Court Opinion

ID: 9587460
Source: CourtListenerOpinion
Date Created: 2023-08-21 23:22:21.667459+00
Date Added: 2024-06-11T17:46:46.152800
License: Public Domain

Six, J.,
concurring: I concur-in the majority opinion. The majority, however, does not go far enough in its effort to protect any damage award from possible unjust use. The majority reasons that the use of the funds is “outside the scope of the questions certified to us.” I disagree. We should judicially craft this new claim so that its characteristics require: (1) any sums recovered as damages by the parents for wrongful birth to be placed in a reversionary trust for the use and benefit of the child; and (2) *293the parents to stand in a fiduciary relationship with the child, with a duty to account for all sums recoverable as damages.
We should mandate the two conditions into the claim for wrongful birth. If we have the authority to recognize the claim, we have the authority to determine its character. The trial court’s discretion may be relied upon for establishing the mechanics of the reversionary trust-fiduciary relationship concept on an individual case basis.
The majority cites Blake v. Cruz, 108 Idaho 253, 698 P.2d 315 (1985). In Cruz, a wrongful birth case, the Idaho Supreme Court, without parental consent, imposed the requirement that the economic award be placed in trust for the use and benefit of the child. 108 Idaho at 259.
The majority also discusses Robak v. United States, 503 F. Supp. 982 (N.D. Ill. 1980), aff'd in part, rev’d in part 658 F.2d 471 (7th Cir. 1981). In Robak, the trial court decided that the monetary award ($900,000 total, $450,000 to each parent) for future maintenance and support of the child should not be paid in one lump sum. The award was placed in a reversionary trust with disbursements to be made as expenses were incurred. See Note, Robak v. United States: A Precedent-Setting Damage Formula For Wrongful Birth, 58 Chi. Kent L. Rev. 725 (1982), for an endorsement of the reversionary trust solution to the wrongful birth damage dilemma.
We have determined that the loss period for the recovery of damages terminates at the time the child reaches majority. The “loss period” represents the time frame for the determination of parent compensation for the wrongful birth condition of the child which has resulted, or will result, due to the negligence of the defendant.
A review of the pretrial order in the instant action reflects the atypical relationship between the plaintiff parents’ claim and the child whose condition provides the basis of the claim. The $10,000,000 claim of special damages of John and Nicole Arche (parents) for the care of their daughter Andrea born April 6, 1987, is stated as:
Loss of earning capacity (loss of income and benefits) $1,000,000.00
Medical supplies 400,000.00
*294Physical therapy, occupation therapy, speech therapy, and. miscellaneous therapy 1.750.000.00
Attendant care and therapy 2.300.000.00
Mother care 300.000.00
Rehabilitation services and care 1.000.000.00
Special education services 1,500,000.00
Medical care 750.000.00
Home remodeling and furnishings 250.000.00
Orthotic and miscellaneous supplies 250.000.00
Communication equipment and training 500.000.00
As I read Robak, the trial court suggested the reversionary trust. 503 F. Supp. at 983. The parents agreed that the award would be placed in trust and funds from the corpus paid as required for the child’s care. Upon the death of the child the remainder of the funds would be returned to the defendant. There may be cases where the wrongful birth child will not live to reach majority.
The reversionary trust concept addresses three concerns that merit our consideration. It assures first, that the child will be adequately cared for; second, that the parents will be properly compensated for the additional wrongful birth expenses during the “loss period”; and third, if the child does not survive the “loss period,” that the parents are not compensated for expenses they never incurred. In Robak, as in the instant case, the defendant is the United States. Any judgment will be paid by the nation at large. In many other cases the defendant may be an individual health care provider.
We have denied a claim brought by a child for wrongful life. Bruggeman v. Schimke, 239 Kan. 245, 254, 718 P.2d 635 (1986). A wrongful life child in this jurisdiction cannot be reimbursed for future medical expenses that will be incurred as a result of a defendant’s negligence. The child may not recover for damage to his or her own interest. If the parents do not recover for the child’s future needs in the wrongful birth claim, no one will.
The juxtaposition between the substantive law of wrongful birth, as a new tort, and the damage award for that tort is unique. The claim is by the parents, for the parents, based on the special needs of the child. The typical case involving a claim for future expense arising from personal injuries to a minor is controlled by Stone v. City of Pleasanton, 115 Kan. 476, 222 Pac. 303 (1924). *295A parent cannot recover for the minor child’s prospective medical care. The claim belongs to the minor.
The anomalous relationship between a plaintiff and an award in a wrongful birth case brings the use of any funds recovered within our province. We determine the substantive case law of torts in Kansas. If we are to recognize the new tort of wrongful birth, as I feel we should, we can define its characteristics.
McFarland, J., joins the foregoing concurring opinion.