Massachusetts Justices Clarify Medical Malpractice Suit Time-Bar

Expired negligence claims in medical malpractice cases don’t excuse doctors from liability for later negligent acts, the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court held Thursday, in a rare reversal of an Appeals Court judgment.

Massachusetts law bars medical malpractice claims stemming from negligence that occurred beyond a seven-year statute of repose prior to initiation of a lawsuit.

“Prior negligence that occurs outside of the repose period does not shield later negligence if such later negligence can be found to cause an injury,” Justice Scott Kafker wrote for the court. “This is so even if a patient’s treatment happens to involve the same ...