Gomes v. Hameed, No. 103013 ( Okla. Jan. 22, 2008)

The Supreme Court of Oklahoma affirmed in part and reversed in part summary judgment that had been granted in favor of two physicians who had been sued for negligence, holding that: (1) the absence of a contractual relationship with an emergency room patient entitles a physician to immunity from negligence claims under the state's Good Samaritan Act, and (2) an agreement not to sue that is made on behalf of a minor or incapacitated individual requires court approval to be enforceable.

In this case, two physicians responded to a "code blue" after a patient at the hospital stopped breathing. One of the physicians was a solo practitioner who was visiting the hospital to care for his own patient; the other was a resident at the hospital. The patient was resuscitated, but sustained permanent brain damage and eventually died. The guardian ad litem filed a malpractice lawsuit against the hospital. The doctors who assisted the patient during the code blue testified during that lawsuit. In exchange for that testimony, the doctors claimed that the guardian's attorneys promised not to sue them.

Nevertheless, after the lawsuit against the hospital failed, the guardian filed a negligence claim against the physicians. They moved for summary judgment on the basis of the promise not to sue. The trial court granted summary judgment and the court of appeals affirmed. On appeal, the Supreme Court of Oklahoma affirmed the summary judgment in favor of the solo practitioner who was at the hospital visiting his own patient, finding that he had no contractual relationship with the patient and was therefore protected by the state's Good Samaritan Act. However, the court overturned the summary judgment that had been granted to the resident, holding that any agreement of a guardian to waive the legal rights of a minor or incapacitated person must be approved by a court before it is effective. The court remanded the case for additional proceedings, noting that the trial court could consider this matter further and choose to approve the agreement not to sue.