Dallas County Jury Awards $17.5 Million

Yes, there are still medical malpractice lawsuits in Texas. It just requires an incredibly serious case. A Dallas County jury last week decided such a case, awarding $17.5 million to a former maintenance man for a North Dallas apartment complex who lost his arms and legs from a staph infection. Obviously, this is just an awful case.

This case involved a staph infection called methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA), a strain of staph that’s resistant to the broad-spectrum antibiotics that are used to treat infections. In this case, the doctor gave the patient eight antibiotics but failed to give the one drug that would have treated for MRSA. The Plaintiff went into septic shock, causing infection and gangrene, necessitating the removal of both arms below his elbows and both legs below his knees.

The post medical malpractice cap award is approximately $7.5 million.