Supreme Court of Connecticut
Carpenter v. Daar
February 1, 2023346 Conn. 80
Summary
The court held that the statutory opinion-letter requirement for medical malpractice claims is a nonjurisdictional procedural screening device and overruled prior precedent to the extent it characterized the requirement as implicating personal jurisdiction. The court further held that review of the opinion letter is confined to the complaint and the letter itself, and that the pleadings adequately alleged that the dentist held himself out as an endodontics practitioner, making the endodontist who authored the letter a similar health care provider. The judgment affirming dismissal was reversed and the case was remanded with directions to deny the motion to dismiss.