Georgia Insurance Defense Lawyer Blog

Posted by Wm. Daniel Floyd

INSURANCE COVERAGE/UM STACKING: In cases of conflict between pre-printed and written portions of insurance policy, written portions will prevail. State Farm v. Staton, 286 Ga. 23, 685 S.E.2d 263 (2009)

Cecil Staton was involved in a serious automobile accident suffering serious injuries. The vehicle he was traveling in was owned by his employer, Smyth & Helwys, and insured by State Farm at the time of loss. The State Farm policy identified the “named insured” as the “first person named” on the declarations page. Smyth & Helwys was the first and only name listed on that page. Smyth & Helwys owned two other vehicles which were insured separately by State Farm, but which were not involved in the collision. These additional vehicle policies issued by State Farm also identified Smyth & Helwys as the sole named insured on the respective declarations pages.

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Posted by Kirsten Daughdril

In a landmark decision, the Georgia Supreme Court unanimously held that a statutory cap on non-economic damages in medical malpractice cases is unconstitutional.

The case of Atlanta Oculoplastic Surgery, P.C. v. Nestlehutt, 2010 Ga. LEXIS 272 (March 22, 2010) arose after the plaintiff suffered permanent disfigurement following cosmetic procedures. The plaintiff brought a medical malpractice suit against the health care provider seeking compensatory damages of medical expenses and non-economic damages for pain and suffering.

At trial, in addition to economic damages (future and past medical expenses), the jury awarded the non-economic damages of $900,000 for plaintiff’s pain and suffering. The award of non-economic damages in excess of $350,000 triggered O.C.G.A. § 51-13-1 which mandated that the non-economic damages award be reduced to $350,000. However, the plaintiff successfully argued to the trial court that the damages caps in O.C.G.A § 51-13-1 were unconstitutional.

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Posted by Susan J. Levy

Plaintiff’s decedent was arrested by the Pike County Sheriff’s Department for simple battery after an episode of domestic violence. At the Pike County Jail, officials determined that plaintiff's decedent, Brandon Gish, was suicidal. Because Pike County lacked appropriate staff and medical personnel to handle detainees with mental health problems, they decided to transfer Gish to the Clayton County Jail. On December 10, 2003, Deputy William Gilmer transported Gish to the Clayton County Jail in his marked patrol car. At the time of the transfer, Deputy Gilmer was aware that Gish was being transferred to Clayton County specifically because officials thought he might be suicidal. Deputy Gilmer handcuffed Gish behind his back, placed him in the rear of his patrol car, fastened Gish’s seatbelt and drove to the Clayton County Jail. The front and back seats of the patrol car were separated by a partition bolted into place with a sliding Plexiglas window. When the deputy opened the door to unbuckle Gish upon arrival at the Clayton County Jail, Deputy Gilmer saw that Gish had managed to maneuver his hands, while cuffed, to the front of his body and unbuckle his seatbelt himself.

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