Kockelman

In this wrongful death action, Valerie Kockelman alleged that psychiatrist Dr. Jonathan Segal and the Palo Alto Medical Foundation for Health Care, Research and Education, were negligent in treating her husband, William Kockelman, for his chronic depression, and that this negligence was a proximate cause of her husband’s suicide. The trial court granted summary judgment in favor of defendants, finding as a matter of law that there was no duty owed to the decedent because he was being treated as an outpatient rather than in a hospital setting. We have concluded that this is not the law in California. We therefore reverse the judgment.

Background

The following facts are taken from medical reports and depositions and are not in dispute.

William Kockelman suffered from chronic depression throughout his life. By his own account, he had been depressed “since the age of 1 or 2.” In 1988, at his wife’s request, Kockelman consulted with Dr. Straw, his primary physician at the Palo Alto Medical Clinic (the Clinic), complaining that his depression had been worsening, that he had been unable to sleep and that he had been feeling emotional. Dr. Straw’s notes indicate that Kockelman…