Debra A. Weinrich Partner

Drawing on her many years of clinical nursing experience, Debbie primarily focuses her legal practice on defending medical malpractice claims, many of which involve catastrophic injuries which implicate the possibility of excess verdicts and related coverage. She is responsible for developing and preparing all aspects of the defenses in complex medical malpractice litigation on behalf of a variety of healthcare clients, including physicians, nurses and other healthcare personnel, as well as hospitals, multi-site healthcare systems and physicians' practice groups. In addition to medical malpractice matters, Debbie’s practice includes an assortment of general litigation, such as construction litigation, premises liability, and other personal injury matters. She also handles nursing licensure matters. She has tried numerous cases to verdict.

Debbie practiced as a registered nurse for nearly 10 years, principally in the area of Maternal-Newborn Services, and was certified in inpatient obstetrics. She also has administrative experience. This background provides a distinct advantage in the investigation, discovery and trial phases of litigation, not only substantively, but also from an emotional standpoint for the practitioners experiencing litigation. 

While her Labor & Delivery experience makes her uniquely qualified to handle complex obstetrical matters, and she has extensive experience handling such cases, she does not limit her practice only to cases involving catastrophic birth injuries. To the contrary, Debbie is experienced in handling cases throughout the healthcare spectrum such as those stemming from emergency care, surgical care, cardiac care and procedures, oncology and other areas of medical practice. Debbie has also developed significant experience in issues concerning electronic medical records, has authored related articles and has been an invited speaker on the topic on numerous occasions.

Importantly, Debbie uses technology creatively to increase efficiency and hold down costs when handling cases. Debbie focuses on protecting her clients in current cases but also on minimizing future risk and potential liability by identifying areas of possible improvement to assist her clients’ risk and practice managers.

Representative Matters

• Obtained a defense verdict in Centre County, PA for a hospitalist alleged to have caused the death of a man due to respiratory failure alleged to have occurred as a result of medication toxicity
• Obtained a defense verdict in a case brought against an internal medicine specialist and a pulmonologist practicing at a major teaching hospital in Philadelphia; plaintiffs alleged a delay in diagnosis and treatment of an infection causing death
• Obtained a defense verdict in a case naming several midwives and nursing personnel in a suburban hospital, where it was alleged that the providers’ failure to ensure earlier delivery of an infant lead to its death

Recognition & Involvement

Debbie was selected in a survey of her peers as a Pennsylvania "Rising Star" by Super Lawyers^® in 2013 and 2014. Debbie was named a 2019 Distinguished Advocate by the Support Center for Child Advocates for her pro bono service.