The Fifth District Appellate Court reversed St. Clair County Heinz Rudolf’s order denying transfer in a medical malpractice suit alleging Clinton County doctors failed to diagnose a patient’s stroke.
Justice James “Randy” Moore delivered the rule 23 decision on April 27 with justices Mark Boie and David Overstreet concurring.
The appellate court concluded that the circuit court abused its discretion in denying transfer and remanded the case to be transferred to Clinton County, where the plaintiffs reside and the alleged malpractice occurred.
According to the appellate decision, plaintiffs Michael and Judy Kuhn filed their complaint on May 30, 2018 in St. Clair County, alleging medical malpractice against defendants Richard Nichol, M.D., Robert Marshall, M.D., Infinity-Meds LLP, and St. Joseph’s Hospital in Breese.
The defendants are represented by Heyl Royster Voelker & Allen PC in St. Louis.
In their complaint, the Kuhns claim the defendants negligently failed to timely diagnose and treat Michael Kuhn’s stroke, causing him debilitating injuries.
On July 31, 2018, St. Joseph’s filed a motion to transfer the case to Clinton County based upon forum non conveniens.
According to the motion to transfer, the Kuhns are residents of Clinton County, the alleged medical malpractice occurred in Clinton County, and all records regarding the allegations are in Clinton County. The defendant argued that because the lawsuit had no connection to St. Clair County, the public and private public interest factors “strongly favor transfer to Clinton County.”
St. Joseph’s Hospital argued that 100 civil cases were filed in Clinton County in 2016 while 2,925 civil cases were filed in St. Clair County that same year.
Infinity-Meds filed a motion to join the motion to transfer on Aug. 2, 2018.
The Kuhns filed an opposition to the motion on Aug. 21, 2018. They argued that medical professionals in Belleville and O’Fallon are currently treating Michael Kuhn, and several witnesses in St. Clair County could have relevant information about the plaintiff’s condition before and after the stroke.
Rudolf denied the motion to transfer on Sept. 21, 2018.
Then on Dec. 12, 2018, Rudolf granted the defendants’ petition for leave to appeal.
Nichol was served with the complaint after the other defendants and filed his own motion to transfer on March 4, 2019. He argued that Kuhn’s treatment took place in Clinton County. He added that he resides in Madison County and worked in Clinton County at the time of Kuhn’s treatment. He argued that litigating in St. Clair County would be personally and professionally inconvenient for him.
St. Joseph’s Hospital and Infinity-Meds filed a motion to stay their appeal pending a ruling on Nichol’s motion.
Rudolf denied Nichol’s motion to transfer on May 7, 2019. Nichol filed a petition for leave to appeal on June 5, 2019.
The appellate court concluded that the circuit court abused its discretion by denying Nichol’s motion to transfer.
Moore wrote that the alleged medical malpractice occurred in Clinton County and all medical personnel and records are located in Clinton County.
The appellate court stated that while the Kuhns provided lay witnesses and medical professionals are located in St. Clair County, the “supreme court has cautioned us, however, not to give undue weight to the fact that treating doctors have an office in the plaintiffs’ chosen forum.”
“We find the same treatment should be afforded the plaintiffs’ counsel’s list of 25 lay witnesses who are acquired with Michael, especially where counsel does not provide an explanation of why there are not lay witnesses in Clinton County, the county of the plaintiffs’ residence, who could provide identical testimony,” Moore wrote.
The appellate court further held that a trial in Clinton County would be convenient for the plaintiffs. However, the court added that a trial in the adjacent St. Clair County would not necessarily be inconvenient for the defendants.
Regardless, the ruling states that public and private interest factors of convenience weigh in favor of Clinton County.
“As such, this is a controversy local to Clinton County that would be of interest to the citizens of Clinton County who rely on the defendants for their medical treatment,” Moore wrote.
“Based on the foregoing, it would not be unfair to burden the citizens of Clinton County with jury duty in this case,” he continued. “In contrast, St. Clair County residents should not be unburdened with jury duty when the action neither arose there nor has any relation to that county.”
St. Clair County Circuit Court case number 18-L-379