Kurt D Lloyd

EDUCATION

IIT Chicago-Kent College of Law, Chicago, Illinois
Juris Doctorate, 1985

DePaul University, Chicago, Illinois
Bachelor of Arts with Honors in English, 1981

ADMITTED TO PRACTICE

Illinois State Bar, 1985

Florida State Bar, 1986

U.S. District Court, Trial Bar, 1988

PROFESSIONAL ASSOCIATIONS

American Board of Trial Advocates

Illinois Trial Lawyers Association(ITLA)

Co-Chair, Continuing Education Programs, 1995
Member, Medical Negligence Committee, 1990 to present
Member, Amicus Curae Committee, l999
Planning Chair, Medical Negligence Seminar, l996
Planning Chair, Medical Negligence Seminar, l997
Member, Constitutional Attack Committee, 1995

Trial Lawyer’s for Public Justice(TLPJ) l998 to present

American Bar Association

Illinois State Bar Association(ISBA)

LECTURER

"ACOG Bulletin No.163 and Related Defenses"
Illinois Trial Lawyers Association; Chicago, Illinois, December, 1999

"Jury Instructions"
Illinois Trial Lawyers Association; Chicago, Illinois, December, 1997

"Gatekeeper Liability: The Plaintiff Lawyer's Perspective"
Chicago Bar Association; Chicago, Illinois, April, 1997

"Deposition Preparation, Strategy and Techniques"
Illinois Trial Lawyers Association; Chicago, Illinois, February, 1997

"Obstetrics: Overcoming the Proximate Cause Defenses"
Illinois Trial Lawyers Association; Chicago, Illinois, December, 1996

"Damages Evidence in the Wake of the $500,000 Cap"
Chicago Bar Association; Chicago, Illinois, April, 1996

"The Role of the Primary Care Physician"
Chicago Bar Association; Chicago, Illinois, March, 1996

"Primary Care Physician Liability: New Responsibility Under Managed Care"
Illinois Trial Lawyers Association; Chicago, Illinois, April, 1996

"Medical Negligence Trials: The Opening Statement and Closing Argument"
Illinois Trial Lawyers Association; Chicago, Illinois, December, 1995

"Evidence: Proof in the Medical Negligence Case"
Illinois Trial Lawyers Association; Chicago, Illinois, December, 1994

"Changes in Illinois Evidence Laws"
Illinois Trial Lawyers Association; Chicago, Illinois, April 1994

AUTHOR

Co-Editor, Medical and Hospital Negligence, 2 Volumes, 2^nd Edition, 2000(in press)

"Closing Argument"
Medical Negligence Trial Notebook, 2^nd Edition, 1999

REPRESENTATIVE JURY VERDICTS/ SETTLEMENTS

Medical Negligence

Mr. Lloyd has prosecuted a number of delay in diagnosis of cancer cases in areas, such as breast cancer, lung cancer and skin cancer.

Greenblatt v. Poor, MD, Case No. 90 L 3786
Verdict: $1,195,000
Offer: $500,000

The plaintiffs who were the two middle-aged men, sued for the wrongful death of their mother, a sixty-eight year old widow, because a radiologist failed to diagnose her lung cancer based on a chest x-ray sixteen months before her death. The decedent learned of the misdiagnosis one month before her death.

Plaintiff was successful in retaining one of the world’s leading lung cancer specialists, Clifton Mountain, MD, Chief of Pulmonary Thoracic Surgery, MD Anderson Cancer Center, who testified that a person with a malignant lung tumor less than 3.0 cm in size has a seventy percent chance of survival with timely diagnosis and treatment.

This case represents one of the few jury verdicts in excess of one million dollars for a widowed woman over the age of sixty.

Crabtree v. Jones, MD Case No. 87L 26769 $500,000

The plaintiff, who was a thirty eight year old married, mother of two children saw Dr. William Jones, her gynecologist complaining that she had clear nipple discharge and an inverted nipple in her breast. No breast mass could be felt but an area of induration was noted. A mammogram performed for the complaint was negative. Nonetheless, a 4.0 cm malignant breast mass was found six months later and resulted in breast mastectomy.

The plaintiff alleged that, because mammograms miss fifteen percent of breast cancers present, Dr. Jones should have done a needle biopsy to the area of induration in the breast. Dr. Jones failure to biopsy caused the delay in diagnosis and forced a breast losing mastectomy instead of a breast conserving lumpectomy and increased the patient’s risk of recurrence, although she was cancer-free nearly seven years later.

Estate of Urbanski v. Lerner, MD, Case No. 87 L 21797 $1,500,000

The plaintiff sued for the wrongful death of his wife Patricia, a fifty-three year old waitress, alleging that she died from breast cancer because Dr. Marvin Lerner failed to recommend a routine annual screening mammogram to her after her fiftieth birthday. The plaintiff argued that a routine screening mammogram would have likely detected her asymptomatic breast cancer two years earlier when she could have been cured with treatment.

Estate of Baierle v. Matviuw, MD, Case No. 93 L 13366 $1,200,000

The plaintiff sued for the wrongful death of his wife, a forty-one year old homemaker and mother of a seven year old daughter, alleging that she died because Dr. William Matviuw, a gynecologist, did not recommend that she obtain a baseline screening mammogram before her fortieth birthday. In February, l992, the patient saw Dr. Matviuw for a routine check-up and her breast examination was negative. In September, l992, she saw an internist for heartburn who ordered a mammogram which detected a 3.0 cm malignant breast mass. Despite a radical mastectomy which revealed four positive lymph nodes, she died in October, 1993.

The plaintiff argued that a baseline screening mammogram at age forty would have likely detected her asymptomatic breast cancer one to two years earlier, when she could have been cured with treatment.

Estate of Rivett v. Danielson, MD, Case No. 96 L 16641 $750,000

The plaintiff sued for the pain and suffering and death of her daughter Dianne, a single thirty-seven year old working woman, alleging that surgeon Dr. Mark Danielson failed to perform a radiographically guided needle biopsy of microcalcifications detected on a mammogram in Dianne’s left breast.

In March 1991, Dianne underwent a screening mammogram which showed a group of five calcium deposits in the ten o’clock position of her left breast. Dr. Danielson believed that the deposits represented benign fibrocystic disease. One year later, a mammogram was repeated showing only three microcalcifications which Dr. Danielson believed had confirmed a benign cause for the original calcifications. Two years later, Dianne was diagnosed with advanced stage breast cancer.

Plaintiff successfully argued that the original microcalcifications always indicated breast cancer at a ninety five percent curable stage and that when the cancer progressed it destroyed some of the earlier calcium.

Plaintiff’s counsel was able to retain Laura Lieberman, MD, a leading breast cancer radiologist from Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center who had observed this type of microcalcification pattern progression which won the case.

Hahn v. Altman, MD, Case No. 96 L 8770 $500,000

The plaintiffs saw dermatologist Arthur Altman, MD for a small purple lesion on his left arm. Dr. Altman performed a biopsy which he interpreted as a benign basil cell carcinoma. Six years later, the plaintiff was diagnosed with advanced stage malignant melanoma of his left arm axillary node which had resulted from Dr. Altman’s failure to have his biopsy diagnosis confirmed by a pathologist. The plaintiff overcame the four year statute of limitations by arguing that Dr. Altman had fraudulently concealed his misdiagnosis when he told the plaintiff a pathologist had reviewed the biopsy results.

This settlement represents one of very cases to overcome the four year statute of repose limitation for filing a medical malpractice action in Illinois.

Mr. Lloyd has prosecuted many cases involving obstetrics and gynecology, including both maternal and fetal injuries.

American National Bank as guardian of Anthony Thomas,a minor v. Antony, MD and Upadhyaya, MD,
Verdict $9,697,000
Offer 200,000

The minor plaintiff’s mother was a member of Chicago HMO, a managed care insurance company which was owned by United Healthcare, and became pregnant with plaintiff Anthony. During the pregnancy, the mother developed gestational diabetes, a common complication which requires weekly fetal monitoring, twice weekly blood sugar testing and delivery by forty weeks. Instead, Dr. Upadhyaya who was the obstetrician chose to test blood sugars every other week and allowed the pregnancy to progress to forty-one weeks. When plaintiff’s mother was admitted to the hospital, Anthony was in fetal distress and, despite emergency cesarean section, he was born brain damaged.

Dr. Antony who was the primary care physician was required to review and approve the care plan under the HMO guidelines. Despite abnormally elevated blood sugars, the absence of fetal monitoring and the lack of a plan to admit the mother to the hospital by forty weeks, Dr. Antony did not discuss the obstetrical care with Dr. Upadydya.

This case represents the first Illinois jury verdict to hold the primary care physician responsible for the overall care of the patient. Dr. Upadhyaya settled by paying her full insurance policy limits immediately prior to trial.

American National Bank, Administrator for Estate of Moore,v. Wrona, MD
and St. Joseph’s Medical Center,
$2,475,000 Case No. 94 L 8479

The plaintiff, a six year old child filed suit for the wrongful death of his mother Melinda as a result of an infection to her episiotomy wound contracted at the time of delivery.

On July 6, l992, Melinda experienced a "hockey stick" tear to her episiotomy wound while giving vaginal birth to the minor plaintiff. The defendant Dr. Wrona repaired the wound and ordered a narcotic medication for pain in Melinda’s wound. Despite continued pain and an increased white blood cell count two days later on the morning of discharge, Dr. Wrona sent Melinda home. The discharge nurse also did not report to Dr. Wrona that Melinda’s pulse had increased from 80, when Dr. Wrona last saw her, to 112 at the time of discharge.

Melinda was re-admitted to the hospital four days later with necrotizing fascitis— a rare flesh eating infection--- which had spread beyond her original delivery wound as a result of a delay in diagnosis. Despite radical surgical intervention, Melinda died from her infection several days later at the age of twenty leaving the minor plaintiff as her sole surviving heir.

The plaintiff alleged that Dr. Wrona and the discharge nurse each should have noted signs and symptoms of a wound infection warranting an examination for infection and a forty-eight hour follow-up visit.

The plaintiff’s counsel successfully retained a high risk obstetrician with a specialty in maternal infections who testified to the negligence of the defendants and demonstrated that, even though the death rate for this infection was 70%, Melinda should have survived with timely, appropriate treatment.

Baker, a minor v. Vantha Sastry, MD, $625,000

The minor plaintiff suffered a partially paralyzed, disfigured arm when the defendant obstetrician failed to use proper manuevers to deliver him through the birth canal. Although the obstetrical records were silent on the events that occurred, plaintiff’s counsel was able to reconstruct the likely events and demonstrated that excessive pulling on the minor plaintiff’s neck damaged his nerves to his arm.

Estate of Davis, a minor v. Toig, MD and Northwestern Memorial Hospital $1,300,000

The plaintiffs filed suit for the injury and wrongful death to their newborn son Stephen who died from herpes viral encephalopathy which was contracted at birth. At birth, the defendant obstetrician Randall Toig and hospital nurses failed to advise Stephen’s pediatricians that his mother had a history of herpes infection so that he could be examined and tested for signs and symptoms of herpes infection. In a newborn, the herpes virus can attack the central nervous system and destroy it because the infant has no immunity to the virus. The drug acyclovir if given as a precaution can halt the attack of the virus on the nervous system. Stephen was stricken with the virus and was in a vegatative state for twenty months before he died.

Even though the defense claimed that there was no evidence of active herpes virus in the mother, plaintiff was able to show a 25% rate of asymptomatic viral shedding in mothers who had any history of the disease.

Jacobs v. Kobler, MD , Case No. 93 L 40 $900,000

The plaintiff gave vaginal birth to a healthy baby boy and experienced a third degree tear to her rectal sphincter muscle that became infected. After her discharge home developed an infection which evolved into life threatening sepsis and necrosis and left the plaintiff has with partial rectal incontinence and scarring to her vaginal area. Rectal tears and subsequent wound infection are a recognized complication of vaginal delivery. However, the plaintiff successfully proved that defendant William Kobler, a family practitioner, performed an incomplete surgical repair of her tear after delivery which allowed her wound to become infected.

Mr. Lloyd has prosecuted a number of surgical and anesthesia cases.

Estate of Valerie Morris v. University of Chicago Hospitals, Case No. 93 L $8,000,000

The three surviving children of Valerie Morris filed suit for the personal injury and wrongful death of their mother.

In August, l982, Valerie successfully underwent surgery to remove an abdominal abscess. After surgery, she developed swelling in both her legs. The surgeons who worked for the defendant hospital ordered a PRG, a non-invasive vascular test, which is used to rule out blood clots in the legs as the cause of the swelling. The PRG was interpreted and reported as negative and the surgeons then assumed her swelling was caused by excess fluid administered during surgery.

Unexplainably, Valerie was found in respiratory/cardiac arrest on the floor of her hospital room four days after surgery. Despite resuscitation, Valerie suffered brain damage and lived in a vegatative state for the next nine years before she died in l991. The cause of her arrest was not known.

In l994, plaintiff’s counsel was asked to investigate the cause of Valerie’s arrest. After successfully retaining the inventor of the PRG test, plaintiff’s counsel learned that the PRG test had been misinterpreted as negative and, in fact, demonstrated evidence of a blood clot in Valerie’s pelvis which had dislodged and flowed to her heart causing her heart to stop beating before it was ejected into her lung.

The plaintiff’s counsel was then able to retain the Chief of Radiology at Harvard University, a nationally recognized authority in pulmonary blood clots, who was able to review Valerie’s post-arrest chest x-rays and determine evidence of a blood clot episode.