Professional Negligence Law Reporter

Willis v. Jones, No. 2014CV02070 (Ga. St. Ct. Clayton Cnty. Sept. 25, 2018).

Doe, 4, went to Life Cycle OB/GYN to undergo a circumcision. MelissaJones, a certified nurse midwife, performed the procedure using a Mogen clamp while Doe was placed in the supine position on the procedure table. Jones amputated the head of Doe’s penis during the circumcision. She called obstetrician Brian Register and the clinic’s owner, Anne Sigouin, who advised her to call Doe’s pediatrician, Abigail Kamishlian. She advised Doe’s mother to take her child home and go to an emergency room if Doe’s bleeding continued.

Doe has undergone several surgeries to address the functional and cosmetic damage to his penis. Doe’s mother, individually and on his behalf, sued Jones, Sigouin and Life Cycle OB/GYN, Register, and Kamishlian and her practice, alleging negligent performance of the circumcision; failure to appropriately respond to Doe’s injury or refer him for an immediate consultation; and negligent hiring, retention, training, and supervision. The plaintiffs claimed that none of the defendants had informed Doe’s mother that the amputated tip of his penis was stored in the facility’s refrigerator and could have been timely reattached by a pediatric surgeon. The jury awarded approximately $31 million.

Plaintiff counsel: AAJ member C. Neal Pope, AAJ member Michael J. Blakely, AAJ member Jay Hirsch, AAJ member Kimberly Johnson, Caroline McGlamry, Courtney Mohammadi, and AAJ member Jonathan Johnson, all of Atlanta.