Insurance Law: Medical-Malpractice Policy-Liability-Limit Clause-‘Medical Occurrence’

Where a mother and child, who were allegedly injured during delivery, each brought claims against a doctor that were resolved through a confidential settlement agreement, and the doctor’s insurer argued that the plaintiffs’ claims were subject to a single liability limit because their claims arose from the same medical occurrence, the judgment for the insurer is reversed and vacated and judgment is entered for the plaintiffs because the doctor’s negligent acts and omissions in providing medical treatment to the mother prior to the delivery were a separate medical occurrence from the negligence of the doctor in treating the child following the delivery.

Judgment is reversed.

Patty v. Missouri Prof’ls Mut. Physicians Prof’l Indem. Ass’n (MLW No. 73120/Case No. ED106747 – 20 pages) (Missouri Court of Appeals, Eastern District, Quigless, J.) Appealed from circuit court, St. Louis County, McShane, J. (Maurice B. Graham, M. Graham Dobbs and Gretchen Garrison for appellant) (Ryan J. Gavin, Mandy J. Kamykowski and Michael C. Schroeder for respondent).