S. Florida parents sue their teen son

It started with a botched hospital delivery. Many years and many legal bills later, the Florida Legislature ordered a hospital to pay the victim, then14, compensation of $15 million. The parents and a high-profile Palm Beach lawfirm got involved, suing the son for a share of the millions.

Aweirdand tangled case made its way through a Palm Beach County court over the past few months, pitting parents of a severely disabled child against their 15-year-old son as they sued him for hundreds of thousands of dollars.

Nowa judge has thrown out the lawsuit.

More than a year ago, the Legislature ordered Lee Memorial Hospital to pay $15 million to then 14-year-old Aaron Edwards, left severely disabled at birth by a botched hospital delivery.

But language in the bill barred Edwards’ parents from getting any of that money — it had to go directly to Aaron’s care. And the lawyers, who spent more than a decade litigating and then lobbying the case, were limited to $100,000.

So the parents and the Searcy Denney law firm of Palm Beach sued. But last week, Palm Beach County Circuit JudgeMartin Colin found that “there appears to be no legal basis to challenge a fee provision of a Claims Bill, even when it is, without explanation, unfair on its face.”

Chris Searcy said they were likely to appeal the case, which he said was vital for future victims looking to government entities protected by sovereign immunity laws.

“Because otherwise, what’s going to happen? Wrongfully injured victims of sovereign immunity can’t get a lawyer to help them because the lawyers know they aren’t going to get paid,” he said.

In 2007, Edwards’ parentswon a $30 million jury verdict against the hospital for malpractice in Edwards’ birth. His mother, Mitzi Roden, had been given high doses of pitosin, which caused her contractions to speed up rapidly and denied her son oxygen.

Thestate’s sovereign immunity law limited the county hospital’s payout to $200,000. Only when the Legislature passed a “claims bill” that ordered a $15 million payment did Edwards see any money.

But lawmakers — protesting lobbying by attorneys on this and other claims bills — ordered that all but $100,000 must go to Edwards, who lives with his mother after his parents divorced.

The parents — awarded a total of $2.4 million in damagesin the malpractice suit — argued that they were entitled to a portion of the money and sought just under $600,000. The lawyers, saying they deserved to be paid more, sought to throwout the fee cap.

A trustee handles Edwards’ accountandhas discretion over what expenses are directly related to his care.

FT. MYERS NEWS-PRESS/COURTESY Mitzi Roden, right, and her husband can’t get the $2.4 million they were awarded out of a $15 million settlement the state gave their son, Aaron Edwards, left.