Community Activity

Past Member of Wishard Foundation George H. Rawls, M.D. Scholarship Dinner Committee,

• Assist with fund raising and promotion of Scholarship Dinner.

Past Member of Scholarship Committee for Indiana Healthcare Association, Member,

• Interview candidates for scholarship awarded to nursing students dedicated to long term care.

Heart and Soul Free Clinic Board Member

• Heart and Soul Free Clinic provides cost free health care services to the under and uninsured.

Representative Matters

• Represented hospital and residents in medical malpractice claim filed by a patient who alleged a lack of informed consent to the participation of residents in her surgery. The trial court granted summary judgment in favor of the defendant providers. The Court of Appeals affirmed and held that it was not necessary to name residents or students individually on the consent form, as the form’s generic reference to “residents” and “students” sufficed. Tipton v. Isaacs, 17 N.E.3d 292 (Ind. Ct. App. 2014), trans denied, 24 N.E.3d 967 (Ind.2015).
• Represented landowner alleged to have breached duty to invitee to prevent criminal acts of third parties, in which Indiana Supreme Court affirmed grant of summary judgment in favor of landowner, on the grounds landowner did not breach duty to take reasonable steps to prevent foreseeable criminal acts against invitees: L.W. v. Western Golf Ass’n., 712 N.E.2d 983 (Ind. 1999)
• Successfully defended long-term care facility and secured an opinion from the United States District Court for the Southern District of Indiana holding that as a matter of law the provisions of the Federal Nursing Home Reform Act do not create rights enforceable under Section 1983. Rather, such claims are governed by Indiana’s Medical Malpractice Act. Diana L. Terry, Personal Representative of the Estate of Jack J. McMillen v. The Health and Hospital Corporation of Marion County and American Senior Communities, LLC In the United States District Court for the Southern District of Indiana, Indianapolis Division Case No. 1:10-cv-000607-DML-JMS.
• Has successfully defended healthcare providers in medical malpractice actions before the Indiana Department of Insurance and in courts throughout the State of Indiana.

Awards & Recognition

Distinguished Fellow of the Indy Bar Foundation (2015)

• Each year the Indianapolis Bar Foundation honors individuals for their dedication to the law by bestowing on them the designation of Distinguished Fellow. This small but select group is chosen by the Directors of the Indianapolis Bar Foundation to become Distinguished Fellows as a result of their significant contributions to the legal profession and to our community.