a interesting issue of tort liability is presented by Ra v. Superior Court, case no. B19766 (2d Dist. August 15, 2007). The opening paragraph of the opinion does such a good job of framing the issue that I quote it in full here: In Thing v. La Chusa (1989) 48 Cal.3d 644, 667 (Thing), the Supreme Court held only “closely related percipient witnesses” may seek damages for emotional distress caused by observing the negligently inflicted injury of a third person and specificallylimited recovery to a plaintiff who “is present at the scene of the injury-producing event at the time it occurs and is then aware that it is causing injury to…
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Discounted Third Party Purchase of Medical Account Doesn’t “Hanif-y” Plaintiff’s Recovery
Mention Hanif v. Housing Authority (1988) 200 Cal.App.3d 635 to a personal injury lawyer, and he’ll likely bristle. Hanif, along with Nishihama v. City and County of San Francisco (2001) 93 Cal.App.4th 298, held that an injured tort plaintiff may recover only the amount of medical expenses he or she paid or incurred, even if the reasonable value of those services is much higher. Thus, a medical provider who writes down the bill or accepts a lesser amount from an insurer as payment in full effectively reduces the potential recovery of the plaintiff. Should the same rule apply if the medical provider sells the plaintiff’s account (including a lien against…