Rev. 12/09
ROBERT N. MEALS
COUNSEL TO PHYSICIANS AND HEALTHCARE PROFESSIONALS
Post Office Box 659
5081 Saratoga Road
Langley, WA 98260
(360) 221-0397
(360) 221-8230 FAX
EDUCATION:
University of Pennsylvania
Law School
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
(J. D., cum laude, 1972)
Editor, University of
Pennsylvania Law Review,
1970-1972
College of the Holy Cross
Worcester, Massachusetts
(B. S., English, 1964)
MILITARY:
Lieutenant., U.S.
Navy, 1964-1969
PROFESSIONAL: Washington
State Bar Association, 1990 #19990
State Bar of Nevada, 2002 #8187
State Bar of California, 2003 #225512
State Bar of Georgia, 1972 #500400
Florida Bar, 1973 #168898 (retired)
American Bar Association—Litigation, Antitrust
And Health Forum Sections
American Health Lawyers Association
Member, American College
of
Legal Medicine
King County Bar Association
U.S. Supreme Court, 1979
U.S. Court of Appeals for the 4th,
5th, 8th, 9th, 11th,
and Federal Circuits
Various U.S. District Courts in
California,
Washington, Nevada, Georgia, Florida,
Tennessee,
Virginia, North
Carolina, Connecticut and
District of Columbia
EXPERIENCE: Law Offices
of Robert N. Meals PLLC
P.O. Box 659
5081 Saratoga Road
Langley, WA 98260
(January 2006 to present)
General Counsel
Women’s Cancer Center
170 Knowles Drive, Suite 203
Los Gatos, CA 95032
(surgical specialty group with 16 offices in CA and NV)
(July 2001 to December 2005)
Law Offices of Robert N. Meals, PLLC
1000 Second Avenue, Suite 3500
Seattle, WA 98104
October 1995 to July 2001
(Healthcare, Regulatory, Administrative and
Complex Litigation)
Of Counsel
Culp, Guterson & Grader
Seattle, WA 98101
January 1991 to September 1995
(Healthcare, Credentialing, Regulatory, Antitrust
and Complex Litigation)
Troutman, Sanders, Lockerman & Ashmore
Atlanta, Georgia
May 1972-June 1975; May 1990-May 1991
(Healthcare, Antitrust and Complex Litigation)
Meals, Kirwan, Goger, Winter & Parks, P.C.
Atlanta, Georgia
(Founding partner, June 1975--April 1990)
Healthcare Matters Handled:
1.
Medicare and Medicaid exclusions/fraud and abuse/civil monetary penalty
cases Melashenko v. Bowen (Calif.); Thorbus v. OIG ( Minn); Godreau
v. OIG (Mass); U.S. v. Morry Waksberg, M.D. (U.S.D.C., Washington, D.C.); U.S. v. Charles Young, M.D.
(Albuquerque, NM); In re Jerry Bray, R. Ph. (Atlanta, GA); physicians/providers prevailed in all six cases and in four
of the cases clients were awarded attorneys fees and expenses under the Equal Access to Justice Act---over $400,000 paid by
government to clients because there was no substantial justification for actions; also, Isaac Sultan, M.D. v. OIG (Calif.
1996)
2.
State Board of Medicine licensing/disciplinary cases (Washington, California,
Idaho, Montana, Texas, Minnesota, New York, Georgia, Florida, Virginia, North Carolina, South Carolina and Alabama) for over
fifty physicians in various states nationwide; successfully defended in over 80% of cases; most recent cases: New Mexico Medical Board v. Northcutt (2008) (case dismissed after hearing); Medical
Board of California v. Roy (2008) (charges dismissed after one week trial)
3.
Over 100 Medical Staff Privileges and Credentialing cases (including
Georgia Composite State Board v. Ben H. Jenkins, M.D., former president of Georgia Medical Board, 1976); Landis
v. Cedars-Sinai Medical Center (Calif, 1991-1993); Davis v. Methodist Hospital (Texas 1994-1995); Goldman
v. Evergreen Hospital (Wash. 1994-1995); Silver v. Presbyterian Hospital
(Texas, 1994 and 1997); Perkerson v. GA. Composite State Board (GA. 1996);
Garza v. Methodist Hospital (Texas, 1997); Muraki v. Overlake
Hospital (Wash. 1997) (Neuroradiologist maintained privileges); Lobbato
v. Office of Prof. Standards (N.Y. 1998); Srikanth v. St. Mary Medical
Center (Wash. 1998); Srikanth v. St. Francis Hospital Wash. 2000);
Janda v. Fresno Medical Center (Calif. 2001 and 2007); Phillips v. St. Joseph Hospital, Eureka (Calif. 2001);
); Deutsch v. William W. Backus Hospital, Norwich, CT (2005-2008); Kerr v. Yakima Valley Memorial Hospital (2007); Smigaj v. Yakima Valley Memorial Hospital (2008)
4.
Illegal suspension of clinical privileges (Smigaj v. Yakima Valley
Memorial Hospital (2008—present; pending); illegal reporting to National Practitioner Data Bank (Griffin v. Westerly
Hospital)
5.
Medical Antitrust cases: Vest v. Waring, 565 F. Supp. 674 (D.
GA. 1983) (Conspiracy to suppress new surgical procedure); M. Shah v. The Memorial Hospital,
CCH 1988-2 Trade Cases ¶ 68, 199 (D. Va. 1988 Conspiracy to exclude competition; settled for $775,000 in 1989); Sullivan
v. Bristol Memorial Hospital (E.D. Tenn.) (conspiracy of OB/GYN specialists
to exclude family physicians from practice of obstetrics; settled in 1991); Pagnozzi v. Westerly Hospital (D.
Conn.); settled in 1992; Blue
Ridge Radiology Associates v. Grace Hospital (W.D.N.C.) (conspiracy to suppress competition from freestanding imaging
center); Witham v. Olympic Medical Center et al. (2009—present; pending)
6.
HMO Litigation: Berent v. Ameriplan (Super. Ct., Atlanta, Ga.
1987-1989) (dispute over failure to repay physicians’ withhold; settled for $2 million from John Hancock Insurance Co.,
1989). Also settled substantial claim for physicians against Health1st concerning
increase in “withhold,” 1987.
7.
Breach of Medical Staff Bylaws contract and Medical Staff privileges
vs. exclusive contract matters (radiologists and anesthesiologists in Virginia,
North Carolina, Ohio,
Georgia and California;) Blue Ridge Radiology Associates
v. Grace Hospital
(W.D.N.C. 1990-1997); and Mitchell A. Major, M.D. and Douglas E. Freeman, M.D. v. Memorial Hospitals Association (Superior
Court of Stanislaus County, California 1992-present); Galen
Castle, M.D. v. Harrison
Memorial Hospital (Cynthiana, KY); Janda v. Madera
Community Hospital (E.D. Calif. 1998; settled in 2002); Matuga v. Three
Rivers Area Hospital (W.D. Mich. 1998; co-counsel
in $3.3 million award for physician.)
8.
Criminal prosecutions against physicians for misprescribing controlled
substances (State v. St. Clair Strong (1979); State v. Gregoroff (1980) (successful defenses).
9.
DEA litigation: DEA v. Walter Gresham, M.D.; DEA v. Ronald
Springel, M.D. (prevailed for practitioners).
10. Medical device patent litigation: Jensen v. Iolab, ORC and Pharmacia (C.D. Calif. 1986-88)
(judgment in favor of physician-patent holder; settled for amount in excess of $50 million); Jensen v. Cilco (1983-86)
(settled for $5.5 million and a running royalty); advised ophthalmologists re: excimer lasers for refractive surgery; have
also advised companies with respect to regulatory matters with FDA.
11. Medical malpractice defense—numerous cases in several jurisdictions (California, Arizona, Nevada, Missouri,
West Virginia, Kentucky,
Georgia, Florida).
12. Bad faith peer review/economic competition/”turf battle” cases: Spirtos v. Stanford University Medical School and Stanford University Hospital—(settled
1994); Zumwalt v. Georgia Board of Psychology (1993-1995); Smigaj v. Yakima Valley Memorial Hospital (2008)
13. Legal malpractice for physicians: Dr. Winston A. Mitchell v. Chenen (settled in 1994 for
$200,000) (represented radiologist, Dr. Winn Mitchell).
14. Transactional work – negotiated contracts for numerous radiologists and radiology groups,
anesthesiologists and anesthesiology groups, pathologists, etc and various provider agreements with third party payors. Clients include The Medford Radiological Group; Danville Radiologists, Inc., Danville
Anesthesiologists, Danville Pathologists, Inc.; Gaston Radiology; Vancouver Radiologists; Olympic Radiologists.
During 1970s and early 1980, in general trial practice represented Anheuser-Busch Companies, First
Georgia Bank and U.S. Life in various commercial cases. Over 40 cases tried to
judgment or appeal.
PRESENTATIONS: Various papers and courses on healthcare
issues involving physicians presented at meetings of the ABA Antitrust Section, American Health Lawyers Association, American College of
Legal Medicine, American Society of Breast Surgeons and Washington State Bar Association.
PERSONAL: Born, Schenectady, New York, September 12, 1942
Married to Barbara “Bunny” Meals—see www.dovehouse.com
Three grown children.
Home office address/telephone:
P.O. Box 659
5081 Saratoga Road
Langley, Washington 98206
(360) 221-0397 or (360) 221-0389
