Dr. George L. Conner III, M.D.; Forrest City Family Practice Clinic v. The Honorable L.T. Simes, Judge

Summary

The Supreme Court of Arkansas denied Dr. George L. Conner and Forrest City Family Practice Clinic’s petition for a writ of prohibition seeking to prevent a wrongful-death action involving an unborn fetus from proceeding. The court held that the circuit court had subject-matter jurisdiction over the medical-malpractice and wrongful-death claims, and that the alleged absence of a cognizable cause of action was not properly addressed through prohibition. The court also declined to treat the petition as one for certiorari because an appeal provided an adequate remedy and extraordinary relief could not be used as a substitute for an interlocutory appeal.

Holdings

1. A writ of prohibition is not available because the circuit court had subject-matter jurisdiction over medical-malpractice and wrongful-death actions, even if the complaint allegedly failed to state a cognizable wrongful-death cause of action.
2. The court declined to treat the petition for prohibition as a petition for certiorari because the record did not show that appeal was an inadequate remedy or that the circuit court had acted without or in excess of jurisdiction.

Questions Presented

1. Whether a writ of prohibition was available to prevent the circuit court from proceeding with a wrongful-death claim when the defendants asserted that no cause of action existed for the wrongful death of a fetus.
2. Whether the petition could be treated as a petition for a writ of certiorari.
3. Whether the defendants lacked an adequate remedy by appeal from the denial of the partial motion to dismiss.

Disposition

writ_denied