$3 Million

While at home, a 31-year-old mother of two young children experienced the sudden onset of crippling pain in her lower back. She was rushed to the hospital via ambulance. The physician charted “lower back pain” and “pain radiates to the left gluteal fold, left hamstring, posterior aspect of left knee, left calf, left Achilles and left heel.” She was unable to stand up in her room. She was admitted to the hospital and prescribed pain medication. Unbeknownst to her healthcare providers, though, she was demonstrating the tell-tale signs and symptoms of “cauda equina syndrome”—a neurological emergency where a herniated disk is pressing down on the L5 nerve roots. If the pressure is not relieved within 48 hours after herniation, the impacted nerves will die. Sadly, that is exactly what happened in this case, leaving the mother permanently paralyzed and incontinent. After a week-long trial in Evansville, the jury returned a verdict in favor of our client and her husband for $3 million.