In 2005 Governor Blunt passed tort "reform" which included caps on non-economic damages in Missouri medical malpractice lawsuits. See "Limits on Medical Malpractice Awards Constitutional?" for more information on the damage caps in Missouri.
The Plaintiff's bar has been trying to get a case to the Supreme Court so that the constitutionality of the damage caps could be finally determined. Almost 2 years ago, on January 14, 2010, the Klotz case was argued before the Supreme Court and we all hoped that would determine the caps issue, however, the Supreme Court was able to resolve the issues on appeal without getting to the constitutionality of the Med Mal damage caps. See Article about the 2010 Klotz case: "Missouri Supreme Court Hears Constitutionality of Missouri Medical Malpractice Non-Economic Damage Caps"
Today, the Court was able to reach the arguments and will likely make a ruling on the constitutionality of the damage caps. However, the caps being argued are the caps under the old law prior to 2005, however, a decision that the old caps are unconstitutional will most likely mean the caps under the new 2005 law are unconstitutional as well. The case is Ronald Sanders v. Iftekhar Agmed, MD, et al and the summary of the case is posted on the Supreme Court website with links to the briefs. See Constitutional validity of medical malpractice non-economic damages cap. Currently a few cases are being prepared to go to the Supreme Court on the caps issue under the new law.
The main constitutional challenge to the damage caps is that the tort "reform" law violated the right to a trial by jury. If the legislature imposes caps that inherently invades an individual's right to have a jury determine the facts of their case, damages being a major fact for a jury to determine. Each case is fact specific and an arbitrary cap imposed by the legislature absolutely violated the right to trial by jury. For detail about the right to a trial by jury argument see the briefs in the cases above and see: Personal Injury Lawyers File a Motion to Strike Affirmative Defenses in Missouri Medical Malpractice Lawsuit
Typically, the Supreme Court will take at least a few weeks if not a few months to publish their decision about today's case. This decision is absolutely crucial and very historic for our state and will have a major impact on individual rights in this state.
