Garcia

—Plaintiff Andrew Garcia, a minor, by his guardian ad litem, Paul Garcia, sued Dr. Douglas Phan for medical malpractice and defendant ConMed Corporation for products liability after suffering injuries during a tonsillectomy in which Dr. Phan used an electrocautery device powered by a generator manufactured by defendant. After defendant’s argument to the jury, plaintiff moved for a mistrial grounded on misconduct of counsel during argument. The trial court found that defendant’s counsel, Genese Dopson, had engaged in misconduct, denied plaintiff’s motion, and admonished the jury to ignore Dopson’s improper statements. The jury returned a verdict in favor of plaintiff against Dr. Phan for approximately $750,000. It also returned a verdict in favor of defendant against plaintiff. As to defendant, plaintiff moved for a new trial grounded on misconduct of counsel during argument. The trial court found that the misconduct was not prejudicial and denied the motion. On appeal from the judgment, plaintiff contends that defense counsel’s misconduct requires reversal of the judgment. We hold that the misconduct, though egregious, was not prejudicial in the circumstances of this…