LITTLE ROCK, Ark. (Legal Newsline) - Out-of-state lawyers had no authority to file a notice of a medical malpractice lawsuit in Arkansas, a state appeals court ruled.
The court's April 17 ruling affirms a victory for St. Bernards Hospital and other health care entities who argued Janet Galvan's lawsuit came after the two-year statute of limitations.
Attorneys from Michigan not licensed to practice in Arkansas prepared and served a notice on the defendants on March 1, 2022, almost two years after Galvan underwent surgery at St. Bernards.
She alleged defendants failed to diagnose a gastric leak on March 5, 2020. Her actual lawsuit came more than two years later - May 26, 2022 - but she argued the notice by the Michigan lawyers tolled the statute of limitations.
"We are not persuaded," Judge Stephanie Potter Barrett wrote. "It is clear that the Michigan attorneys were not license to practice law in this state and were representing the interests of Galvan in the preparation and service of the Notice.
"We find that by preparing and serving the Notice, they submitted themselves to the jurisdiction of the Arkansas court because the Notice was intended to fulfill the requirements of (Arkansas law) and toll the statute of limitations."
The Michigan lawyers needed to obtain pro hac vice status, the decision says.
The decision affirms Craighead County Circuit Court Judge Richard Lusby's decision to grant the defendants' motion to dismiss.