Generally speaking, lawsuits have to be filed using the plaintiff’s name. In certain circumstances, though, a court can allow a plaintiff to remain anonymous for protection.
In one of my recent cases, my client had anonymity flipped against her by a large healthcare system. Here, I’ll go over how it happened, when anonymity can be granted, and the consequences that can potentially accompany it.
When is Anonymity Granted During Personal Injury Cases?
99% of the time, both parties in personal injury proceedings (plaintiff and defendant) are identified. In some extenuating circumstances, though, a judge may rule that the plaintiff may remain anonymous. Some of those situations include:
- Cases Involving Minors: In these cases, judges grant anonymity to protect children and their families.
- Sexual Abuse/Assault: In cases involving sexual abuse, assault or harrassment, a judge may grant anonymity to prevent further harm or trauma to the victim.
- Retaliatory Risks: If the plaintiff could be subjected to retaliatory violence or harassment, the court may permit filing under a pseudonym.
- HIPAA Violations: In some cases, plaintiffs can request anonymity on the basis that personal, sensitive health-related information should not be made public.
- Settlements: While settlements happen before trials begin, it’s worth mentioning here because this is exactly what happened to my client in terms of mandatory confidentiality required by the defendant before it would pay the settlement.
Weaponized Anonymity
An unfortunate reality in some lawsuits is that confidentiality can be wielded as a bargaining tool for the defendant against the plaintiff. This happened in a recent case of mine.
A large healthcare system committed one of the worst examples of medical negligence I have seen in my 27-year career. The hospital failed to properly clean its operating room between patients. As a result, an HIV- and syphilis-infected needle was used on my client during her surgery. My client suffered physical trauma and severe emotional injuries including PTSD, anxiety and depression. She is on medication and will be for the rest of her life. She requires lifelong testing and monitoring. She will remain under the care of a psychiatrist indefinitely.
You may have noticed by now that I have not identified the hospital; that is intentional. Before I filed my client’s lawsuit (which would have been filed as “Jane Doe v. [Hospital Name]”), the hospital aggressively made a large financial settlement offer (in the seven-figures) to settle this case out of court. But there was a catch – In exchange for this substantial amount of money, the hospital required complete confidentiality of its own identity. In short, neither my client (nor I) would ever be allowed to disclose the name of the healthcare system where this unthinkable, life-altering medical malpractice occurred.
My client felt victimized . . .for a second time. First, the hospital she trusted to keep her safe during surgery negligently exposed her to two deadly diseases. Then, to make it all go away, the hospital leveraged my client’s fragile condition to force her into a confidential settlement.
I don’t blame my client for agreeing to the confidential settlement. She is suffering. She is embarrassed because she was exposed to two deadly diseases due to no fault of her own. She wants to try to move on. But, ultimately her decision deprives the community at large from learning what this particular hospital did. Public policy disfavors confidentiality because people in the community have the right to know.
I hope the story of what happened here sparks some healthy debate. What would you do if you were in my client’s shoes? Would you turn down a tremendous amount of money so the community could know where this happened? Would you subject yourself to years of litigation where the hospital would attack you for bringing a lawsuit, try to reveal your identity, and minimize how much this affects you? Or would you accept the money and try to put the pieces of your life back together, understanding that your neighbors in your community will be deprived of vital information about their local hospital?
There is no wrong answer, in my opinion. I would have supported my client with either choice she made. This is indeed a Sophie’s Choice.
One thing is certain, though. Large corporations will do everything in their power to bury their wrongdoing, including turning anonymity against a victim like the hospital did in this case.
Brian Lewis Protects What Matters Most
If you or a loved one have been harmed by someone else’s negligence, please call me. We’ll figure out a safe path forward that works best for you.
