The court's holding and decision will be displayed here.

This section contains the nature of the case and procedural background.

Romero Lama (P) was suffering from back pain and was referred to Dr. Borras (D) a neurosurgeon. D concluded that P had a herniated disk and scheduled surgery. D neither prescribed nor enforced a regime of absolute bed rest prior to surgery but did instruct, P to enter the hospital one week before the surgery in order to clean out his lungs, as P was a heavy smoker. P was not subjected to conservative treatment. D operated, but it was not successful. D operated again five weeks later and did not order pre or post-operative antibiotics. After the second operation, there were signs that an infection had set in. P's discomfort became severe, and eventually, a diagnosis of infection was made, and medicine was given. Because the infection was labeled as Discitis, P was hospitalized for several months while treatment for the infection took its course. P sued D for malpractice. P won a verdict of $600,000. Motions for judgment as a matter of law and a new trial were rejected by the trial court. D appealed.

The legal issues presented in this case will be displayed here.

Legal analysis from Dean's Law Dictionary will be displayed here.