Judgment of 14 May 1991
Neue juristische Wochenschrift 1991(37): 2355-2356
1991
ISSN/ISBN: 0341-1907 PMID: 12346990 Document Number: 342228
The plaintiff sought damages for pain and suffering resulting from a stillbirth that occurred during the thirty-fourth week of pregnancy. She claimed that her physician had not reacted to signs that there was a problem with the fetus and, thus, had failed to admit her to a hospital in time to save the fetus. The defendant responded by arguing that a fetus was not a person and, thus, could not be the subject of a claim for pain and suffering. The High Regional Court at Oldenburg, Germany, rejected this argument, holding that injury to a fetus also signifies injury to the pregnant woman. It also ruled, however, that, in this case, the plaintiff had not shown sufficient causation between her physician's failure to make a correct diagnosis and the injury to the fetus.