St. Petersburg, Fla.-based Johns Hopkins All Children's Hospital has filed a reply brief in its appeal of the case made famous by a Netflix documentary, addressing points raised by the Kowalski family, who sued the hospital in 2018.
This marks the final major filing before oral arguments, which are set to begin in 2025, according to court documents shared with Becker's.
Here are 11 things to know about the reply brief:
- The appeal centers on several aspects of the trial court's rulings, including the wrongful death verdict, claims of intentional infliction of emotional distress, insurance fraud allegations, and Johns Hopkins All Children's Hospital's use of legal immunity in child protection cases.
- Johns Hopkins All Children's Hospital argued that its actions stemmed from genuine concerns for Maya Kowalski's safety, not malicious intent.
- The hospital stated, "Pediatricians' good-faith participation in child-abuse investigations is not 'utterly intolerable in a civilized community.'"
- The hospital challenged the $5 million jury award for insurance fraud, alleging that plaintiffs only sought $1 in damages and failed to provide evidence of actual financial harm.
- Johns Hopkins All Children's Hospital called for a new trial with an unbiased jury for any remaining claims.
- The hospital also alleged that it detailed Maya's deteriorating condition prior to her 2016 admission, aiming to dispute claims that its actions reversed her progress. Additionally, the reply brief alleges that records showed Maya's pain persisted despite intensive ketamine treatments, with her quality of life rated as "zero" before entering Johns Hopkins All Children's Hospital.
- Johns Hopkins All Children's Hospital emphasized its good-faith compliance with Florida child protection laws, arguing that it should be shielded from liability for its actions. The hospital also criticized the trial court's interpretation of immunity statutes, claiming it misapplied legal protections.
- This appeal seeks to overturn parts of the original verdict and clarify legal standards for healthcare providers involved in child-abuse investigations.
- This brief follows a verdict in which a six-person jury awarded the Kowalski family more than $261 million in compensatory and punitive damages against Johns Hopkins All Children's Hospital after a two-month trial in 2023.
- The Kowalski family sued All Children's in 2018 after the hospital reported Beata Kowalski, the mother of Maya Kowalski, a patient at the hospital, for suspected child abuse in 2016 after she requested ketamine to treat her daughter for chronic pain. The girl was removed by the state and sheltered at the hospital for three months, during which Beata Kowalski died by suicide.
- A Netflix documentary titled Take Care of Maya, released in June 2023, covered the saga and was viewed nearly 14 million times in the first two weeks of its debut.