Opinion ID: 2635157
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 2

Heading: Case Law under W.R.C.P. 56 (b), (c), and (e)

Text: [¶ 14] This Court has well-settled case law under W.R.C.P. 56(b), (c), and (e) which is particularly applicable to the issues in this case. In Greenwood v. Wierdsma, 741 P.2d 1079 (Wyo. 1987), a medical malpractice action filed by Ms. Greenwood against a hospital and an obstetrical doctor for injuries she allegedly received under their care in connection with the birth of her child, the hospital moved for summary judgment with supporting affidavits of a nurse and a hospital administrator. The affidavit of the hospital administrator stated: 1. That he is the Executive Director of Memorial Hospital of Sweetwater County, Rock Springs, Wyoming, and makes this Affidavit in behalf of said hospital, a defendant in the above-entitled case. 2. That affiant has examined the records of Memorial Hospital of Sweetwater County as they existed on November 25, 1983, and finds that Dr. J.G. Wierdsma was a physician duly licensed to practice in the State of Wyoming, who had been granted privileges to practice in Memorial Hospital of Sweetwater County, Rock Springs, Wyoming; that there was nothing in said records to indicate that Dr. Wierdsma was not qualified to act as an obstetrician and gynecologist or that he should not be allowed to be the attending physician in childbirth cases. 3. To the contrary, the records reflect that Dr. Wierdsma was a qualified obstetrician-gynecologist who had in the past and was able to provide proper pre and post natal care, as well as deliver babies. 4. Based on my experience as a hospital administrator and the records pertaining to Dr. Wierdsma, it is my opinion that the Hospital acted with the applicable standard of care in the above case; was not negligent in any manner; and exercised the skill, diligence and knowledge, and applied the means and methods which would be exercised and applied under similar circumstances by hospitals. Id. at 1085 (emphasis in original). The affidavit of the nurse stated: 4. I have reviewed the medical records of the Plaintiff, Betty Greenwood, relative to her stay at the Memorial Hospital of Sweetwater County, as well as Riverton Memorial Hospital. 5. It appears that on November 24, 1983[,] the Plaintiff was admitted to Memorial Hospital of Sweetwater County for the delivery of a child. 6. In connection with that admission, the plaintiff did deliver a baby girl. 7. As a result of the labor progressing quickly at its later stages, it became necessary for the nurse on duty to ultimately deliver the baby. Almost immediately thereafter, care of the mother was turned over to Dr. Wierdsma. 8. That the mother received a first degree laceration as a result of the delivery. That the laceration was taken care of by Dr. Wierdsma. 9. That the Plaintiff was thereafter discharged on November 25, 1983. 10. From my review of the records, it appears that the assessments made and the care and treatment rendered by the nursing staff at Memorial Hospital of Sweetwater County to the Plaintiff were proper in all respects. In that regard, it is my opinion that the nursing staff of Memorial Hospital of Sweetwater County exercised the skill, diligence and knowledge and applied the means and methods which would reasonably be exercised and applied under similar circumstances by members of the nursing profession in good standing. Id. (emphasis in original). Ms. Greenwood moved to strike the two affidavits, contending they did not conform to W.R.C.P. 56(e) which requires the affiant to state facts within personal knowledge and to attach to the affidavit those documents in support of those facts on which the affiant is relying. The district court denied Ms. Greenwood's motion to strike the two affidavits and granted the hospital's summary judgment motion based on the challenged affidavits. Id. at 1082. [¶ 15] On appeal, we reversed the district court's summary judgment order, ruling that the district court erred by relying upon, rather than sustaining Ms. Greenwood's motion to strike, the two affidavits which supported the hospital's summary judgment motion. Id. at 1086. Noting that compliance with the rules of summary judgment procedure is mandatory, we examined the two affidavits in light of the requirements of W.R.C.P. 56(e) that an affidavit (1) be made on personal knowledge, (2) set forth facts which are admissible in evidence, (3) demonstrate the affiant's competency to testify on the subject matter of the affidavit, and (4) have attached to the affidavit the papers and documents to which it refers. Id. at 1084-85. After setting out the contents of the hospital administrator's affidavit, we found that the affidavit fell short of W.R.C.P. 56(e) in two respects, namely, (1) the documents the affiant reviewed and to which he referred were not attached to his affidavit, and (2) his affidavit set forth no facts and merely made categorical assertions and stated bald conclusions. Id. at 1085. Addressing the nurse's affidavit, we set out the contents of her affidavit and found that it also suffered from both the defects present in the hospital administrator's affidavit, namely, (1) the records to which the affiant referred were not attached, and (2) the factual basis for the conclusions in her affidavit was absent. Id. We found that none of the general facts about Ms. Greenwood's case contained in the affidavit was relevant to or supported by conclusion and opinion that the hospital exercised reasonable care. We remarked that the nurse failed to explain what happened, why Ms. Greenwood's present condition resulted, and what hospital supervision and care existed. Id. at 1086. We stated, When stripped of their unsupported conclusions, the affidavits . . . in no way assist the hospital's claim for summary judgment. Id. We held that, The affidavits should have been stricken or at least disregarded, and the district court's failure to do so was error. Id. Because the two affidavits were insufficient and ineffectual, Ms. Greenwood was entitled to rest upon the allegations in her complaint. Id. [¶ 16] In Roybal v. Bell, 778 P.2d 108 (Wyo. 1989), a dental malpractice action, we again considered the adequacies of affidavits in light of the requirements of W.R.C.P. 56. Ms. Roybal filed her action against three dentists, including Dr. Bell. The other two dentists later dropped out of the litigation, leaving Dr. Bell. He answered the complaint, generally denying Ms. Roybal's allegations. He subsequently filed a motion for summary judgment supported by, among other material, his own affidavit; the affidavit of Dr. Giovale, one of the two other dentists and who had earlier settled out of the litigation; and the affidavit of Dr. Devine. At the summary judgment hearing, Ms. Roybal dropped all claims against Dr. Bell except the claim relating to his alleged failure to obtain an informed consent in connection with the oral surgical procedure known as an apicoectomy on one of Ms. Roybal's teeth. Id. at 110. Dr. Bell's affidavit stated that he was aware of the standard required for informed consent for dentists practicing his specialty, that he fully informed appellant of the risks associated with the apicoectomy on tooth #20, including the risk of nerve damage, and further that this disclosure was accomplished by use of a diagram, a copy of which was attached to his affidavit. Id. at 113. Dr. Bell's affidavit did not delineate, however, what the applicable standard of disclosure required under the circumstances. Dr. Giovale's affidavit stated he was fully familiar with the standard of care required of dentists with regard to the disclosures necessary for informed consent in referral situations and that, prior to referring [Ms. Roybal] to [Dr. Bell] for the apicoectomy on tooth #20, he discussed with her the specific risks involved, including the possibility of nerve injury and paresthesia. Dr. Giovale attached to his affidavit a copy of his office charts with notations indicating he had apprised [Ms. Roybal] of possible nerve injury and paresthesia on this occasion. Id. Dr. Giovale's affidavit did not delineate, however, what the applicable standard of disclosure required under the circumstances. In his affidavit, Dr. Devine, a dentist, stated he had reviewed [Ms. Roybal's] dental records and other relevant materials in the record, including the pleadings, the affidavits of [Dr. Bell] and Dr. Giovale, and an outline of [Ms. Roybal's] deposition. Dr. Devine said he was familiar with the applicable standard of care, although, as with the affidavits of [Dr. Bell] and Dr. Giovale, Dr. Devine did not delineate what the applicable standard of disclosure required under the circumstances. Thus, without stating what the standard of care required, Dr. Devine stated that, in treating [Ms. Roybal], [Dr. Bell] exercised that degree of care ordinarily possessed and exercised by dentists in good standing practicing in the community or elsewhere. With respect to the question of proximate cause, Dr. Devine stated: It is unreasonable to believe that a patient being fully informed would have elected any other procedure. Id. The district court granted Dr. Bell's summary judgment motion. On appeal, we reversed and remanded for further proceedings because the affidavits are defective in that each fails to state the prevailing standard of care by which to measure the adequacy of the consent obtained, if any. The standard of care must be stated with specificity sufficient to enable the court to determine if appellee properly disclosed the risks and alternatives in conformance with the standard. Hurtt v. Goleburn, 330 A.2d 134 (Del. Supr. 1974). Because these supporting affidavits fail in this important respect, appellee, as movant, did not meet his initial burden of proving the nonexistence of a genuine issue of material fact. Since appellee failed to properly support his motion for summary judgment, appellant was entitled to rely upon her allegation that she did not receive adequate information to enable her to give an informed consent, and she had no obligation to present any factual support for her allegation. Peterson v. Campbell County Memorial Hospital District, 760 P.2d 992 (Wyo. 1988); Metzger [ v. Kalke ], 709 P.2d 414 [(Wyo. 1985)]; Hurtt, 330 A.2d 134. Her unrefuted allegation is sufficient to state a claim upon which relief can be granted, and the pleadings of the parties structure a question of fact as to appellee's alleged negligent failure to obtain informed consent. Peterson, 760 P.2d 992; Metzger, 709 P.2d 414. Roybal, 778 P.2d at 114. [¶ 17] In Havens v. Hoffman, 902 P.2d 219 (Wyo. 1995), a medical malpractice action, Ms. Havens alleged injury attributable to Dr. Hoffman's alleged failure to obtain her informed consent in connection with certain surgical procedures he had performed on her. In seeking summary judgment against that claim, Dr. Hoffman relied upon Ms. Havens' signed consent form prepared by the hospital in which the surgery was performed, and Dr. Hoffman's office notes. Dr. Hoffman placed specific reliance upon the following paragraph in the consent form: 3. I confirm the following: That my physician has explained to me the nature, purpose, and possible consequences of the procedure(s) as well as the risks involved, and the possible complications and/or alternative methods of treatment. I understand that the explanation I have received is not exhaustive because of unforeseen circumstances that may arise and I have been advised that a more detailed and complete explanation of the preceding matter will be given to me if I so desire. Upon reading the previous statement, I do not desire such further explanations. Furthermore, I acknowledge that I have received no guarantees or assurances as to the results that may be obtained from the performance of this operation or procedure. Id. at 221. Dr. Hoffman's office notes contained the following sentences upon which he relied: Procedures, findings, indications, risks, benefits and possible complications explained to pt's satisfaction. Pt gives her informed consent for both procedures scheduled on 1/28/92. Id. The district court granted Dr. Hoffman's summary judgment motion, but the order did not reflect the court's rationale. Id. [¶ 18] On appeal, we applied and found dispositive the Roybal analysis and reversed the summary judgment. We wrote: Nowhere in the materials filed by Dr. Hoffman in support of his Second Motion for Summary Judgment of Defendant does there appear an articulation of the prevailing standard of care by which to measure the adequacy of the information furnished to Havens to secure her consent. Roybal clearly requires such an articulation. Instead, Dr. Hoffman relies upon the conclusional statement traceable to his notes that he informed Havens of the procedures, findings, indications, risks, benefits and possible complications. We do not know what specific statements he made, nor is there any expert testimony as to what specific advice should have been given. The Roybal standards are not satisfied. Id. at 223. [¶ 19] In Rino v. Mead, 2002 WY 144, 55 P.3d 13 (Wyo. 2002), a legal malpractice action, Ms. Rino alleged several violations of professional duties by her attorney in connection with her divorce litigation. In support of the attorney's summary judgment motion, the attorney submitted, among other material, her expert witness's affidavit. The district court granted the attorney's summary judgment motion because it found that the attorney's submittals established a prima facie case that the attorney was not negligent. On appeal, we reversed the summary judgment because the submittals, including the expert witness's affidavit, did not establish the absence of genuine issues of material fact, and, therefore, the burden did not shift to Ms. Rino to produce expert testimony. Id., ¶ 22, 55 P.3d at 20. Although this Court did not quote the expert witness's affidavit, it commented upon its shortcomings in this passage: The affidavit of Mead's expert does contain some facts in substantiation of its conclusion that Mead's conduct did not fall below the standard of care. For instance, the affidavit cites to correspondence that shows Mead had considered the value of McCalla's law practice, as well as the issue of alimony. Beyond that, however, the affidavit does not counter Rino's other factual allegations that Mead failed to hire accountant and attorney experts as promised, failed to prepare for the mediation session, failed to prepare for the trial, and failed to give correct advice as to the treatment of McCalla's retirement account in the property division. With these issues of material fact remaining, Mead's expert's opinion that Mead acted in a reasonable, careful and prudent manner with respect to her representation of Rino is simply premature. Id.