The Unusual Montana Wrongful Birth Lawsuit

From Salt Lake City, Utah to the East Coast, wrongful death, hiring a lawyer and drug injuries are often what people think of when it comes to medical malpractice. However, in February 2016, a woman in Bozeman, Montana lost a wrongful birth suit against a doctor and nurse practitioner regarding the birth of her daughter, who was born with cystic fibrosis.

The Case

Kerrie Evans has a now-5-year-old daughter who is suffering from the debilitating effects of cystic fibrosis. This disease not only fills the lungs with fluid, but also creates serious problems with the pancreas, intestines and liver. Individuals in Salt Lake City and elsewhere with cystic fibrosis typically are only expected to live between 40 and 50 years.

In the wrongful birth lawsuit and during trial testimony, Evans and her lawyer claimed that she was not properly informed about potential diseases that her child could have. They claimed that if Evans were informed, she would have aborted her daughter rather than have her suffer from a debilitating genetic disease.

However, the doctor argued that this was not the case, citing that Evans was handed reading material — as is common practice to give expectant women from Bozeman to Salt Lake City — that detailed the consequences of cystic fibrosis, such as early death. Evans admitted under oath that she didn’t read the pamphlet she was given and was therefore unaware of the complications, which include the potential for death.

The Verdict

Evans was calming wrongful birth damages that amounted to more than $14 million. This was to cover her pain and suffering. However, regardless of if she lives in Bozeman, Salt Lake City or on the West Coast, treatment for cystic fibrosis is expensive, so she also sought the cost of her daughter’s medical expenses. However, by the end of the trial, her lawyer had revised the claim to a little more than $2 million.

In the end, it only took the jurors about two hours to determine a verdict — this was no wrongful death case, after all — and Evans’ doctor and the office’s nurse practitioner were not found liable. A lawyer for the doctor’s office explained that Evans didn’t heed the warnings given and was trying to pass the blame on to anyone else.

Ryan Muir is a legal writer for Fusion 360, an SEO and content marketing agency. Information provided by Robert J Debry. Follow on Twitter.