Shaham v. Tenet HealthSystem QA, Inc. (Summary)

CALIFORNIA ANTI-SLAPP

Shaham v. Tenet HealthSystem QA, Inc., B246549 (Cal. Ct. App. Apr. 15, 2014)

A California court affirmed a motion to strike 15 claims alleged by an obstetrician against a hospital and three of its physicians, concluding that the state’s anti-SLAPP statute protected the hospital and physicians’ conduct and the obstetrician failed to show a likelihood of prevailing on the merits of his claims.

The obstetrician, who was the subject of focused peer review, claimed that there was no basis for subjecting him to focused review and, although he was fully exonerated and his privileges were reinstated, he was damaged by the negative information about him that was provided to other doctors and other facilities where he worked (including that his privileges were in abeyance and that he was a “dangerous doctor”).  He alleged that the peer review was initiated and conducted with no factual basis or notice, was a sham intended to allow the physician defendants to redirect his patients to the hospital’s residency program, and that confidentiality of the process was not maintained.

The court held that the alleged claims of misconduct were subject to the anti-SLAPP statute because the defendants acted in furtherance of protected speech in connection with medical peer review.  Further, the court agreed with the lower court that the obstetrician provided no evidence that he would probably prevail on his claims, noting that the only evidence provided by the time of the anti-SLAPP hearing was a declaration of the obstetrician which was full of accusations and assumptions, but not facts, and further, that document was untimely filed and thus ineligible for consideration.