Father of two adult children died shortly after a routine knee surgery as a result of an aspiration event that was ignored. This is the largest recorded verdict for adult beneficiaries in the state. During the litigation the target surgeon defendant maintained that a nurse’s note indicated that he was never aware of the patient’s condition thus placing blame on the nurse. After obtaining a settlement with the hospital, Mr. Van Naarden located the nurse and deposed her just days before trial. Her testimony revealed that her note actually confirmed that the surgeon was made aware of the patient’s condition. The surgeon in response to this damning testimony maintained that he was better at interpreting the nurse handwriting than the actual nurse that authored the note. This contention was rejected by the jury. The defense also hired a world renowned forensic pathologist to opine that the cause of death was different than what was initially thought. Mr. Van Naarden was able to get this expert to agree that it was just as likely that the initial cause of death was correct.