In this post Helen Waller of 12KBW discusses Mrs Justice Yip’s dismissal of a claim that sought to establish that a doctor owed a duty of care to disclose a patient’s hereditary disease to his child.
An earlier appeal of a strike out application in this tragic case has already been reported on by Rachit Buch of 12KBW. That report can be found here:
The Factual Background
In brief summary of the facts, the father, XX, had killed the claimant’s mother in 2007, for which he was made subject of a restricted Hospital Order pursuant to the Mental Health Act 1983 following a conviction for manslaughter by reason of diminished responsibility. It transpired that XX had Huntington’s disease, a hereditary choreic syndrome. XX made it clear that he did not want the claimant and her sister to know. This remained true when XX learnt that the claimant was pregnant. XX knew that his status meant that the claimant might have Huntington’s disease and her unborn child also. He was aware that this might influence her decision about whether to continue with the pregnancy. Continue reading “ABC v St George’s Healthcare NHS Trust & Ors [2020] EWHC 455 (QB) Does a doctor owe a duty of care to disclose a hereditary disease to a patient’s child?”
