2022 Ohio 1381
Ohio Ct. App.2022Background
- Linda Wood was found unresponsive on September 4, 2016 and later died of acute intoxication; husband James Brent Wood brought a wrongful death action.
- Wood filed wrongful death claims against Mount Carmel defendants on August 31, 2018; a separate medical-malpractice suit naming Dr. Lynch and OhioHealth was filed earlier and consolidated.
- Mount Carmel moved for judgment on the pleadings under Civ.R. 12(C), arguing R.C. 2305.113(C)’s four-year statute of repose for medical claims barred the wrongful death claim because the last alleged act by their employee occurred in 2011.
- The trial court agreed, treating the wrongful death claim as a “derivative” medical claim and dismissed Wood’s claims against Mount Carmel as time‑barred.
- On appeal the Tenth District reversed, holding the medical-malpractice statute of repose does not apply to statutory wrongful death claims under R.C. Chapter 2125.
Issues
| Issue | Plaintiff's Argument | Defendant's Argument | Held |
|---|---|---|---|
| Whether the four‑year medical statute of repose (R.C. 2305.113(C)) bars a wrongful death action under R.C. 2125.02 arising from alleged medical negligence | Wood: wrongful death is a separate statutory cause of action distinct from the decedent’s claims and thus not subject to the medical statute of repose; his claim was timely under R.C. 2125.02 (two‑year limit from death) | Mount Carmel: the wrongful death claim is derivative of medical care and therefore a "medical claim" subject to R.C. 2305.113(C)’s four‑year repose (the last act in 2011 precludes an 2018 suit) | Court reversed trial court: R.C. 2305.113(C) does not apply to wrongful death claims under R.C. 2125.02; wrongful death is an independent statutory cause of action and the legislature did not include a medical‑malpractice repose in R.C. 2125.02 |
Key Cases Cited
- Karr v. Sixt, 146 Ohio St. 527, 67 N.E.2d 331 (Ohio 1946) (wrongful death creates a separate cause of action)
- Klema v. St. Elizabeth's Hosp. of Youngstown, 170 Ohio St. 519, 166 N.E.2d 765 (Ohio 1960) (distinguishing decedent’s personal‑injury claim from beneficiaries’ wrongful death claim)
- Mominee v. Scherbarth, 28 Ohio St.3d 270, 503 N.E.2d 717 (Ohio 1986) (medical‑malpractice claims are subject to the medical statute of repose)
- Ruther v. Kaiser, 143 Ohio St.3d 408, 983 N.E.2d 291 (Ohio 2012) (policy rationale for medical statute of repose)
- Antoon v. Cleveland Clinic Found., 148 Ohio St.3d 483, 71 N.E.3d 974 (Ohio 2016) (further discussion of repose policy in medical claims)
- Wilson v. Durrani, 164 Ohio St.3d 419, 173 N.E.3d 456 (Ohio 2020) (medical‑malpractice repose decisions)
- Thompson v. Wing, 70 Ohio St.3d 176 (Ohio 1994) (wrongful death action is independent and cannot be treated as derivative)
- St. Louis, Iron Mountain & S. Ry. Co. v. Craft, 237 U.S. 648 (U.S. 1915) (distinction between decedent’s personal claim and beneficiaries’ wrongful death recovery)