Brown Rudnick Retained to Represent Victims of Medical Malpractice in Steward Health Chapter 11 Bankruptcy Case

Brown Rudnick is representing victims of medical malpractice in the widely publicized Chapter 11 bankruptcy case of Steward Health Care System, the largest for-profit health care network in the United States.

On Oct. 7, 2024, Brown Rudnick, on behalf of the victims, filed a motion requesting an order directing the U.S. Trustee to appoint an Ad Hoc Committee of Personal Injury Representatives.

Steward Health filed for bankruptcy protection on May 6, 2024, in the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of Texas, Judge Christopher Lopez presiding. On Sept. 6, 2024, The Boston Globe described "staggering neglect" throughout the Steward health care system and reported more than 300 deficiency findings identified by hospital regulators, including seventy-nine "condition-level" deficiencies representing heightened risk of harm or injury to patients, and 29 instances where deficiencies placed patients at immediate risk of injury or death.

As alleged in the motion, bare disclosures, combined with a wealth of public and private investigation, show a healthcare system failing to protect, and in many cases actually harming, the patients it was supposed to serve. While the U.S. Trustee, an officer of the U.S. Department of Justice, has appointed a nine-member Official Committee of Unsecured Creditors to act as fiduciaries for creditors of Steward, eight of the Committee's members hold commercial claims with financial interests likely adverse to those of the individual victims.

The Brown Rudnick team representing the victims of medical malpractice is led by partners Eric Goodman and Tristan Axelrod, and includes associates Matthew Sawyer and Maria DeOliveira.