Phelps v. Dempsey

The plaintiffs in this medical malpractice action, James Phelps and his wife Cynthia Phelps, appeal from a judgment based in part on a directed verdict and in part on a jury verdict entered in favor of the defendant physician, Dr. Thomas Dempsey, an orthopedic surgeon. The Phelpses brought the action as next friends and parents of James Phelps, Jr., a minor who underwent amputation of a significant portion of his right foot because of complications following surgery to correct a clubfoot condition. James, Jr., was born with spina bifida. It was eventually also determined that his right foot…