Hulslander and DeBernardis Win Dismissal of alleged Sex Abuse/Medical Malpractice Case

Kevin Hulslander and Tom DeBernardis secured dismissal of a medical malpractice lawsuit in which plaintiff alleged the defendant physician assistant psychologically harmed her by engaging in a sexual relationship and wrongly prescribing her prescription medication.  The defendant was criminally charged with sex-related offenses before being acquitted during the pendency of the lawsuit.  After the acquittal, Hulslander and DeBernardis aggressively pursued discovery and a deposition of the plaintiff.  Despite numerous attempts to complete discovery and secure plaintiff’s deposition, prompting multiple Court Orders directing plaintiff to comply, plaintiff continued to disregard her discovery obligations and failed to sit for a deposition.  Defendant moved to dismiss the complaint based upon plaintiff’s noncompliance with discovery and neglect of multiple Court Orders, chronicling plaintiff’s repeated delinquency and refusal to submit to a deposition.  The Court determined plaintiff’s noncompliance was willful and contumacious warranting the severe sanction of dismissal.  Steuben County Supreme Court Justice Jason Cook granted defendant’s motion and dismissed plaintiff’s complaint in its entirety.