BELLEVILLE – Clients of Joseph Bartholomew changed their minds about dismissing a medical malpractice suit, and in the process they apparently changed the judge presiding over it.
Bartholomew represents Olivia Reed and Johnnie Reed, who sued St. Louis University and surgeon Phillippe Mercier in January, claiming that during minimally invasive back surgery, the defendants injured Olivia Reed’s left uterer and her body as a whole.
The suit alleges that defendants failed to identify, isolate and preserve the uterer’s integrity.
It further claims that Olivia Reed has sustained pain, suffering, and loss of enjoyment of a normal life and that she that she has incurred and will pay great sums of money for medical and hospital treatment.
On Feb. 15, Chief Judge Andrew Gleeson assigned the action to Associate Judge Christopher Kolker.
On Feb. 26, the Reeds moved to dismiss the case without prejudice.
Kolker didn’t grant the motion.
On March 19, Gleeson filed a routine second notice of Kolker’s assignment.
It directed Kolker to hold an initial mandatory status conference on April 2.
At the conference, Circuit Judge Vincent Lopinot presided instead of Kolker.
Lopinot entered an order stating, “Case is set for status. Plaintiff previously dismissed case.”
Someone initialed the order for plaintiffs.
No one signed for the university or Mercier.
As of April 9, nothing else had appeared on the docket.
Bartholomew practices at Bruce Cook’s firm in Belleville.