$11 Million Settlement for Child with Spastic Quadriplegic Cerebral Palsy from HIE

ABC Law Centers attorneys Jesse Reiter, Anne Randall, and James McCullen recovered $11 million in a birth injury settlement for a child with physical and cognitive impairments.

This case involved negligence on the part of the nursing, midwifery, and obstetrician attending management of the second stage of labor. The plaintiff mother’s daughter was diagnosed with spastic quadriplegic cerebral palsy from HIE and will require assistance for the rest of her life.  

Plaintiff mother was a healthy young woman with her first, low risk pregnancy. She was admitted for induction of labor at 41 weeks due to findings of low amniotic fluid. The plan was for management of the delivery by the midwife. 

Plaintiff mother was given Cytotec and Pitocin to induce labor. The labor progressed without any issues until the pushing phase. During pushing, the monitor showed signs of increased uterine tone and decreased rest between contractions. The unborn baby showed signs of not tolerating labor with repeated and increasing decelerations of the fetal heart rate. Notwithstanding these signs, Pitocin was continued. 

Soon, the fetal monitor reflected difficulty in graphing fetal heart tones. A fetal scalp electrode was obtained, but part of the equipment was missing, and the device could not be used. The unborn baby showed continuing signs of not tolerating labor by developing tachycardia. She was showing signs of not getting enough oxygen. Pitocin should have been stopped, but was continued. Plaintiff mother was instructed to continue pushing, which should have been modified or stopped. 

When the unborn baby’s heart rate dropped, the obstetrician was contacted. A vacuum delivery was performed. Plaintiff minor was born severely depressed and not breathing. She did not begin breathing on her own until seven minutes of life. 

She was diagnosed with hypoxic ischemic encephalopathy (HIE), a brain injury from not getting enough oxygen. She underwent hypothermic therapy. Hypothermia (cooling) therapy is a treatment only used for HIE. 

The minor has been diagnosed with spastic quadriplegic cerebral palsy and speech deficits, but has a normal IQ. She will require assistance for the rest of her life.

ABC Law Centers has exclusively advocated on behalf of neurologically injured children for over 25 years. President and founder, Jesse Reiter, has won numerous awards for his representation of injured children and has been recognized for his leadership by his peers since serving as past president of the Michigan Association for Justice and past chair of the Birth Trauma Litigation Group, among other executive positions in prestigious legal groups.

Attorneys Anne Randall and James McCullen have been recognized by their peers for their outstanding work in birth injury medical malpractice. Along with Reiter, they have been recognized in Best Lawyers in America by U.S. News & World Report. Reiter and Randall have both been included in Michigan Super Lawyers, while McCullen has been highlighted in Michigan Super Lawyers – Rising Stars.