Rosales v. The Northeast Community Clinic CA2/2
After suffering a late-term miscarriage, the fetus’s mother and father sued the mother’s treating physicians and the clinic employing them. The parents’ complaint alleged a single claim, but was murky about what that claim was. The trial court construed the claim solely as one for wrongful death and granted judgment on the pleadings (because wrongful death of a fetus is not a viable claim under California law). Mother has appealed. Because a mother’s emotional distress is a “patently obvious” consequence of medical malpractice leading to the death of a late-term fetus or a stillborn child (Burgess v. Superior Court (1992) 2 Cal.4th 1064, 1080 (Burgess)), we must reasonably infer that the negligent care of the mother leading to the death of the late-term fetus caused mother to suffer emotional distress; as such, her complaint validly states a claim for medical malpractice. Accordingly, we reverse and remand for further proceedings.
Comments on Rosales v. The Northeast Community Clinic CA2/2