Christian R. Jagusch

Christian R. Jagusch, MD, JD, joined the legal team at Walkup, Melodia, Kelly & Schoenberger after a distinguished medical career as an Emergency Medicine Specialist.

Since starting at the firm, Christian has worked to obtained over $170 million in settlements and judgments for our clients.

He began his academic journey at Creighton University where he graduated with a Bachelor of Science in Chemistry summa cum laude and continued his academic success at the Creighton University School of Medicine in Omaha, Nebraska. He received his postgraduate training at the Los Angeles County and University of Southern California Emergency Medicine Residency Program. Upon completion, he earned the Resident of the Year Award, the highest honor given to a member of the graduating residency class. Thereafter, he practiced in the field of Emergency Medicine for more than 10 years and remains a Board Certified Emergency Medicine Specialist. He was inducted as a Fellow in the American College of Emergency Physicians in 2011 and as a Fellow in the American College of Legal Medicine in 2016.

As part of his long-time career goal, Christian attended law school to continue his commitment to patient advocacy. He graduated magna cum laude in May 2015 from the University of California Hastings College of the Law where he ranked in the top 5% of the graduating class and was admitted into the Thurston Honor Society. While in law school, he received multiple awards for academic excellence and began developing his advocacy skills by competing on the prestigious Hastings Intercollegiate Trial Team where he won awards in four national trial competitions.

While at Hastings, he was elected to the Board of the local chapter of Law Students for Reproductive Justice. During his final year of law school, Dr. Jagusch served as a legal intern and medical consultant to the California State Assembly Business and Professions Committee, playing a role in public policy formation while gaining valuable insight into the legislative process.

Currently, he is pursuing legislation mandating the Medical Board of California to take action when a physician is criminally charged with the death of a patient. This legislation stems for a series of cases where a non-board certified plastic surgeon was sentenced to prison for the death of one of his clients and was allowed to keep practicing after several felony charges against him. During that time, he harmed other patients for which Christian prosecuted their malpractice actions. Christian is dedicated to protecting families and patient from dangerous doctors.

Christian is deeply committed to community service. In addition to guest lecturing at Hastings, he volunteers to judge local law school trial competitions and assists the Hastings Intercollegiate Trial Team. He is an active member of local legal societies where he frequently lectures in the area of medical malpractice. He has worked as a volunteer with the California High School Speech Association. He also has served as the volunteer Medical Director for the Komen Breast Cancer 3-Day Walks, the Avon Breast Cancer 3-Day Walks, and the American Red Cross First Aid Station Program in Northern California.

In 2020, Dr. Jagusch joined the faculty of Creighton University School of Medicine as an Assistant Clinical Professor of Medicine. Recently, he launched a medical-legal externship for fourth-year medical students to study medical jurisprudence, bioethics, and medical malpractice. He lectures yearly

During the COVID-19 pandemic, Dr. Jagusch rejoined the frontlines to care for patients through a telemedicine platform. He treated numerous patients helping to offload the health care system so providers can focus on caring for the influx of COVID-19 patients.

Since joining the Walkup firm, Christian has worked on a wide variety of case types, including the firm’s general personal injury and defective drugs and devices cases. With his unique background, his focus and expertise is in the prosecution of complex medical malpractice cases. He has handled dozens of cases against Kaiser Permanente in Northern and Southern California and has extensive experience with their arbitration system.

Client Testimonials

"Michael Kelly and Christian Jagusch changed my family's life forever. After a tragic incident involving my child, my wife and I called numerous lawyers only to be told that we did not have a chance to win. Feeling defeated, I called this firm as a last attempt and they immediately scheduled a meeting with my family and accepted our case. The settlement won gave my wife and I the piece of mind that my child will be taken care of forever. If you need a personal injury attorney or have been involved in any accident I strongly recommend that you consult with them first. I know the feeling of wanting to stop calling lawyers but please don't give up and give them a call!"

Client

Noteworthy Verdicts and Settlements

Twins v. The Regents of the University of California (UC Irvine Medical Center) – Birth Injury for Failure to Perform a Timely Cesarian Section – $16 million
Patient v. The Regents of the University of California (UC Davis Medical Center) – Failure to Recognize and Treat an Acute Stroke – Jury Verdict – $15.3 million (before MICRA reduction)
Baby v. Major Medical Center – Birth Injury for Failure to Perform Timely Cesarean Section – Medical Malpractice Settlement – $12.0 million
Patient v. Emergency Department – Failure to Recognize Sepsis Resulting in Multiple Amputations – Medical Malpractice Settlement – $11.3 million
Baby v. Medical System – Birth Injury during Vacuum Extraction – Medical Malpractice Settlement – $9.95 million
Patient v. The Regents of the University of California (UC Fresno) – Botched Emergency Room Procedure – Wrongful Death Settlement – $8.75 million
Patient v. Emergency Department & Surgeon – Failure to Recognize Sepsis Resulting in Quadruple Amputations – Medical Malpractice Settlement – $8.75 million
Patient v. Medical System – Failure to Recognize Thiamine Deficiency Resulting in Wernicke’s Encephalopathy – Medical Malpractice Settlement – $8.75 million
Patient v. Medical System & Emergency Department – Failure to Recognize and Treat an Acute Stroke – Medical Malpractice Settlement – $7.75 million
Baby v. Medical System – Failure to Diagnose Brain Infection – Medical Malpractice Settlement – $6.0 million
Family v. Emergency Department – Missed Aortic Dissection – Wrongful Death Settlement – $5.5 million
Baby v. Medical System – Failure to Treat Low Blood Sugar Resulting in Brain Injury – Medical Malpractice Settlement – $5.5 million
Patient v. Medical System – Missed Brain Aneurysm – Medical Malpractice Settlement – $5.0 million
Family v. Emergency Department & Obstetrician – Failure to Diagnosis Sepsis – Wrongful Death Settlement – $4.5 million
Patient v. Surgeon – Surgical Error – Medical Malpractice Settlement – $4.0 million
Patient v. Medical System – Failure to Diagnosis Sepsis and Diabetic Emergency – Medical Malpractice Settlement – $4.0 million
Patient v. Surgeon & Major Medical Center – Failure to Diagnosis Post-operative Complication Causing Shock and Stroke – $3.6 million
Family v. Surgeon – Cardiothoracic Surgery Failure to Diagnosis a Complication – Wrongful Death Settlement – $3.5 million
Patient v. Major Medical Center – Failure to Treat a Subdural Hematoma – Medical Malpractice Settlement – $3.4 million
Child v. Anesthesiologist & Children’s Hospital – Failure to Monitor IV Line Causing a Compartment Syndrome – Medical Malpractice Settlement – $2.4 million
Patient v. Medical System – Failure to Diagnose Prostate Cancer – Medical Malpractice Settlement – $2.4 million
Family v. Plastic Surgeon – Failure to Provide Proper Anesthesia and Emergency Care – Wrongful Death Settlement – $2.02 million
Family v. Emergency Department & Medical System – Failure to Diagnose Aortic Dissection before Administering tPA for a Stroke – Wrongful Death – $1.97 million
Family v. Medical System – Failure to Diagnosis Heart Disease – Wrongful Death – $1.93 million
Family v. Major Medical Center and Obstetrician – Failure to Recognize Fetal Distress Resulting in Neonatal Death – Medical Malpractice Settlement – $1,800,0000
Child v. Kaiser Permanente – Brachial Plexus Injury during a Shoulder Dystocia – Medical Malpractice Arbitration Award – $1.6 million
Patient v. Major Medical Center – Brain Injury during Surgery – Medical Malpractice Settlement – $1.6 million
Patient v. Medical System – Failure to Treat Brain Hemorrhage – Medical Malpractice Settlement – $1.5 million
Family v. Medical System – Failure to Diagnose Blood Clot – Wrongful Death Settlement – $1.49 million
Family v. Medical System – Failure to Diagnosis Cerebral Aneurysm – Wrongful Death Settlement – $1.3 million
Patient v. Hospitalist – Missed Spinal Cord Hematoma Causing Paralysis – Medical Malpractice Settlement – $1.1 million
Family v. Medical System – Surgical Error – Wrongful Death – $1.0 million
Family v. Emergency Department – Failure to Manage the Airway – Wrongful Death Settlement – $1.0 million
Patient v. Orthopedist – Failure to Diagnose and Treat Postoperative Infection Causing Sepsis – $990,000
Patient v. Major Medical Center – Failure to Inform Patient about Cancer – Medical Malpractice Settlement – $900,000
Family v. Medical System – Failure to Proper Manage Labor and Delivery – Wrongful Death Settlement – $850,000
Patient v. Plastic Surgeon – Negligent Plastic Surgery Causing Permanent Disfigurement – Medical Malpractice Settlement – $850,000
Family v. Medical System – Failure to Recognize Sepsis after Surgery – Wrongful Death Settlement – $800,000
Family v. Medical System – Failure to Management Respiratory Distress – Wrongful Death Settlement – $750,000
Patient v. Medical System – Failure to Manage Complications of C-Section – Medical Malpractice Settlement – $725,000
Family v. Emergency Department – Failure to Diagnosis Diabetic Emergency – Wrongful Death Settlement – $722,500
Family v. Kaiser Permanente – Failure to Diagnosis a Bowel Obstruction – Wrongful Death Arbitration Award – $714,000
Child v. Obstetrician – Brachial Plexus Injury during a Shoulder Dystocia – Medical Malpractice Settlement – $650,000
Patient v. Medical System – Failure to Treat Blood Clot Leading to Leg Amputation – Medical Malpractice Settlement – $650,000
Pedestrian v. City of San Luis Obispo – Auto vs. Pedestrian Collision – Dangerous Conditions Settlement – $600,000 and installation of flashing warning beacons

Honors and Awards

Best Lawyers: Ones to Watch – Medical Malpractice & Personal Injury Law – Plaintiffs – 2022 to present

Professional Associations and Memberships

American Association of Justice, Co-chair Medical Negligence Section & Speaker
San Francisco Trial Lawyers Association, Member & Speaker
Consumer Attorneys of California, Member & Speaker
Bar Association of San Francisco, Member
Western Trial Lawyers Association, Member & Speaker
American College of Legal Medicine, Member, Speaker & Peer-Reviewer

Associations & Memberships

Client Testimonials

Noteworthy Verdicts and Settlements

Honors and Awards

Professional Associations and Memberships

Lawyers Who Know How to Win Your Case

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