$1.66 Million Verdict for Truck Driver Left in Kidney Failure After Delayed Diagnosis

Michael Davis was 40 years old and working as a truck driver when he received a kidney transplant -- the consequence, his attorneys argued, of years of overlooked warning signs at a medical center in Williston, North Dakota.

Davis first visited CHI St. Alexius Health Williston in February 2016 with flu-like symptoms. Blood tests showed an elevated white blood cell count, but no specialist referral followed. He returned in October 2016 complaining of frothy urine; blood and urine tests again showed abnormal results. A urologist examined him in January 2017 and found no urological cause for the findings. By June 2017, lab results showed protein and blood levels in his urine had tripled. In September 2017, Davis went to the emergency room with elevated creatinine and a reduced kidney filtration rate. Dr. David Keene treated him three times during that period without ordering a urinalysis or referring him to a nephrologist.

Only in March 2018, after a different physician finally referred Davis to a kidney specialist, did a renal biopsy at Mayo Clinic confirm the diagnosis: IgA nephropathy, a progressive kidney disease. By then, Davis was already in kidney failure. On March 4, 2020, he received a kidney transplant and could no longer work as a truck driver.

At trial in Williams County, the Davises argued that a timely nephrology referral could have changed the outcome entirely. Their expert, nephrologist Dr. Bradley Denker, testified that IgA nephropathy is treatable and that earlier intervention would likely have delayed Davis's kidney failure by approximately 15 years. The jury agreed, finding Dr. Keene at fault for failing to refer Davis to a nephrologist and awarding $1,660,000 in damages, plus costs.

Defendants appealed to the North Dakota Supreme Court. On August 17, 2023, the court affirmed the core verdict, including the $1.1 million future damages award and the finding of proximate causation. It made a limited reduction to past economic damages (from $400,000 to $386,919.04) for lack of evidentiary support on the excess, and reversed the costs-and-disbursements award, remanding that portion for further proceedings. The parties later resolved the remaining costs dispute, reaching a total recovery of $1.82 million. Mark Larson of Larson Law Injury and Accident Lawyers in Minot served as local plaintiff's counsel.