David Schreiber and Mark McAndrew Obtain Summary Judgment in Rockland County Supreme Court

Partner, David Schreiber, and Senior Trial Partner, Mark McAndrew, obtained summary judgment in Rockland County Supreme Court on behalf of VLMM client, an orthopedic surgeon.

Plaintiff alleged that our client deviated from accepted standards of care in his performance of a knee component revision surgery in a patient with the history of a prior total knee replacement that developed subluxation of the Patella component. Plaintiff claimed that improper surgery was performed resulting in tibial malrotation and the need for further revision surgery. 

 We filed a summary judgment motion on behalf of our client with expert support opining there was no deviation from the standards of care. Moreover, based on a review of the imaging studies our expert concluded in support of summary judgment that tibial rotation had no causal relation to the surgery in question. 

 Plaintiff’s counsel opposed with expert support arguing that the components were improperly sized causing laxity of the ligaments which was not recognized by our client at any point. In reply, we argued that plaintiff’s expert was testifying outside of his surgical specialty without adequate foundational basis as to the familiarity of the standard of care as it relates to component revision surgeries in knee replacements, failed to address in non-conclusory terms how the performance of the component revision was improper and inadequately addressed defense contentions on proximate causation. 

 The court, in rendering its decision, agreed with our argument that the matter must be dismissed since plaintiff failed to rebut our client’s prima facie showing of entitlement to summary judgment on issues of standard of care and proximate causation. The court further accepted our argument that plaintiff’s expert was not competent to render an opinion because he was rendering an opinion outside of his specialty without adequate foundation, which was improper.