Professional Negligence Law Reporter

The wife of William Lee, a 41-year-old father of young children, found him unconscious in the middle of the night. Lee was rushed to Westchester Medical Center, where he underwent a head CT scan and head and neck CTA. Two second-year residents interpreted the tests as normal. Over an hour later, one of the residents contacted an attending physician, who was unable to view the tests due to a software problem. An experienced radiologist later diagnosed a basilar stroke, and Lee underwent a thrombectomy. Nevertheless, he suffered significant brain damage, resulting in severe short-term memory loss and impaired judgment. He now receives 24-hour treatment from a residential brain injury center located hours away from his family.

Lee’s wife sued Westchester County Health Care Corp., alleging that inexperienced on-call physicians were responsible for a three-hour delay in removing a clot from Lee’s basilar artery. The plaintiff asserted that the CTA clearly showed blockage of Lee’s basilar artery. Suit did not claim past lost income.

The jury awarded approximately $120 million. The parties reached a confidential postverdict settlement.

Citation: Lee v. Westchester Cnty. Health Care Corp., 50914/2020 (N.Y. Sup. Ct. Westchester Cnty. Nov. 30, 2023).

Plaintiff counsel: AAJ members Jeffrey B. Bloom, Ben Rubinowitz, and Richard Steigman, all of New York City.

Plaintiff expert: Isaac Silberman, neurology, Mill Valley, Calif.

Defense expert: Alan Segal, radiology, New York City.