Pina v. Espinoza

2001 NMCA 055, 29 P.3d 1062, 130 N.M. 661
CourtNew Mexico Court of Appeals
DecidedJune 29, 2001
Docket20,738
StatusPublished
Cited by29 cases

This text of 2001 NMCA 055 (Pina v. Espinoza) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering New Mexico Court of Appeals primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Pina v. Espinoza, 2001 NMCA 055, 29 P.3d 1062, 130 N.M. 661 (N.M. Ct. App. 2001).

Opinion

OPINION

ALARID, Judge.

{1} This case requires us to decide the extent to which a plaintiff in a personal injury action may be required to disclose confidential communications contained in her medical records. We take this opportunity to set out guidelines for discovery of physician-patient communications when the plaintiff has placed a medical condition at issue. Because we conclude that the trial court abused its discretion in ordering Plaintiff to execute a blanket release, we reverse.

BACKGROUND

{2} Plaintiff sued Defendant alleging, inter alia, that Defendant’s vehicle rear-ended Plaintiffs vehicle and that “[a]s a direct and proximate result of [Defendant’s] negligence and the resulting collision, Plaintiff has suffered personal injury including past, present and future pain and suffering; past, present and future medical expenses; lost earnings and lost earning capacity, and loss of enjoyment of life.”

{8} Defendant served interrogatories directing Plaintiff to identify each health professional who had treated Plaintiff for any reason in the five years preceding the accident. Defendant also served requests for production of documents, which included a request that Plaintiff execute a general medical release attached to Defendant’s requests for production.

{4} Plaintiff responded to Defendant’s discovery requests by serving objections and by filing a motion for protective order. Plaintiffs motion asserted that Plaintiff had an expectation of privacy in her medical records and that her records were confidential under both Rule 11-504 NMRA 2001 and NMSA 1978, § 14-6-1 (1977). Plaintiff pointed out that Defendant’s right of access “is no greater than that which is relevant.” Plaintiff requested an in camera review of her medical records in order to maintain the privacy of non-relevant information. Plaintiff requested a protective order to prevent Defendant from using Plaintiffs medical records for any purpose other than the present litigation.

{5} Defendant filed a motion to compel and a Memorandum in Opposition to Plaintiffs Motion for Protective Order and in Support of Defendant’s Motion to Compel. Defendant argued that Plaintiff had not shown good cause for a protective order. Defendant argued that “the physician-patient privilege is waived once the Plaintiff places her' physical, mental or emotional condition at issue.” Defendant argued that

Plaintiff has placed her physical condition at issue by alleging in her complaint that “as a direct and proximate result of [Defendant’s] negligence and the resulting collision, Plaintiff has suffered personal injury, including past, present, and future pain and suffering; past, present, and future medical expenses; lost earnings and lost earning capacity, and loss of enjoyment of life.”

Defendant argued that discovery of Plaintiffs medical records was governed by the broad standard of Rule 1-026 NMRA 2001, rather than the more restrictive definition of relevance in the Rules of Evidence.

{6} In her response to Defendant’s motion to compel, Plaintiff pointed out that Defendant was seeking information relating to Plaintiffs gynecological and obstetric conditions without allowing any protection for Plaintiffs privacy.

{7} The trial court denied Plaintiffs motion for a protective order and granted Defendant’s motion to compel. The trial court found that “Plaintiffs medical bills and records are not privileged insofar as Plaintiff has placed her medical condition at issue.” The trial court ordered Plaintiff to execute a blanket release containing the following language:

This [release] will authorize you to release all of my medical records, files and reports, including prognosis and diagnosis, hospital records, nurse’s notes, x-rays, and any other information requested, together with copies of all medical bills incurred to REEVES, CHAVEZ, GREENFIELD & WALKER, P.A.

{8} Thereafter, Defendant filed a Motion to Dismiss, or Alternatively to Compel Discovery and Sanctions. Defendant cited the trial court’s order denying Plaintiffs motion for protective order and granting Defendant’s motion to compel. Defendant advised the trial court that Plaintiff had rewritten the release to restrict it to medical records relating to the automobile accident. Defendant argued that “sanctions are appropriate, including the sanction of dismissal.”

{9} In her response, Plaintiff conceded that Defendant correctly stated the history of the discovery dispute. Plaintiff stated that she had supplemented her previous discovery responses by

A. Producing copies of all medical records in [her] possession regarding treatment for injuries she suffered in the collision [with Defendant];
B. Producing copies of all medical bills in [her] possession for treatment incurred as a result of the collision; and
C. [Identifying] ... all medical providers for the previous five years.

Plaintiff conceded that she had not executed a release in the form ordered by the trial court, but asserted that she had executed a modified release “for every single provider of medical services related to this collision.” Plaintiff asserted that “[i]n order to preserve her claim of physician-patient privilege and to preserve the issue of privilege, Plaintiff must not waive the privilege. By signing the Court-ordered medical release form, she would be waiving her physician-patient privilege and failing to preserve the issue of privilege.”

{10} The trial court held a hearing on Defendant’s motion for sanctions. The trial court inquired of Plaintiffs counsel whether Plaintiffs failure to comply with the trial court’s discovery ruling was in dispute. Plaintiffs counsel conceded that Plaintiff had failed to comply with the trial court’s prior order. The trial court then inquired “that being the case, then, where do we go from here, folks? What do we do?”

{11} Defendant’s counsel laid out Defendant’s position:

I think you have got a number of options under Rule 37(B). The most severe of which is dismissal of this ease. That’s what I would suggest for a number of reasons. From my client’s standpoint, I think it is — to offer anything less than a dismissal in this case, given a clear violation of this Court’s unambiguous order, would not be appropriate. As I understand the Plaintiffs position, they want an order of dismissal as an avenue for appeal. One way or another, I think the Plaintiff intends to appeal this case. I would just [as soon] have it go straight up on appeal now and save my client the money, the time, the expense and potentially a second trial, instead of having to go through a trial and then having it taken up for appeal. So I think that, given what has happened in this case, I think dismissal is appropriate.

Plaintiffs counsel and the trial court then engaged in the following discussion:

THE COURT: [Counsel], any response?

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Bluebook (online)
2001 NMCA 055, 29 P.3d 1062, 130 N.M. 661, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/pina-v-espinoza-nmctapp-2001.