Settlement reached in Joan Rivers’ wrongful death suit

On behalf of Aiken and Aiken P.C. Personal Injury Attorneys posted in Wrongful Death, on Monday, May 23, 2016

Residents of Massachusetts may remember the death of comedienne Joan Rivers in 2014. Rivers died during a surgical procedure, and a lawsuit filed by her daughter, Melissa Rivers, against doctors who performed the surgery has been settled. The settlement amount has not been made public.Joan Rivers underwent throat surgery at a clinic in September 2014. During the surgery, Rivers stopped breathing and sustained brain damage from the lack of oxygen. Doctors were not able to resuscitate her, and she died. She was 81 years old. Melissa Rivers filed a wrongful death lawsuit in 2015. The suit charged doctors involved in the surgery with a lack of professionalism and performing unauthorized procedures. The lawsuit claimed that doctors took unauthorized photographs including selfies with Joan Rivers. There was also a report that an anesthesiologist was told she was being paranoid when she expressed concern for Joan Rivers’ vital signs during the procedure.Melissa Rivers’ attorney stated that the settlement amount was not disclosed because Rivers did not file the suit for financial gain, but to help other families by bringing attention to issues involving medical care. It is estimated that the settlement is in an amount of several million dollars.Though Melissa Rivers may not have filed the suit involving her mother’s death for financial gain, sometimes the death of a person could bring financial hardship to their family. The amount of compensation sought in wrongful death suit could include consideration for lost wages, especially if the surviving family members depended on the income of the person who has died. Families may also owe medical bills or have funeral costs, which could also be considered when a wrongful death suit is filed.