Cited Article
Clark v. Southview Hospital: Ohio Follows the Nationwide Trend of Using Agency by Estoppel to Impose Strict Liability on Hospitals Note
Case Citation
Carter v. Oak Hill Cmty. Med. Ctr., 2001 Ohio 2657 (Ohio Ct. App. 2001)
Article Publication Date
1995
Volume
9
Issue
2
Citing Quote
The Ohio Supreme Court manifested its belief in the deep pocket theory in [ Clark ]. *** In essence, the Clark decision renders hospitals strictly liable for negligent acts of physicians providing medical care within a hospital. The only apparent exception under Clark is where a patient and her personal physician independently choose a hospital as a situs for medical treatment. *** Clearly it is questionable whether this decision furthered public policy. *** The court based its test on numerous such decisions from jurisdictions across the country. However, the legal soundness of Clark and the decisions on which it relied is questionable, as many of these jurisdictions misapplied the legal doctrines underlying [agency-by-estoppel] theory. Note, Clark v. Southview Hospital : Ohio Follows the Nationwide Trend of Using Agency by Estoppel to Impose Strict Liability On Hospitals (1995), 9 J.L. & Health 319, 320; see Note, The Ostensible Agency Doctrine: In Search of the Deep Pocket? (1989), 57 UMKC L.Rev. 917, 924 (The author notes that, "Despite its wide acceptance and apparent simplicity, the doctrine has evoked confusion, and many courts have used different language to describe the same phenomenon."); accord Fehn, Are We Protected From HMO 1 Negligence?: An Examination of Ohio Law, ERISA Preemption, and Legislative Initiatives (1997), 30 Akron L.Rev. 501; cf. Perdue & Baxley, Cutting Costs - Cutting Care: Can Texas Managed Health Care Systems and HMOs Be Liable for the Medical Malpractice of Physicians? (1995), 27 St. Mary's L.J. 23, 88.