On December 14, 2023 Ben Howard successfully defended an alleged oral surgery malpractice case. After deliberating just under three hours, the jury returned a unanimous verdict, 12-0, in the oral surgeon’s favor. While the Plaintiff agreed the oral surgeon appreciated an intimate relationship between the Inferior Alveolar Nerve and the roots of her left lower third molar, she alleged the oral surgeon breached the standard of care by choosing to perform an extraction over a coronectomy (where only the crown of the tooth is removed, and the root tips remain). Although she suffered a permanent nerve injury, the jury agreed the oral surgeon’s deliberative dental decision making complied with the Standard of Care.
