Emma McDougald et al., Respondents, v. Sara Garber et al., Appellants.

"The Comatose Sufferer"

Should courts be willing to grant awards for nonpecuniary damages?

During a C-section and tubal ligation, plaintiff suffered oxygen deprivation which resulted in severe brain damage and left her in a permanent coma. After the jury returned separate awards for "pain and suffering" and "loss of the pleasures and pursuits of life", the trial judge combined both of the awards into a single, smaller award.

New York Court of Appeals

73 N.Y.2d 246

1989-02-21

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