Berman & Simmons has achieved record-setting medical malpractice verdicts back-to-back in 2026, totaling more than $40 Million against Northern Light Health.
The first record-setting verdict was a $23.1 Million award by an Aroostook County jury on June 18, 2026, was achieved by Berman & Simmons attorneys Travis Brennan and Chuck Hehmeyer. The verdict set a new record in Maine as the largest non-death medical malpractice verdict in the state's history, and it is also the largest medical malpractice verdict of any kind awarded by a jury outside of Portland. Berman & Simmons brought the case on behalf of a 40-year-old Madawaska man who sought treatment at Northern Light A.R. Gould Hospital, where a radiologist failed to diagnose the large bony calcification that posed a danger to his spinal cord. His neurological symptoms were also overlooked by his primary care provider at Northern Light, and by an orthopedic specialist at Northern Light A.R. Gould Hospital. The end result of this medical negligence was permanent paralysis.
The second record-setting verdict was a $17 Million award by a Kennebec County jury on July 23, 2026, which was achieved by Berman & Simmons attorneys Susan A. Faunce and Travis M. Brennan. The verdict is the largest medical malpractice verdict in Maine's history for a surgical error. Berman & Simmons brought the case on behalf of a local woman who underwent a routine laparoscopic surgery to remove a benign ovarian cyst in 2023 at Northern Light Inland Hospital. During that operation, the surgeon mistakenly removed her bladder. As a result of this negligence, the woman was left permanently impaired, and continues to require ongoing medical care and self-catheterization as a result of her injuries.
News outlets across Maine have been covering the record-setting verdicts, including News Center Maine and the Bangor Daily News.