Florida Medical Malpractice Claims: Elimination of Noneconomic Damages Caps

On June 8, 2017, the Florida Supreme Court decided North Broward Hospital District v. Kalitan, No. SC15-1858, 2017 WL 2481225, at *1, *8 (Fla. June 8, 2017) and, in conjunction with Estate of McCall v. United States, 134 So. 3d 894 (Fla. 2014), eliminated all statutory noneconomic damages caps in Florida medical malpractice claims. In each decision, the court examined the constitutionality of the damages caps on equal protection grounds, weighing and ultimately rejecting the findings of the Florida legislature. The Florida Supreme Court’s decisions in these cases are significant as wholesale reevaluation of legislative findings by the judicial branch to invalidate an entire enactment is relatively rare.