De Novo Review For Compliance With Illinois Rule Requiring Health Care Report In Medical Malpractice Case

What is the standard of review for a dismissal with prejudice for failure to file a report from a health care professional within 90 days of filing of the complaint? The Second District Illinois Appellate Court requires de novo review.

Although we typically review the dismissal of a complaint with prejudice (as opposed to without prejudice) under an abuse of discretion standard … we determine that a de novo standard of review applies here, because the trial court’s decision was based on whether plaintiff complied with section 2-622 [Illinois Code of Civil Procedure], which involves statutory interpretation …

In this case, the appellate court reversed the dismissal of the case and remanded to the trial court to determine whether the deadline should have been extended for another 90 days. Read it all, Knight v. Van Matre Rehabilitation Center, No. 2-09-1127 (9/29/10), by clicking here.