Supreme Court of Alabama
Ex Parte John Kirchner, M.d., and Southlake Orthopaedics Sports Medicine and Spine Center, P.c. Petition for Writ Of…
March 7, 2025
Summary
The Supreme Court of Alabama granted the defendants' mandamus petitions and directed the circuit court to dismiss Joyce Pates's medical-malpractice claims as barred by the Alabama Medical Liability Act's two-year statute of limitations. The court held that Pates suffered a legally cognizable injury no later than November 2020, when infection, wound complications, and hardware removal occurred, rather than when her leg was amputated in February 2021. Because she filed suit in February 2023, the claims were untimely on the face of the complaint.