Keith Hebeisen, partner at Clifford Law Offices, obtained a $6.35 million verdict on June 26, 2024, on behalf of a west suburban man who had a heart transplant following undiagnosed coronary ischemia. The patient’s wife also was a plaintiff in the lawsuit.
For more than six months, Edgardo Lopez, 56, saw his physician, Dr. Peter Yoon, who failed to undertake proper testing that would have discovered Lopez’s heart condition despite initial tests that indicated further medical testing was required in March 2019. Seven months after initial tests, Lopez was taken to the emergency room of a local hospital, where it was found he was in cardiac shock. The only way experts were able to save his life required a heart transplant that shortens a person’s life. Had it been discovered earlier, bypass surgery would have been a possible alternative.
“The negligence that occurred here clearly was avoidable and the jury understood that,” Hebeisen said following the verdict. “This man relied upon his doctor to do what was necessary, having been his physician and familiar with this patient for years. He neglected to do the right thing and now Mr. Lopez and his wife are left to suffer for the rest of their lives.”
The verdict was against Dr. Yoon and the DuPage Medical Group. The case was given to the jury Thursday who deliberated for nearly two days before reaching the verdict before Judge Karen L. O’Malley at the Daley Center.
The jury decided that Lopez is to receive $3.85 million, and $2.5 million was awarded to his wife, Jordana Arzadon, for loss of society and companionship.
Courtney Berlin, associate at the firm, assisted at trial.
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