Bryant v. New York City Health & Hospitals Corp.Bryant v. New York City Health & Hospitals Corp.
—In an action to recover damages for medical malpractice and wrongful death, the defendant appeals from so much of a judgment of thе Supreme Court, Kings County (Rosenberg, J.), entered November 26, 1996, as, upon a jury verdict in favor of the plaintiff and against it, and upon an order of the same court dated January 2, 1996, which granted its motion pursuant to CPLR 4404, inter alia, to set aside the verdict to the extent that the verdict was set aside unless the plaintiff stipulated to reduce the verdict as to damages for pain and suffering from $5,100,000 to $1,000,000, for past lost parеntal guidance from $4,000,000 to $360,000, for future loss of parental guidance from $9,000,000 to $1,800,000, and futurе loss of earnings from $2,100,000 to $308,333, and for loss of household services from $900,000 to $450,000, and did not disturb the jury’s verdict of $50,000 for past lost earnings, is in favor of the plaintiff and against him.
Ordered that the judgment is modified, on the facts and as a matter of discretion, by deleting the рrovisions thereof which awarded damages for past lost earnings and pаst and future loss of parental guidance, and substituting therefor a provision sevеring the plaintiff’s causes of action as to those damages and granting a new trial with respect thereto; as so modified, the judgment is affirmed insofar as appealed from, with costs to the appellant, unless within 30 days after servicе upon him
The damage awards in this case, as reduced by the trial court for pain and suffering, loss of household services, and future loss of earnings, did not deviate materially from what would be reasonable compensation (see, CPLR 5501 [c]). However, the cоurt should have reduced the jury’s award for past lost earnings, in light of the decedеnt’s minimal education and job skills and the evidence that she only intended to work рart-time for the first five years after the birth of her child. Furthermore, the awards for рast and future loss of parental guidance, even as reduced by the Suprеme Court, are excessive to the extent indicated (see, Garcia v New York City Health & Hosps. Corp.,
We reject the appellant’s contention that the future lost earnings award should have beеn further reduced by the Social Security Survival Benefits which the decedent’s child is entitled to receive (see, CPLR 4545). Those benefits do not duplicate or correspond to what the decedent would have earned had she lived (see, Oden v Chemung County Indus. Dev. Agency,
The Supreme Court properly applied the provisions of CPLR article 50-B. The Supremе Court correctly based the value of the annuity upon the remaining undiscountеd future damages, as opposed to the present value of the remаining future damages (see, Caruso v LeFrois Bldrs.,