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Weil, Gotshal & Manges LLP
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UnitedHealth and Weil Gotshal Fight For and Achieve Complete Victory
(June 21, 2006, Weil Gotshal Press Release)
New York, June 21, 2006 - In one
of the largest multi-district litigations in the country, spanning seven
years and involving the largest names in the managed care industry, Weil
Gotshal successfully obtained a complete victory for long-time client UnitedHealth
Group. Weil Gotshal defended the company in an action based on alleged
claims of industry-wide fraud and conspiracy among managed care companies
to underpay physicians.
The class action, which began in
1999, was initiated by more than 600,000 US physicians who claimed that
the country’s biggest managed care companies had unfairly cut reimbursements
owed to them. The physicians alleged that the companies conspired to deprive
them of full payment for medical services rendered by using claims-reimbursement
software systems that often reduced the physicians’ bills. UnitedHealth
argued that the claims were paid properly and based solely on the company’s
own proprietary claims software system.
The litigation was heard at the
district and appellate court levels, and UnitedHealth also successfully
sought US Supreme Court review of one aspect of the case pertaining to
the scope of arbitration clauses in the operative contracts. Additionally,
as the litigation progressed, most of the other defendants named in the
action chose to settle rather than fight the allegations - paying hundreds
of millions of dollars in settlement fees as a result. The action culminated
with the US District Court in Miami granting UnitedHealth’s summary judgment
motion, finding that plaintiffs could not demonstrate any wrongdoing on
the part of UnitedHealth, and dismissing all claims against the company.
The win highlights UnitedHealth's
perseverance, and vindicates the case strategy of refusing to back down
and being willing to go to trial if necessary. Additionally, the victory
underscores Weil Gotshal’s ability to seamlessly coordinate a defense
that involved litigators in multiple offices and across multiple disciplines.
The Weil Gotshal team was led by
partners James W. Quinn, Jeffrey S. Klein and Edward Soto.
About Weil, Gotshal &
Manges
Weil, Gotshal & Manges is an
international law firm of over 1,200 lawyers, including 300 partners. Weil
Gotshal is headquartered in New York, with 20 offices in Austin, Boston,
Brussels, Budapest, Dallas, Frankfurt, Houston, London, Miami, Munich,
New York, Paris, Prague, Providence, Silicon Valley, Singapore, Shanghai,
Warsaw, Washington DC and Wilmington.
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