a Patient Death: What Patients Should Know
In early September 2026 ABC13 Houston reported that the Texas Medical Board renewed cosmetic surgeon Dr. Dare Ajibade's license for two more years, about two weeks after a board disciplinary order became public. That order, entered in June 2026, describes a patient who died of a pulmonary fat embolism after a roughly ten-hour surgery. He neither admitted nor denied the findings, and the pending malpractice lawsuits against him remain unproven allegations. Here is what a renewed license does and does not tell you.
Henrico Health and Rehabilitation Center: One of the Nation's Lowest-Rated Nursing Homes Collected $700,000 in Medicaid Bonuses. What Families Should Know
A federal Special Focus Facility in Highland Springs, Virginia, cited for sexual abuse of residents, neglected care, and chronic understaffing, still collected more than $700,000 in Virginia Medicaid quality bonuses in a single year. Here is what the public record shows and what families of residents should do.
Potassium Injected Instead of Anesthetic: The Ascension Saint Thomas Midtown Drug Mix-Up and What Injured Patients Should Know
State inspectors say a Nashville hospital pharmacy filled surgical syringes with a concentrated potassium electrolyte instead of anesthetic, and that the wrong drug was injected into the spines of four joint-replacement patients on August 14, 2026. Three were left paralyzed and one went on life support. Here is what the public record shows and what patients and families should do.
Rectal Injury During Fibroid Surgery: What a Virginia Myomectomy Verdict Means for Injured Patients
In September 2026 a Prince William County jury awarded a Woodbridge woman a verdict that the court reduced to Virginia's $2.65 million malpractice cap, after a surgeon cut about two inches into her rectum instead of her vaginal wall during fibroid surgery. Here is what the record shows, when a surgical bowel injury is negligence, and what injured patients should do.
Brazilian Butt Lift (BBL) Lawsuits: What Injured Patients and Families Should Know
The Brazilian Butt Lift is one of the most requested cosmetic surgeries in the country and, by the profession's own count, the deadliest. A surgeons' task force estimated the death rate as high as roughly 1 in 3,448 a year, and a Miami study counted 25 deaths in South Florida alone. Here is what the record shows and what families should do.
The Boston Scientific ENROUTE Recall: What TCAR Carotid Patients Need to Know
In August 2026 the FDA classified a Class I recall of the Boston Scientific ENROUTE Transcarotid Neuroprotection System, the device used in TCAR procedures to prevent stroke while treating carotid artery disease. The reason: the arterial sheath tip can separate during use, sometimes requiring a second procedure to retrieve a piece left behind in the artery, with complications the FDA lists as embolism, stroke, transient ischemic attack, restenosis, and thrombosis. What the recall record shows, what patients should look for in their records, and the legal options in D.C., Maryland, Virginia, and nationwide.
When a Coroner Overrules the Nursing Home: The Forest Hills Healthcare Center Homicide Case and What Families Should Do
Robert Meyer's death certificate said natural causes. After his daughter sent the coroner photographs of bruises on his neck, his body was exhumed, an autopsy was done, and the manner of death was changed to homicide by physical elder abuse. Here is what the record shows, what the wrongful death lawsuit alleges, and what families should do when a facility's account does not match what the body reveals.
How to Check a Surgeon's Disciplinary Record Before Surgery: What the Dr. Dare Ajibade Case Teaches
Before you let anyone operate on you, you can check their license, board certification, and disciplinary history for free. But the tools most patients reach for miss the two things they most want to know: pending lawsuits and non-disciplinary board orders. Here is how to run a real background check on a surgeon, and where the public record goes dark.
The Abiomed Impella Heart Pump Recalls: What Patients and Families Need to Know
The FDA tied a 2024 recall of Abiomed's Impella heart pumps to 129 serious injuries and 49 deaths from left-ventricle perforation. In 2026 a fresh cluster of Class I recalls hit the pumps, their controllers, and the introducers used to place them. What the recall record shows, the failure patterns families should look for, and the legal options in D.C., Maryland, Virginia, and nationwide.
SF-95 Mistakes: The Filing Errors That End Federal Tort Claims
The Standard Form 95 is where most Federal Tort Claims Act cases are won or lost, long before a lawsuit is filed. Here are the filing mistakes that quietly kill claims: the missing sum certain, the claim sent to the wrong agency, the form that was mailed but never received in time, and the signature that carried no legal authority.
Dr. Sasa Espino Lawsuits: What Richmond Breast Center Patients Need to Know
Dozens of women have sued Richmond breast surgeon Dr. Sasa Grae Espino, alleging she performed complex breast reconstruction she was not qualified to do. On July 1, 2026, she permanently surrendered her Virginia medical license under a consent order. She denies all negligence. Here is what the public record shows.
AirSculpt Lawsuits: What Patients of Elite Body Sculpture Need to Know
Elite Body Sculpture markets its AirSculpt procedure as gentle and low risk. Since 2023, lawsuits have told a different story: a patient death that ended in a $2.1 million settlement, at least seven suits over the advertising itself, and injury cases from Pennsylvania to Virginia. Here is what the public record shows.
VA Disability Under Section 1151 vs. an FTCA Lawsuit: Two Routes for Veterans Harmed by VA Care
A veteran injured by VA medical care has two separate ways to be compensated: a Section 1151 disability benefits claim inside the VA, and a Federal Tort Claims Act lawsuit for money damages. They pay differently, run on different deadlines, and interact through a specific offset rule. Here is how the two compare and how they fit together.
Dr. Dare Ajibade Lawsuits: What Patients Need to Know About the Cosmetic Surgeon's Legal and Regulatory History
Cosmetic surgeon Dr. Dare Ajibade faces multiple lawsuits and Texas Medical Board action, now the subject of a published ABC13 Houston investigation profiling four patients, including two who died. He operated in Houston and in Vienna, Virginia, where a patient died four days after a 2024 liposuction procedure. What the public record shows, and what former patients in the D.C. area and Texas should know.
Sono Bello Lawsuits: What Patients Should Know About the Body Contouring Chain's Litigation Record
Sono Bello has faced more than 60 medical malpractice lawsuits since 2013, including cases involving patient deaths, according to a KFF Health News and NBC News investigation. A $1.8 million wrongful death settlement, sepsis cases in several states, and recurring allegations about post-operative care. What the public record shows, and what former patients should know.
The Philips CPAP Recall: Degraded Foam, 15 Million Devices, and a $1.1 Billion Settlement
Philips recalled roughly 15 million CPAP, BiPAP, and ventilator machines in 2021 because the foam inside them was breaking down into particles and chemicals patients were breathing in every night. Here is what the FDA record actually shows, how the litigation resolved, and how device-defect claims like this one work.
The Medtronic HVAD Recall: What Patients and Families Need to Know
Medtronic pulled the HeartWare HVAD heart pump from the market in June 2021 after years of Class I recalls tied to injuries and deaths. Thousands of patients still carry the device. What the recall record shows, the failure patterns families should look for, and the legal options in D.C., Maryland, and Virginia.
The Feres Doctrine: Why Active-Duty Servicemembers Cannot Sue for Military Medical Malpractice
A misdiagnosis at a base hospital and the same misdiagnosis at a VA hospital are legally worlds apart. Active-duty servicemembers are barred from suing at all by a 1950 Supreme Court decision. Here is what the Feres doctrine actually blocks, the administrative remedy the Stayskal Act created in its place, and why military dependents and veterans have completely different options.
Mazor X Surgical Robot Malfunctions: What Spine Patients Need to Know
Medtronic's Mazor X robotic guidance system has been recalled four times, most recently in December 2025 for software errors that can misplace surgical instruments during spine surgery. What the FDA record shows, what the injuries look like, and who is liable when the navigation is wrong.
Understanding Medical Malpractice: Your Rights as a Patient
What medical malpractice actually is, the four elements you have to prove, how the standard of care works, and how to tell whether what happened to you might be a viable claim.
FTCA Claims: Suing the Government for Medical Negligence
How Federal Tort Claims Act cases work, why most personal injury firms won't take them, and the procedural traps that end most claims before they reach a courtroom.
Birth Injuries: What the Fetal Monitor Strip Actually Shows
Most birth injury cases turn on the electronic fetal monitor strip. Here is what the strip actually shows, how the three-tier NICHD categorization works, what the new 2025 ACOG guideline changed, and why a child's lifetime needs drive the value of these cases.
Nursing Home Abuse and the Understaffing Problem
Most nursing home injuries are not the work of bad individuals. They are the predictable result of facilities that operate with too few staff for too many residents. Here is what to look for, what federal regulations require, and why the staffing data has become the most important evidence in these cases.
Surgical Errors: Wrong-Site Surgery, Retained Objects, and Post-Op Failures
Surgical errors fall into two broad categories: the dramatic "never events" that should be impossible with proper systems, and the quieter post-operative failures that account for most of the actual harm. Here is what each looks like in the chart.
Diagnostic Errors: When Hours Decide Whether You Live
Diagnostic mistakes cluster around the conditions where they cause the most harm: cancer, stroke, heart attack, and sepsis. Sepsis is the clearest example. Here is what the evidence actually says about how fast antibiotics need to start and what the medical record has to show.
EMR Audit Trails: What Electronic Records Actually Reveal
Modern EHRs log every click. In medical malpractice litigation, audit trails routinely catch backdated entries, copy-forwarded notes, and the time a critical lab result was viewed without anyone acting on it. Here is what hospitals record, what you can get in discovery, and what it shows.
Expert Witnesses: Who They Are, What They Cost, and Why They Decide Cases
Medical malpractice cases live or die on expert testimony. The right expert at $1,200 per hour can win a case the defense thought was unbeatable. The wrong expert can lose a case the chart appeared to win. Here is how the system actually works.
Statute of Limitations: Time Limits for Medical Malpractice Claims
Medical malpractice deadlines are among the strictest in civil law. Here's how the discovery rule works, how statutes of repose can override it, and what the current rules look like in DC, Maryland, Virginia, and FTCA cases.
Medication Errors: Where They Happen and Who Is Responsible
A medication error can happen at any of five steps: prescribing, transcribing, dispensing, administering, and monitoring. Liability often involves multiple defendants: the prescribing physician, the dispensing pharmacy, the administering nurse. Here is how the chain breaks down.
Emergency Room Negligence: Triage Failures, Missed Diagnoses, and EMTALA
Emergency rooms operate at the intersection of high acuity, time pressure, and incomplete information. Most ER malpractice cases trace to one of three patterns: triage that misclassified the patient, atypical presentations missed by the workup, or premature discharge of a patient who was not stable.
Hospital-Acquired Infections: The Prevention Bundles That Matter
CLABSI, CAUTI, surgical site infections, and ventilator-associated pneumonia each have well-established prevention bundles. When a hospital-acquired infection causes serious harm, the litigation question is whether the bundle was followed and whether the nursing record proves it.
Choosing a Medical Malpractice Attorney: What Actually Matters
Most legal advertising looks the same. Behind it, malpractice firms vary enormously in experience, expert network, financial capacity, and willingness to try cases. Here is what to ask and what to look for.
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