The Tennessee Supreme Court on Wednesday held that a plaintiff, who did not refile a negligence lawsuit against Vanderbilt University Medical Center within the required one-year time frame, could not assert an extension based on the Health Care Liability Act.
The case began when Plaintiff Clayton D. Richards, who had been a patient at Vanderbilt University Medical Center in August 2013, filed a negligence lawsuit against the hospital in December 2014, after having given pre-suit notice as required by the Health Care Liability Act. The lawsuit ended in a voluntary dismissal without prejudice, meaning that Mr. Richards, who decided to stop his own lawsuit, still had the opportunity to refile the complaint up to a year later - a time frame established by the Saving Statute in state law.
Mr. Richards did not refile within one year of the dismissal. Instead, Mr. Richards asserted that the Health Care Liability Act provided a 120-day extension of the one-year refiling period under the Saving Statute, making his lawsuit timely. The trial court disagreed and dismissed the complaint, finding that Mr. Richards had not complied with the Saving Statute. The Court of Appeals upheld the trial court’s decision.
In a unanimous opinion, the Supreme Court agreed. The Court concluded that Mr. Richards’ claims were untimely. The Court noted that the Health Care Liability Act refers to statutes of limitations but excludes any reference to the Saving Statute. As a result, the Court held that the 120-day extension does not extend the refiling period under the Saving Statute.
To read the Supreme Court’s opinion in Richards v. Vanderbilt University Medical Center, authored by Justice Jeff Bivins, visit the opinions section of TNCourts.gov.