Bender v. Underwood

In Bender v. Underwood, 93 A.D.2d 747 [1st Dept. 1983], six plaintiffs attempted to join in one action claiming negligence and medical malpractice against a single defendant. However, there was no commonality among the claims other than that each had undergone a similar procedure by the same defendant. While the court acknowledged that some common issues of law or fact were present, it also found that individual issues concerning particular circumstances applicable to each plaintiff predominated so as to preclude the direction of a joint trial. The court went on to state that: "Although it is claimed that each plaintiff underwent the same implantation process and was allegedly subjected to the same basic type of malpractice, clearly, each treatment was separate and distinct, involving different plaintiffs, each with individual medical histories" (Bender v. Underwood, supra, 93 A.D.2d at 748).