ostensible agency Archives - Medical Malpractice Lawyers

Michigan Appellate Court Revives Ostensible Agency Claim Against Hospital In Medical Malpractice Case

October 18, 2026

Ostensible Agency In general, a hospital is not vicariously liable for the negligence of a physician who is an independent contractor and merely uses the hospital’s facilities to render treatment to his patients. A hospital can, however, be liable for the acts of an independent contractor if he or[...]

Michigan Supreme Court Revives Medical Malpractice Case Against Hospital Alleging Ostensible Agency

August 27, 2025

The Michigan Supreme Court had stated in a prior case: “when a patient presents for treatment at a hospital emergency room and is treated during their hospital stay by a doctor with whom they have no prior relationship, a belief that the doctor is the hospital’s agent is reasonable unless th[...]

Michigan Appellate Court Rules Genuine Issue Whether OBGYN Was Ostensible Agent Of Hospital

January 23, 2025

In the November 19, 2024 Per Curiam of the State of Michigan Court of Appeals, the issue discussed in a medical malpractice case involving the alleged injuries suffered by a patient as a result of the alleged medical negligence of an OBGYN was whether codefendant, Dr. Alfred K. Bediako, M.D., was an[...]

Michigan Appellate Court Holds ICU Physician Could Be Found To Be Ostensible Agent Of Hospital In Medical Malpractice Case

June 24, 2024

In 2018, the decedent began experiencing pain in his left knee. After consultation with his orthopedic doctor, Dr. Paul Drouillard, the decedent was scheduled to have a left total knee replacement surgery on February 11, 2019, at Garden City Hospital. Dr. Drouillard successfully performed the surger[...]

Michigan Appellate Court Holds Hospital Not Liable For ER Malpractice Under Ostensible Agency Theory

March 23, 2024

Hospital Liability For Medical Malpractice A hospital may be 1) directly liable for malpractice, through claims of negligence in supervision of staff physicians as well as selection and retention of medical staff, or 2) vicariously liable for the negligence of its agents. Generally speaking, a hospi[...]

Michigan Appellate Court Holds No Evidence Doctors Who Treated Patient In Hospital Were Ostensible Agents Of The Hospital

September 18, 2023

To establish a claim of ostensible agency, a plaintiff must show that the plaintiff reasonably believed in the putative agent’s authority generated by some act or omission of the putative principal, and that the plaintiff’s own negligence did not contribute to any misapprehension. In the case th[...]

Recoverable Damages In Negligent Reproductive Health Care Cases

California Appellate Court Affirms Summary Judgment Granted To Hospital On Ostensible Agency Theory

October 8, 2022

Court Affirms Summary Judgment Granted To Hospital On Ostensible Agency Theory: Elisa Magallanes de Valle brought a medical malpractice action against Dr. Rebecca Brock (her personal treating physician), Golden Valley Health Centers, and Doctors Medical Center of Modesto (“DMC”), after s[...]

California Appellate Court Holds Hospital Not Vicariously Liable For Alleged Medical Negligence Of On-Call Physicians

May 18, 2019

The Court of Appeal, Fourth Appellate District, Division One, State of California (“California Appellate Court”) held in its unpublished opinion filed on April 15, 2019 “the Hospital could not be vicariously liable for any negligence by the on-call physicians because the physicians[...]

Nevada Supreme Court Rules Hospital May Be Liable For Physician’s Medical Negligence Under Theory Of Ostensible Agency

January 7, 2018

The Supreme Court of the State of Nevada (“Nevada Supreme Court”) held in its opinion filed on December 28, 2017 that while the general rule of vicarious liability is that an employer is liable for the negligence of its employee but not the negligence of an independent contractor, an exc[...]

Michigan Appellate Court Discusses Ostensible Agency In Medical Malpractice Case

July 30, 2016

In an unreported decision, the State of Michigan Court of Appeals (“Appellate Court”) discussed ostensible agency in a medical malpractice case where the plaintiff was attempting to hold a hospital responsible for the alleged medical negligence of a gastroenterologist who had perforate[...]

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