Family of the late Bill Paxton settle death lawsuit with hospital

It’s been a few years since we lost the great Bill Paxton, one of the more recognizable actors from the ’90s and aughts who appeared in blockbusters like Aliens, Predator 2 and Twister. Paxton unfortunately died from a stroke in 2017, 11 days after heart surgery, and his family sued the hospital and surgeon for wrongful death. Now, they’ve reached a settlement.

There’s been a previous settlement in the case with an anesthesiologist group that agreed to pay about $1 million to the family, according to Deadline, but the remaining suit against the hospital and surgeon was about to go to trial. That’s not the case anymore, however, as Paxton’s wife Louise and his two kids James and Lydia filed a notice with the court that they’re settling.

“The matter has been resolved to the mutual satisfaction of the parties,” lawyers said. The exact terms of the settlement are not known and won’t be unless one of the parties discloses it, and it still needs judge approval.

The crux of the family’s argument was that the actor’s death was preventable and that his surgery was not necessary. Paxton was 61 years old when he died and the family said Cedars-Sinai, Southbay Medical Partners and Dr. Ali Khoynezhad acted “negligently, carelessly, recklessly and unskillfully.”

They claimed Khoynezhad employed a “high risk and unconventional surgical approach” that he didn’t even need to perform and on top of that didn’t have the experience to handle. They also say he played down the risks of the surgery.

That surgery, the family said, was what led to paxton’s stroke and subsequent death. They also complained that Khoynezhad was “not in the hospital” when the actor started having trouble, which caused some delays in treating him.

“Bill Paxton and his family trusted the physicians and staff at this medical facility but instead Cedars-Sinai betrayed their trust,” Paxton family attorney Bruce Broillet said at the time. “The surgeon’s actions resulted in this tragic and preventable death.”

The statement also said that Khoynezhad vacated his position at the hospital after Paxton passed away. The hospital said it couldn’t comment on patient care “without written authorization.”

“But we can share the following: Nothing is more important to Cedars-Sinai than the health and safety of our patients. These remain our top priorities. One of the reasons for our high quality is that we thoroughly review concerns about any patient’s medical care. This process ensures that we can continue to provide the highest quality care,” the hospital said.