CVN screenshot of plaintiff attorney Courtney Rowley delivering her opening statement
Seattle, WA - A Washington state court jury heard opening statements Friday in a lawsuit filed by a man claiming he suffered a traumatic brain injury after being dropped on the operating room floor following routine shoulder surgery, and the full trial is being webcast gavel-to-gavel by Courtroom View Network.
Plaintiff Jason Suplizio and his wife, Abigail Suplizio, sued Proliance Surgeons Inc. following the 2021 incident that Suplizio alleges left him with permanent and debilitating neurological injuries. His attorney, Courtney Rowley of Trial Lawyers For Justice, told the King County jury she would seek up to $52.4 million in damages citing his supposed dramatic drop in quality of life following the incident.
Proliance, represented by James Looper of Hall Booth Smith PC, told jurors they concede liability for the operating room fall but maintain Suplizio does not have a traumatic brain injury, and that both the extent and severity of his alleged symptoms are unsupported by the evidence.
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Rowley described how Suplizio fell off the operating table while coming out of anesthesia following his shoulder surgery in 2021, with his head striking the floor while his legs remained strapped to the table.
“He fell like a pendulum onto the OR floor,” Rowley said, according to CVN’s webcast of the trial.
She described how after Suplizio, though still conscious at the time, was transported to a hospital from the outpatient surgical center his wife began noticing signs of a possible brain injury, like being unable to remember answers to questions he asked moments ago.
Rowley argued Suplizio showed classic symptoms of a concussion, which she described as indistinguishable in this case from a traumatic brain injury, such as nausea and sensitivity to light, and he was eventually discharged with a concussion diagnosis after various radiological scans didn’t indicate any acute injuries.
However Rowley told jurors his condition continued to deteriorate despite having no obvious visible symptoms.
“People with brain injuries can look normal,” she explained, characterizing TBI’s as a “silent epidemic.”
Suplizio, formerly an avid outdoorsmen, became withdrawn and reclusive, sometimes sleeping for up to 15 hours a day. Rowley described him isolating himself in the basement during family functions to avoid overstimulation, when he previously took pleasure in being the active head of the family.
“This man was 'go, go, go' his whole life,” she said.
Rowley told jurors that Suplizio, a highly paid software engineer on a "rapid upward career trajectory” before the accident has since seen his progress at work stall out, in part due to classic TBI symptoms like “brain fog” making it harder for him to work as quickly as he used to.
Representing Proliance, Looper took pains to assure the jury he wasn’t accusing Suplizio of faking any symptoms, and the surgical center wants to do the right thing and take responsibility for the fall, but that an award of more than $50 million would be unreasonable.
“Mr. Suplizio is asking for damages not supported by the evidence,” Looper flatly stated, suggesting an alternative award in the hundreds of thousands of dollars.
CVN screenshot of defense attorney James Looper delivering his opening statement
Looper argued while Suplizio does have some symptoms classically associated with a TBI there is no evidence to actually connect those symptoms to ant physical brain injury. Looper repeatedly stressed Suplizio underwent an aggressive battery of tests, including MRI’s and CT scans, and that none showed any physical injury to his brain.
Rather than rely on objective evidence, Looper accused Suplizio’s legal team of basing their case on “subjective symptomatology.” He also added that some of Suplizio’s supposed TBI-related symptoms like sleep apnea are exacerbated by his unwillingness to regularly use a CPAP breathing machine.
The trial is taking place before Judge Jim Rogers, and CVN’s live and on-demand gavel-to-gavel coverage will continue for the duration of the proceedings.
The case is captioned Jason and Abigail Suplizio v. Proliance Surgeons Inc., et al., case number 23-2-25448-1 SEA in King County Superior Court.
Email David Siegel at dsiegel@cvn.com
