On September 1, 2022, Rani Kulkarni and John Barker secured summary judgment in favor of their surgeon client in Supreme Court, Nassau County. Plaintiff alleged medical malpractice regarding the care and treatment surrounding the plaintiff’s bilateral mastectomy and breast reconstruction performed by co-defendant practitioner and the surgeon client, as well as postoperative care which the plaintiff claimed led to breast implant failure. The VBPNP team argued that there were no viable claims against the surgeon. Specifically, the VBPNP team established that the client did not deviate from accepted practice, that the care rendered was not a proximate cause of plaintiff’s alleged injuries, and that plaintiff’s lack of informed consent claim failed because the surgeon had clearly explained the risks, benefits and alternatives to the procedure with the plaintiff.
The Court agreed finding that the record was devoid of any evidence to substantiate plaintiff’s theories of liability, thus averting the need for the client to continue with litigation and risk reputational exposure.