W. Kirk Abbott, Jr.
W. Kirk Abbott, Jr. ("Kirk") joined Sulloway & Hollis in 1992. Prior to joining the firm, Mr. Abbott practiced for six years as a criminal defense attorney with the New Hampshire Public Defender Program, where he tried 20 to 30 jury trials and hundreds of bench trials. From 1989 to 1992, Mr. Abbott practiced with the New Hampshire Appellate Defender Program where he authored approximately 65 briefs filed with the New Hampshire Supreme Court and appeared before the Court approximately 50 times for oral argument.
Early in his tenure at Sulloway, Mr. Abbott focused on workers' compensation defense and general tort defense matters. From 1995 to the present, Mr. Abbott has represented health-care providers in lawsuits and before administrative agencies.
- Health-Care Litigation
- Medical Malpractice Defense
- Administrative Agency Defense
- A.B., Bowdoin College
- J.D., Franklin Pierce Law Center
- New Hampshire State Courts: District, Superior, and Supreme
- United States District Court for the District of New Hampshire
- United States Court of Appeals for the First Circuit
- Supreme Court of the United States
Since joining Sulloway, Mr. Abbott has successfully defended physicians in lawsuits filed in superior courts throughout the State of New Hampshire. Several of those successful defenses were:
- Defendant's verdict for adult internist whom the plaintiff claimed had negligently failed to diagnose and treat a cerebral vascular accident. The jury found for Mr. Abbott's client, the defendant physician
- Defendant's verdict for family-practice physician whom the plaintiff claimed had negligently failed to detect retained placental products after delivery. The jury found for Mr. Abbott's client, the defendant physician
- Defendant's verdict for obstetrician whom the plaintiff claimed had negligently failed to schedule an expedited c-section for a double footling breech presentation. The jury found for Mr. Abbott's client, the defendant physician
- Defendant's verdict for emergency-medicine physician whom the plaintiff claimed had negligently failed to order a CT for diffuse abdominal pain to rule out appendicitis. The jury found for Mr. Abbott's client, the defendant physician
- Defendant's verdict for anesthesiologist whom the plaintiff claimed had negligently failed to monitor and reposition upper extremities during surgery. The jury found for Mr. Abbott's client, the defendant physician
- Defendant's verdict for emergency-medicine physician whom the plaintiff claimed had negligently failed to order fluid resuscitation in the emergency department. The jury found for Mr. Abbott's client, the defendant physician
- Defendant's verdict for general surgeon whom the plaintiff claimed had negligently failed to detect a perforation both during and after a laparoscopic cholecystectomy. The jury found for Mr. Abbott's client, the defendant physician
- Defendant's verdict for a general surgeon whom the plaintiff claimed had negligently caused a nerve injury during an excisional lymph node biopsy in the anterior cervical triangle. The jury found for Mr. Abbott's client, the defendant physician
- Successful defense before the New Hampshire Supreme Court of a favorable Superior Court order granting summary judgment for a family-medicine physician whose patient had committed suicide
Approximately one-third of the cases involving allegations of medical negligence Mr. Abbott handles are dropped without trial or payment. Those cases which must be resolved in a non-trial manner are resolved within the policy limits.
Mr. Abbott acts as general counsel for a large physician group routinely answering questions regarding subpoenas, claim notices, liability insurance issues, privacy matters, inquiries from the New Hampshire Board of Medicine, inquiries from HMOs, and routine risk management issues.
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