Overview
- The Bundesgerichtshof (BGH) has quashed the Schleswig-Holstein Oberlandesgericht's decision, sending the case back for retrial with new expert evaluation.
- Parents allege that emergency call delays and a 50-minute wait for a Notarzt in 2017 led to their child’s hypoxic brain damage and subsequent death in 2018.
- The BGH criticized earlier rulings for not consulting a medical-legal expert to assess if an immediate Notarzt dispatch was warranted under emergency guidelines.
- The retrial will examine whether breaches of duty by emergency services directly caused the child’s injuries and fatal outcome.
- The case revisits liability standards for emergency response in obstetric crises, challenging the Bundesärztekammer’s indication catalog used in prior rulings.