The Rotatori Law Firm settled in the summer of 2012 a dental malpractice case on behalf of a plaintiff injured by a dental drill used by a general dentist. The general dentist was attempting to excavate the plaintiff's molar at or about the time of the clients injury. The Rotatori Law Firm law firm hired an experienced and well educated general dental expert engaged in private practice in Hartford County. The general dentist was also a clinical instructor at The University of Connecticut School of Dentistry. The expert opined that a dental drill bit should never be spun outside a patients oral cavity under any circumstances. A hotly contested issue in the case was whether the patient/plaintiff moved at or about the time the patient's face was cut by the dental drill bit while the drill was spinning inside the patient's mouth or whether the drill was spun outside the oral cavity while the treating dentist was attempting to enter the patients mouth.
The patient was seen by a New Haven plastic surgeon who opined that the plaintiff would benefit from V plasty and dermabrasion. The patient was left with residual facial scarring which was the thrust of the plaintiff's damage claim.
The plaintiff sued the general dentist in performance negligence, the legal business entity and the alleged supervising dentist. The business entity carried no malpractice insurance but relied on an indemnification agreement with the general performance dentist. The business legal entity was difficult to identify operating as a DBA limiting its public identity. A diligent private investigator along with counsel were able to uncover the business legal entity. The settlement proceeds were paid by the carrier indemnifying the general dentist. The case was resolved by way of a pretrial which turned into a mediation session handled by an experienced civil trial judge of the Connecticut Superior Court.
The resolution "settlement" dollar amount along with the names of the parties to the lawsuit are kept confidential.
