Lack of interpreter costs $400,000
Now over the years we’ve all heard and been amazed by the stories; they originated in America in the 70’s and first started with the ambulance chasing Lawyers. Of course, since then, stories of ridiculous legal claims being upheld in US Courts continue to abound…how about the firm that was sued under health and safety legislation when a woman tripped on a child in the store…and the child was actually her own!
In a new case though, the height of folly must surely have been reached when a Jersey City Rheumatologist was fined a massive $400, 000 by a jury for not providing a translator. The case has proved sufficiently ludicrous for even many US lawyers to take note and an appeal by the unfortunate Doctor has been launched.
The facts of the case in outline are that when the deaf plaintiff went for treatment to the Rheumatologist in question, she requested that he provide, at his own expense, an ASL (American Sign Language) interpreter, in order that she might be better able to communicate. The Rheumatologist made it clear that he would be unable to do this as an ASL interpreter would cost somewhere in the region of $150 to $200 per visit, whereas, he only received $49 from State Medical insurances every time he treated her.
Over the period of the treatment (20 months) the client / patient relationship broke down because of this issue, but even though the plaintiff was told to seek treatment elsewhere, she returned to the defendant Rheumatologist for treatment several times under her own volition.
Some time after completing her treatment the litigant initiated the court proceedings that lead to the crippling imposition of the $400,000 fine against the defendant…one can only hope that his appeal doesn’t fall upon deaf ears.