Our Senior Partner Robert Conason and our Partner Rhonda Kay are contributing authors of Warren’s Negligence in the New York Courts, Second Edition.
Warren’s Negligence in the New York Courts has been a trusted authority for negligence attorneys practicing in New York for more than 60 years. It is one of the most thorough New York-specific treatises covering the key legal aspects of New York negligence law and important procedural matters for both plaintiff and defense attorneys.
FAILURE TO PROPERLY TREAT EXTRAVASATION OF DOXORUBICIN (Adriamycin)
By: Anthony H. Gair;
New York medical malpractice attorney elaborates on the extravasation of intravenously administered chemotherapeutic agents into the subcutaneous tissue of cancer patients undergoing chemotherapy is a known risk of treatment. The potential gravity of injury caused by extravasation is dependent upon the type of drug which extravasates. The most destructive extravasation injuries are those caused by anti-tumor drugs which bind to deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA), such as Doxorubicin, (Adriamycin) which has been a primary part of chemotherapeutic regimes since the late 1960’s. Extravasation of chemotherapeutic agents which bind to nucleic acids can lead to a prolonged course of injury. The most clinical experience has been derived from the extravasation of Doxorubicin. Rudolph, R, Larson, D. Etiology and Treatment of Chemotherapeutic Agent Extravasation Injuries: A Review. J. Clin. Oncol, 1987; 5:1116-1126. Doxorubicin causes severe progressive tissue necrosis that may involve muscles and tendons. Since no specific antidote has been developed, the recommended treatment of Doxorubicin extravasation is early excission of all infiltrated tissue. Dahlstrom, KK, Chenoufi, HL, Daujard, S. Fluorescene microscopic demonstration and demarcation of Doxorubicin extravasation. Experimental and Clinical studies. Cancer, 1990 Apr. 15; 65(8): 1722-1726.
Wednesday, June 4, 2008
In 2006, our partner, Rhonda E. Kay, authored her first book entitled LexisNexis AnswerGuide New York Negligence. Republished each year with updated information, this answerguide is a practical and concise guide focusing on the key legal and procedural issues that arise in six of the major classes of cases handled by the New York negligence practitioner: Motor Vehicle Accidents, Premises Liability, Construction Accidents, Products Liability, Governmental Liability and Medical Malpractice. In addition to providing a substantive overview of the law, this single volume publication offers valuable practical insights, task-oriented checklists and annually updated case citations. This answerguide is published by, and available through, LexisNexis Matthew Bender.
Trial Advocacy
Thursday, May 29, 2008 By Ben Rubinowitz and Evan Torgan”
Ben Rubinowitz, a partner at Gair, Gair, Conason, Rubinowitz, Bloom, Hershenhorn, Steigman & Mackauf and Evan Torgan, a member of Torgan & Cooper, write that “in any personal injury case, effective cross-examination is essential to win the battle of medical experts. However, many lawyers don’t prepare their examination of the opposing expert until the night before the actual cross takes place. The well-prepared lawyer knows better – a winning cross is prepared months in advance of trial.”
It is doubtful the the U.S. Dept of Justice will Prosecute the New York City Police Officers who shot and killed Sean Bell under 18 U.S.C. Section 242 for willfully violating his constitutional rights. The Guidelines in the U.S. Attorney’s manual governing Dual and Successive Prosecutions known as the Petite Policy require that three substantive prerequisites be satisfied;
1. The matter must involve a substantial Federal interest.
2. The prior prosecution must have left that interest demonstrably unvindicated.
A Study To End the Frivolous Malpractice Lawsuit Myth
This article written by our partner Jeffrey B. Bloom in 2006 is just as relevant today as it was then.
“Last week, within days of the U.S. Senate performing its annual rite of taking up and then denying cloture to a bill to limit the rights of medical malpractice victims and cap damages in medical malpractice cases, a study was released which clearly demonstrates that our current tort system is working quite well in ensuring that the vast majority of cases are valid claims and that frivolous or non-meritorious malpractice cases are rarely brought and hardly ever result in damages being unjustly paid.
From USA Today –
Michael Dowd, center and Ben Rubinowitz, attorneys for the plaintiffs in $150 million lawsuit against Diocese of Rockville Centre, embrace after the jury returned a verdict in their favor, Friday, May 18, 2007 in Mineola, N.Y.. Awarding their clients a combined a combined $11.4 million in damages, the jury found the nation’s sixth-largest Roman Catholic diocese and a church parish negligent in a case involving a youth minister who repeatedly raped and sodomized teenagers in his care over several years. Kevin McNiff, the attorney representing the Diocese of Rockville Centre, is seen at left rear.
NEW YORK (AP) – Building department officials gathered for an emergency safety summit Saturday after the city’s second deadly crane collapse in recent weeks, while lawmakers warned of dangers in New York’s building boom – especially the 250 cranes still up in the sky.
“I don’t want to hear from more constituents that they’re afraid to sit on their couches,” City Council member Jessica Lappin said at a news conference near the site of the accident on Manhattan’s Upper East Side.
She joined Manhattan Borough President Scott Stringer, who called on the city to treat rising buildings as “a public safety crisis,” with the police and fire departments forming a task force with investigators and other experts to keep close watch on all construction.
By: Anthony H. Gair and Howard S. Hershenhorn Gair Gair Conason Steigman&Mackauf
I. THE STARTING POINT
In order to maximize the eventual recovery on behalf of a plaintiff, a solid foundation supporting the damages claimed must be built. The construction of this foundation begins at the first interview with the plaintiff.
By Anthony H. Gair, Gair Gair Conason Steigman Mackauf Bloom&Rubinowitz
The popliteal artery is the major source of blood supply to the lower leg. The femoral artery becomes the popliteal artery as it passes through the hiatus of the adductor magnus muscle and enters the popliteal fossa. It generally ends at the inferior border of the popliteus muscle where it divides into the anterior and posterior tibial arteries. It lies directly behind the posterior horn of the lateral meniscus.1 Injuries to the popliteal artery during anterior cruciate ligament reconstruction or arthroscopic meniscectomy are extremely rare.2 The popliteal artery is closely related to the posterior capsule of the knee joint, being separated from it only by a small amount of fat. The artery also kinks forward when the knee is flexed, placing it close to the posterior horn of the medial meniscus. It is thus imperative that surgery in the posterior aspects of the knee is performed under direct visualization. If an arterial injury is suspected following surgery of the knee an opinion from a vascular surgeon should be sought urgently.
As a New York medical malpractice attorney we understand the delayed recognition of a popliteal artery lesion is a major cause of amputation of the affected extremity. Further, true spasm of the popliteal artery is rare. It is thus dangerous to diagnose arterial spasms since in reality thrombosis is usually present. It is further, axiomatic that the absence of pulses in an extremity is due to arterial injury until proven otherwise. Additionally, compartment syndrome may accompany vascular injury secondary to prolonged ischemia, venous injury or partial laceration to the artery with bleeding into the compartments.
New York Personal Injury Attorneys Blog