Siegel v. CHW West Bay,
Nos. A095043, A096115 (Cal. Ct. App. Nov. 20, 2002)

The California Court of Appeal upheld summary judgment and an award of $382,387 of attorneys' fees in favor of a medical center and director of nursing in a suit that was brought by a physician whose contract to provide cardiac surgery services to the medical center's overflow Kaiser patients was terminated. According to the court, the physician was unable to provide any evidence that showed that the medical center terminated her contract because of her advocacy for improved medical care. To the contrary, all evidence tended to show that the physician was terminated because of the 116 complaints of abusive and critical behavior lodged against her by other employees during the first 14 months of her contract.