On February 21, 2010, Paul Chicoine was admitted to a hospital emergency room in Bethpage with complaints of dizziness and vomiting. He was examined by a triage nurse and a physician, diagnosed with vertigo, dehydration and sinusitis and discharged.

About a week later, Mr. Chicoine, then 47 years old, sustained a stroke. He sued the doctor and the hospital claiming that they failed to obtain a full patient history and failed to properly diagnose him with a transient ischemic attack.

The Nassau County jury credited the plaintiff’s allegations and found the defendants liable for his injuries. The jury awarded damages as follows:

  • $1,800,000 for pain and suffering ($700,000 past – nine years, $1,100,000 future – 22 years )
  • $1,057,771 for loss of earnings ($393,275 past – five and a half years, $664,496 future – 8.6 years)
  • $458,991 for loss of pension retirement (13 years beginning at age 65 years)
  • $350,000 for loss of spousal services ($200,000 past – nine years, $150,000 future – 22 years)

The defendants appealed arguing that they were not at all liable and, alternatively, that the pain and suffering and loss of services awards were excessive and that the loss of earnings award was not proved with reasonable certainty and was predicated on speculative economic testimony.

In Chicoine v. Mendola (2d Dept. 2024), the appellate court affirmed both the liability and damages verdicts.

Here are the injury details:

  • left side weakness with spasms and pain, significant coordination and balance deficits, severe burning to left side of face, unable to control left arm movement and residual problem with eyes (including rotary nystagmus – abnormal eye movement)
  • 10 day hospitalization followed by three and a half weeks inpatient rehabilitation and home therapy for seven months
  • returned to work as a court officer in November 2010 but unable to return to any work after July 2013

The defense argued that, except for the eight months from the stroke until plaintiff returned to work, the lost earnings award was not established with reasonable certainty noting that it was only plaintiff himself who testified to a complete inability to work and that when he decided to stop work in 2013 it was not upon the advice of any treating physician.

Inside Information:

  • Plaintiff told ambulance personnel that he’d experienced left-sided numbness and weakness and garbled speech before he called 911. They noted that in their pre-hospital care report but the defendants claimed plaintiff did not tell them about these symptoms, he did not exhibit them in the ER and they were unaware of these symptoms during their treatment of Mr. Chicoine.
  • In his summation, plaintiff’s counsel asked the jury to award $3,750,000 for past pain and suffering damages plus $1,250,000 for the future.
  • Before his stroke, plaintiff was left handed; afterwards, he taught himself to write with his right hand.