VanSlembrouck v. Halperin, et al., Circuit Court of Oakland County, Michigan, Case No. 06-074585-NH (2011) (Birth Trauma)

A $144.5 million verdict obtained by Fieger Law in 2011 is one of the largest ever awarded in a medical malpractice case in the nation. Attorney Geoffrey Fieger, with help from Fieger Law Counsel Jack Beam, procured the award on behalf of a Macomb Township family in a tragic birth trauma case against William Beaumont Hospital in Royal Oak. The verdict came in Oakland County Circuit Court on Oct. 18 before Judge Rudy J. Nichols. Fieger Law represented the family of Markell VanSlembrouck, a 15-year-old who sustained serious injuries during her birth at William Beaumont Hospital in Royal Oak. Fieger argued that doctors should have ordered a C-section for Markell’s mother, Kimberly VanSlembrouk. The hospital’s negligence caused a traumatic birth, which resulted in Markell’s severe cerebral palsy. Now a teenager, Markell can’t walk or talk and needs constant care. Her parents assist her 24 hours a day, helping with every aspect of her life, from eating and dressing to bathing. After a three-week trial and three days of deliberation, the jury awarded Fieger’s client $144 million. “Ninety-eight percent of this verdict is economic damages required to care for Markell for the rest of her life. It’s $12 per hour, 24 hours per day, for 77 years,” Fieger said, plus lost earnings capacity starting in 2018, the year she would have graduated from college. The verdict also includes non-economic damages, capped at $738,000 by law. “It’s been an emotional, long time,” said Kimberly VanSlembrouck, mother of Markell VanSlembrouck. “It’s not about getting rich — it’s about helping a poor baby that didn’t ask for this.”

• Attorney Geoffrey N. Fieger

Isaiah was born with a severe brain injury after suffering 12 hours of fetal distress due to the negligence of the attending medical staff, who later mounted a cover-up. The medical malpractice verdict is the largest ever in Cook County, Ill., and will ensure Isaiah’s medical costs are covered for the rest of his life.

• Attorney Geoffrey N. Fieger

$30 million verdict- Hollins v Mt Sinai, et al., Court of Common Pleas, Cuyahoga County, Ohio, Case No. 484240 (Birth Trauma)

A Cuyahoga County jury held in favor of a brain-damaged 17-year-old boy and slammed a doctor and hospital with a $30 million medical malpractice verdict – the largest ever awarded in the county. Walter Hollins of Cleveland, who has the mental capacity of a 1-year-old, clapped when the verdict was announced, but couldn’t comprehend the historic event unfolding in Judge Robert Lawther’s courtroom. The panel of four men and four women decided in a 6-2 verdict that Dr. Ronald Jordan and the medical staff of the now-defunct Mt. Sinai Medical Center were negligent at the boy’s birth on Jan. 29, 1987. Witnesses testified that Harris waited for more than two hours to receive an emergency Cesarean section, during which time the oxygen flow to Walter’s brain was cut off. The majority of jurors found that the doctor and hospital staff shared responsibility for Walter’s injuries, including cerebral palsy and no use of his arms or legs. His condition is incurable. Attorney Geoffrey Fieger had asked the jury for $35 million in damages to pay for round-the-clock nursing care for Walter, future surgeries, lost earnings and pain and suffering. “If I were the defense, I don’t think I would have taken me on in the first place,” said Fieger, who called the circumstances of Walter’s birth some of the most horrific he had ever seen. The majority of the jurors agreed. “Although Mt. Sinai no longer exists, a $77 million insurance fund remains to be tapped for damages,” Fieger said.

• Attorney Geoffrey N. Fieger

Attorney Geoffrey Fieger announced that a Cook County Jury, in the courtroom of Judge Lorna E. Propes, awarded a verdict against Presence St. Joseph Hospital for $23.5 million on behalf of a brain-damaged child.

• Attorney Geoffrey N. Fieger