Law360, New York (March 2016, ) — A New Jersey doctor escaped most of the claims brought against him in federal court by a patient who accused him of medical malpractice after devices implanted in her spine failed, but he’s still facing negligence charges in the heavily trimmed case.
U.S. District Judge Noel L. Hillman granted Dr. Rahul V. Shah summary judgment on claims of lack of informed consent, battery, fraudulent concealment and violations of the New Jersey Product Liability Act, finding that the patient, Maria Mendez, didn’t back up her allegations with enough evidence. As the negligence claim is the only one remaining, Mendez may not seek punitive damages, Judge Hillman said.
Mendez, while suffering from chronic back pain, sought treatment from Shah and underwent surgery in March 2011, a procedure in which Medtronic brand devices were implanted into her spine. After experiencing increasing pain for several weeks afterward, Mendez learned that some of the devices had moved and some of the hardware had failed. Shah performed another operation in May of that year in an effort to fix the problem.