Corboy & Demetrio Earns $10 Million Verdict

A Cook County jury has returned a verdict of $10 million for a Chicago mother who suffered a tear from her vagina to her rectum during labor and delivery of her baby that was not timely diagnosed. The child was delivered on July 2, 2010, uninjured, but the mother, who had had a c-section in a previous birth due to dilatation issues, was advised by her doctor, an obstetrics and gynecological physician at Rush University Medical Center, to try a vaginal birth.

“I think what started out as a well-intentioned effort to get her to a vaginal delivery, over many hours, created multiple risk factors for a fourth-degree tear, and then when she suffered one, it was missed. These tears have to be repaired immediately or serious consequences can occur– like it did here,” said Chicago attorney David R. Barry, Jr., a partner at Corboy & Demetrio, who, along with Susan J. Schwartz, also a partner at the firm, represented the woman, an internist, and her internist husband in the medical malpractice lawsuit filed against the Rush doctor. The jury delivered its verdict Tuesday afternoon after deliberating for just two hours after a six-day trial before Cook County Circuit Court Judge Thomas J. Lipscomb.

At trial, lawyers for the defendant OB/GYN argued that the mother’s tear occurred not during childbirth, but independently a day after the baby’s birth.

The jury discarded this argument and determined that the tear occurred during the use of metal forceps during the delivery, as established by expert testimony.

In addition to the $10 million verdict for the mother, the jury also determined that her husband was entitled to $1 million for the loss of consortium.

About Corboy & Demetrio

Corboy & Demetrio is one of the nation’s premier law firms. The personal injury law firm represents individuals and their families in serious personal injury and wrongful death cases and is renowned for its achievements in the courtroom and for its contributions to the community.

The Chicago law firm has acquired nearly $4 billion in settlements and verdicts and has attained almost 600 settlements and verdicts in excess of $1 million. To contact David R. Barry, Jr., Susan J. Schwartz, or another Chicago medical malpractice lawyer at the firm, call 312-346-3191 or toll free at 800-356-3191. We are available 24 hours a day, seven days a week. For more information about our law firm go to corboydemetrio.com.

Media Contact: Helen Lucaitis, Esq., Communications Director, Corboy & Demetrio, 33 N. Dearborn Street, 21st Floor, Chicago, Illinois 60602; 312-346-3191 (office); 312-550-2077 (cell); HHL@corboydemetrio.com.