TN Supreme Court reviews whether the trial court properly dismissed a medical malpractice suit involving negligent prescription of drugs.

LOU ELLA SHERRILL ET AL. v. BOB T. SOUDER, M.D. ET AL. (Tenn. October 28, 2010)

This litigation involves a claim of medical malpractice against the two defendants, a physician and the corporation operating his clinical practice, alleging negligence in the prescription of a drug. The trial court granted the defendants' motion for summary judgment on grounds that the suit was barred by the one-year statute of limitations. The Court of Appeals affirmed.

The question before the Court is the propriety of summary judgment on statute of limitations grounds. Although the trial court properly concluded that the cause of action accrued more than a year before the suit was filed, there is a genuine issue of material fact regarding whether the plaintiff was of unsound mind on the date the cause of action accrued, thus tolling the limitations period. Because the suit was not time-barred as a matter of law, the grant of summary judgment must be reversed. The cause is remanded to the trial court for proceedings consistent with this opinion.

Opinion may be found at:
http://www.tba2.org/tba_files/TSC/2010/sherrilll_102810.pdf