Attorneys Margonari, Johnson & Podheiser Obtain Precedential PA Superior Court Opinion in Defense Win

Burns White attorneys Daniel Margonari, David Johnson & Ira Podheiser obtained precedential Pennsylvania Superior Court opinion in defense win. On November 14, 2023, the Pennsylvania Superior Court issued a precedential opinion in favor of a methadone clinic and its employees.  The central issue of the case was whether a methadone clinic could be held liable to third parties for the actions of its patients.  The initial complaint alleged that a patient of the methadone clinic killed a third-party pedestrian after receiving and ingesting a larger-than-normal dose of methadone. In 2020, defendants obtained dismissal on preliminary objections at the trial court level.  The plaintiff appealed. In May of 2023, a three-judge panel of the Pennsylvania Superior Court heard live oral argument from Dan Margonari on behalf of all defendant-appellees.   The panel subsequently issued a published, precedential opinion affirming Burns White’s arguments that the duties of a methadone clinic do not extend to society at large.