ATLANTA AP – Georgia’s top court unanimously struck down a state law Monday that set a $350,000 limit on jury awards for pain and suffering in medical malpractice cases, overturning the cornerstone of a sweeping 2005 law that divided patients’ advocates and medical groups.
The Georgia Supreme Court’s 7-0 ruling concluded that the cap violated the right to a jury trial because it “clearly nullifies the jury’s findings of fact regarding damages and thereby undermines the jury’s basic function,” Chief Justice Carol Hunstein wrote in the opinion.
