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Saturday, May 03, 2008

Ind. Court - Judge files suit against school to avoid statute of limitations

Mike Ricketts reported yesterday in the Bedford Times-Mail in a story that begins:

BLOOMINGTON — Lawrence Circuit Court Judge Andrea McCord has filed a civil suit against the Mitchell Community Schools to avoid the two-year statute of limitations expiring, and to ensure that medical bills from the treatment of injuries she suffered when hit by a discus at a school track meet continue to be paid.

“It’s really not about anything with the school,” McCord said Thursday afternoon. “It’s just about the insurance company and the medical bills. I’m still being treated and the two-year statute of limitations was up April 26, and I had to file this so the school’s insurance would continue to pay my medical bills.”

Medical civil suits in Indiana have a two-year time frame in which they can be filed.

On April 26, 2006, McCord was in the parking lot of Mitchell High School to pick up her child after school, according to the court filing. While in the parking area talking to another person, McCord was struck in the head by a discus thrown from the nearby area used for the particular field event competition. The discus caused injuries to McCord’s head and neck.

Mitchell schools attorney Chris Burton views the lawsuit, filed in Monroe Circuit Court, in much the same way as Judge McCord, a necessary procedural matter.

“We’re not upset by this,” Burton said. “We recognize that it is the process we have to go through sometimes. We have forwarded it on to our insurance company (Indiana Insurance) and it doesn’t cause us any undue concern; we don’t view it as a slap in the face or something like that.”

McCord’s attorney, Pete Obremskey, said the suit is needed only out of the necessity to protect his client’s rights. Being a judge in Lawrence County, McCord hired the Lebanon attorney as to not limit a local lawyer from being able to practice in front of her in future cases. It was also necessary to file the suit in Monroe County as to not create a conflict of interest because McCord is a judge in the county where the incident happened.

Posted by Marcia Oddi on May 3, 2008 09:48 AM
Posted to Indiana Courts