Caitlin Huff was transported from Georgetown Community Hospital to University of Kentucky (“UK”) in May 2022 because she exhibited symptoms requiring a higher level of care than was available at Georgetown Community Hospital. She had difficulty walking, had severe back pain and leg numbness, and problems with urinary retention. She was seen at UK by numerous medical providers and specialists over the next 24 hours and eventually underwent surgery. She was ultimately determined to be permanently paralyzed. Caitlin filed a Kentucky medical malpractice law suit against UK and more than 20 physicians, health care providers, and administrators. UK filed a motion to dismiss as their first responsive pleading, citing governmental immunity grounds. The circuit court denied UK’s motion to dismiss after which UK appealed.
The Commonwealth of Kentucky Court of Appeals stated in it unpublished November 22, 2024 Opinion: “the circuit court held that the underlying question in Withers–of whether UK is entitled to immunity –was conceded by the party challenging immunity in that case. Thus, the circuit court held, it was only in dicta that the plurality of the Supreme Court found that the university hospital operations were entitled to immunity. We cannot agree with that assessment when the Court so clearly stated the issue before it. Dicta is a judicial comment or statement that is unnecessary to the decision in the case and therefore not precedential, although it may be persuasive … The Supreme Court, in Branham and multiple cases in the past 27 years, has thus far declined to revisit Withers. This Court and the vast majority of circuit courts have followed that binding precedent … although lower courts are permitted to express a disagreement with the current state of the law, a circuit court abuses its discretion when it fails to follow applicable precedent. Armstrong v. Armstrong, 34 S.W.3d 83, 87(Ky. App. 2000). Similarly, this Court is not permitted to ignore Supreme Court precedent in order to force the High Court’s hand. Finally, it is not simply the precedent of Withers, but more than 50 other opinions of this Court and the Supreme Court since 1997, that dictate our action today … Circuit courts across the Commonwealth have similarly adhered to this precedent for more than a decade. We conclude that this Court and the lower courts must continue to follow Withers, unless the Supreme Court tells us otherwise.”
The Kentucky appellate court therefore reversed the circuit court.
Source University of Kentucky v. Huff, No. 2023-CA-1423-MR.
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