Halper v. Jewish Family & Children's Service

963 A.2d 1282, 600 Pa. 145, 2009 Pa. LEXIS 258
CourtSupreme Court of Pennsylvania
DecidedFebruary 19, 2009
Docket2 EAP 2007, 3 EAP 2007
StatusPublished
Cited by20 cases

This text of 963 A.2d 1282 (Halper v. Jewish Family & Children's Service) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Supreme Court of Pennsylvania primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Halper v. Jewish Family & Children's Service, 963 A.2d 1282, 600 Pa. 145, 2009 Pa. LEXIS 258 (Pa. 2009).

Opinions

OPINION

Justice EAKIN.

Jack and Marlene Halper adopted their son, David, in 1964 through Jewish Family and Children’s Service of Greater Philadelphia. David’s life has been riddled with mental health problems, treatment, suicide attempts, continuous drug abuse, and poor social relationships. In 1979, David was hospitalized for depression, drug dependence, and adolescent adjustment reaction following a suicide attempt. From 1980 through 1999, the Halpers and David sought his birth mother’s medical records to facilitate treatment and insight into David’s problems.

The Agency had a file on David’s birth mother, which included a psychiatrist’s letter indicating she suffered from undifferentiated schizophrenia. That letter was not in David’s file; apparently it had been placed in the file of David’s younger sibling, who was also placed for adoption through the Agency. It was not produced for the plaintiffs until 1999.

The Halpers1 brought an action against the Agency alleging two theories of negligence. First, the Halpers alleged “wrongful adoption,” i. e., the Agency improperly failed to notify them of David’s birth mother’s mental history. Second, [149]*149the Halpers asserted the Agency negligently misfiled the birth mother’s medical information, so that when they later sought such information, it was not available; as a result, David did not receive the psychiatric care he might have otherwise received. David brought his own action, which mirrored the claims in the Halpers’ second “failure to disclose” theory.

The jury returned a general verdict finding the Agency negligent; the jury was not asked to differentiate between the “wrongful adoption” and “failure to disclose” theories. The jury awarded the Halpers $225,000 and David $75,000. The Halpers and the Agency appealed.

On appeal, the Superior Court found the verdict “too muddled to be legally supported.” Halper v. Jewish Family and Children’s Service of Greater Philadelphia, No. 2476 EDA 2004, 2005 WL 3417271 and No. 2517 EDA 2004, unpublished memorandum at 4, 2005 WL 3417273 (Pa.Super. filed September 6, 2005). It found the Halpers presented conflicting expert testimony regarding whether David was properly diagnosed as schizophrenic, or major depressive with psychotic features. Id., at 5-6. However, relying on Brannan v. Lankenau Hospital, 490 Pa. 588, 417 A.2d 196 (1980), the Superior Court embraced the Agency’s argument that at the time of the adoption, schizophrenia was believed to be a reactive disorder of the mind, not as an inherited or foreseeable condition; thus, it would not have been negligent to have kept that information from the Halpers. Id., at 6-7 (citing Gibbs v. Ernst, 538 Pa. 193, 647 A.2d 882, 891 (1994)). As the verdict sheet did not differentiate between the two theories of negligence offered, the verdict was problematic because David was only able to recover under the second theory of liability, negligent failure to disclose, as opposed to negligent misrepresentation. Therefore, the Superior Court reversed the judgment and remanded for a new trial concerning David’s claim, limited to the issue of negligent failure to disclose, ie., the misfiling of David’s birth mother’s medical information and the resulting damages. Id., at 8. The court noted all other claims raised were relevant to the issue of wrongful adoption and were rendered moot. Id., [150]*150at 10. For reasons unstated, the remand was limited to David’s claim alone.

Justice Montemuro dissented, finding the expert testimony was not so contradictory that the jury was left with no guidance regarding the nature of David’s mental illness. Halper v. Jewish Family and Children’s Service of Greater Philadelphia, No. 2476 EDA 2004, 2005 WL 3417271 and No. 2517 EDA 2004, unpublished memorandum at 2, 2005 WL 3417273 (Pa.Super. filed September 6, 2005) (Montemuro, J., dissenting). The dissent stated the testimony can be reconciled as there are two complimentary explanations for the variant diagnoses. First, the ingestion of medication could affect diagnoses, and second, David was difficult to diagnose because many major psychiatric disorders are “co-morbid,” disorders that occur together. Id., at 2-3. Furthermore, Justice Montemuro opined that under Gibbs, failure to disclose applies in the adoption context; thus, the Halpers were under no obligation to show it was foreseeable that David’s birth mother’s mental health problems might negatively impact David in order to establish the Agency had a duty to disclose information regarding her mental illness. Id., at 3-4. The Halpers and David appealed.

We granted allowance of appeal to determine:

1. Whether the Superior Court erred in its interpretation and application of Gibbs v. Ernst, 538 Pa. 193, 647 A.2d 882 (1994) in this appeal.
2. Whether the Superior Court erred in its interpretation and application of Braman v. Lankenau Hospital, 490 Pa. 588, 417 A.2d 196 (1980) in this appeal.
3. Whether the Superior Court erred in failing to remand Jack and Marlene Halper’s claim for failure to timely produce the medical history of the adoptee’s birthmother for a new trial.
4. Whether the Superior Court erred in concluding that there was an absence of evidence to establish that Jack and Marlene Halper would not have adopted David Halper had they known of the birthmother’s mental health.

[151]*151Halper v. Jewish Family and Children’s Service of Greater Philadelphia, 591 Pa. 399, 919 A.2d 184 (2007). “Although all new trial orders are subject to appellate review, it is well-established law that, absent a clear abuse of discretion by the trial court, appellate courts must not interfere with the trial court’s authority to grant or deny a new trial.” Harman ex rel. Harman v. Borah, 562 Pa. 455, 756 A.2d 1116, 1121-22 (2000) (citations omitted). We are faced with questions of law, which are subject to de novo review, and our scope of review is plenary. In re Milton Hershey School, 590 Pa. 35, 911 A.2d 1258, 1261 (2006).

The Halpers first argue they were under no obligation to show the foreseeability of David’s birth mother’s mental illness in order to establish the Agency had a duty to disclose the information concerning her condition. They also assert the Superior Court majority erred in its interpretation and application of this Court’s decision in Gibbs in holding the duty of adoption agencies with regard to negligent misrepresentation is only applicable where the condition of the child was foreseeable at the time of placement. The Halpers agree with the dissent, which discussed the Agency’s duty to fully disclose all non-identifying information about a child without attaching a foreseeability element.

The Agency counters the Superior Court correctly interpreted Gibbs in determining the foreseeability element is required in the context of both negligent misrepresentation and negligent failure to disclose.

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Bluebook (online)
963 A.2d 1282, 600 Pa. 145, 2009 Pa. LEXIS 258, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/halper-v-jewish-family-childrens-service-pa-2009.