Congratulations to Linda Vogt Meagher

Congratulations to Linda Vogt Meagher, whose defense of a dental malpractice action led to the plaintiff dismissing the million-dollar case. Medical expenses alone were over $500,000. There were no caps on damages for pain and suffering. The case involved a 66-year-old woman who had been receiving an annual dose of Reclast IV injections, a bisphosphonate prescribed for osteoporosis, for several years. The warning on the medication states that invasive dental procedures should not be performed while taking the medication. Months after the defendant dentist extracted plaintiff’s teeth and placed dentures, Plaintiff was diagnosed with osteonecrosis of the jaw, one of the risks of taking bisphosphonates. The plaintiff had to have surgery to remove half of her jaw and reconstruction surgery. She never ate via mouth again and was disfigured from the surgery. Plaintiff filed the lawsuit contending that the dental work caused the osteonecrosis of the jaw and the damages. The dentist denied that claim and stated that plaintiff had a pre-existing tooth infection, which along with the use of bisphosphonate, caused the osteonecrosis of the jaw. At the deposition of plaintiff’s dental expert, Attorney Meagher got the expert to concede he was unaware of the pre-existing infection and was not knowledgeable about causation issues. That led to a motion for summary judgment on causation. The Court granted the motion as to the negligence claim, leaving only an informed consent claim, and making clear plaintiff lacked proof of causation.