A nurse in Kansas filed a lawsuit against her former employer claiming the hospital falsified patient arrival times at the emergency room to maximize reimbursements.

Former Lawrence Memorial Hospital nurse Megen Duffy filed the federal False Claims Act lawsuit against the hospital in 2014, alleging the hospital misreported arrival times for patients with chest pain in order to maximize the amount of reimbursement money from the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services. Recently, District Court Judge Sam A. Crow dismissed the lawsuit on grounds there was no proof that any data reported by the hospital impacted its Medicare reimbursement.

Russ Johnson, President and CEO of the hospital, defended the hospital's practices and procedures, adding that the lawsuit was expensive and time consuming.

"It has cost this community hospital over one million dollars," Johnson said in a news release. "That is money that could have been used for providing care and services to people who need them so much. That is the real tragedy in this frivolous lawsuit."

—Source: ljworld.com

Real Housewives of Beverly Hills star Kim Richards has been ordered to pay $266,000 in a lawsuit alleging her pit bull, Kingsley, bit a woman.

According to news reports, Kelly Crossley sued Richards seeking unspecified damages after claiming Kingsley viciously attacked her, causing bodily injuries, including permanent scarring, mental, physical and nervous pain and suffering. The judge in the case granted a default judgment in favor of Crossley after Richards failed to show up in court. The amount of $266,092.39, plus costs of $865, was  awarded to Crossley.

This is the third time Kingsley has been charged with biting someone; the first victim was Richards' niece and the second her assistant. The latter of these two dog bite cases was recently settled out of court.

—Source: People.com

A horse in Oregon is suing his former owner for negligence.

According to news reports, Justice, an eight-year-old American quarter horse formerly known as Shadow, has filed a lawsuit against his former owner seeking at least $100,000 in damages for veterinary care, as well as “for pain and suffering.”

The lawsuit, actually filed by the Animal Legal Defense Fund, charges that the horse had been left outside and underfed by his owner, who later pleaded guilty to criminal neglect. After being taken to an equine rescue center, a veterinarian’s exam revealed severe malnourishment, lice infestation and other long-lasting medical conditions requiring care. In addition to seeking to have Justice’s expenses paid for into the future, the case seeks to have the horse recognized as a proper plaintiff.

“There have been a lot of efforts to try to get animals not only to be protected but to have the right to go to court when their rights are violated,” said Matthew Liebman, director of litigation at the Animal Legal Defense Fund. “[Those] haven’t found the right key to the courthouse door. And we’re hopeful that this is the key.”

—Source: Washingtonpost.com

A California judge rejected a lawsuit filed by one Congressional candidate against another over the right to be identified as a small business owner on the November ballot.

According to news reports, a lawsuit was filed against GOP Congressional (California's 39th District) candidate Young Kim, owner of public relations firm YK Connections, claiming she did not have the right to identify herself as a small business owner. The Kim campaign blamed Democratic Congressional opponent Gil Cisneros for funding the “frivolous” lawsuit. Cisneros, who won $266 million in a Mega Million lottery jackpot, did not respond to questions whether he funded the lawsuit filed by two small-business owners.

"Winning the lotto doesn't give you the right to bully other candidates, and it certainly doesn't mean you can buy an election," said Kim spokesman David Gilliard. "The judge saw right through this false lawsuit and outright rejected this attempt to smear Young Kim's well-documented history as a local small-business owner."

In ruling for Kim and rejecting the lawsuit, Judge Allen Sumner wrote, “The court is not convinced petitioners have even made a prima facie showing Kim's ‘small business owner' ballot designation is either false or misleading. Assuming they did, Kim's declaration sufficiently rebuts any such showing."

In rejecting the lawsuit, the judge determined the case was unmerited because it didn't consider that the business in question is a sole proprietorship and is not required to file taxes or incorporation documents with the state, contrary to plaintiffs’ claim. Instead, the judge noted Kim appropriately reported the income from her sole proprietor business on her personal income tax returns.

Kim's ballot description was approved by California's secretary of state for the June 5 primary and went unchallenged. The lawsuit was filed after Kim and Cisneros were the top two finishers in the primary.

—Source: The Washingtn Free Beacon