Top Class Actions’s website and social media posts use affiliate links. If you make a purchase using such links, we may receive a commission, but it will not result in any additional charges to you. Please review our Affiliate Link Disclosure for more information.
This settlement is closed!
Please see what other class action settlements you might qualify to claim cash from in our Open Settlements directory!
UPDATE:
- A judge granted final approval to this settlement May 6, 2021, according to Metro News.
Women who had certain procedures at Charleston Area Medical Center may be eligible for a cash payment of thousands of dollars thanks to a $23.1 class action settlement.
Any female patient of Charleston Area Medical Center who had a colonoscopy or sigmoidoscopy procedure performed at the medical center by Dr. Steven R. Matulis and Charleston Gastroenterology Associates PLLC (his practice group) between Jan. 1, 2010, and Feb. 17, 2016, is considered a Class Member.
Plaintiffs in a class action lawsuit had accused the defendants, including Charleston Area Medical Center, of violating “various duties, laws, and public policies regarding female patients who had colonoscopy and sigmoidoscopy procedures,” according to the settlement notice.
In December 2020, plaintiffs’ counsel told Kanawha County Circuit Judge Jennifer Bailey that Matulis took advantage of all of the patients involved in the class action lawsuit while they were unconscious, according to Metro News. Matulis was convicted in 2018 of first-degree sexual abuse for abusing a patient who had been put under anesthesia.
He also faces several other civil lawsuits.
Charleston Area Medical Center and the other defendants deny any allegations of wrongdoing, and the Court has not ruled in favor of either side in this case.
Class Members’ initial payments are expected to be at least $5,000. However, the exact amount has yet to be determined.
The exact amount of the payment will depend upon the number of Class Members who ask to be excluded, the number of Class Members who fail to cash their checks, and the amount of attorneys’ fees and other expenses to be paid from the settlement fund.
The Class is made up of approximately 2,500 people, according to the settlement notice.
In order to simplify the settlement process, the Court has determined no claim form will be required for Class Members to benefit from the Charleston Area Medical Center settlement.
To ensure patient confidentiality, the Court has appointed both a claims administrator and guardian ad litem.
Charleston Area Medical Center confidentially provided certain contact information — including names, addresses, birthdates, and, if necessary, the last four digits of the patient’s Social Security number — to the guardian ad litem and administrator so settlement notices could be mailed.
Charleston Area Medical Center has not disclosed any other information from patients’ medical records, and neither the medical center, administrator, nor the guardian ad litem has provided or will provide any patient information to any person or entity other than the Court.
Cash payments will be distributed following a final fairness hearing, after the Court grants final approval, and after any appeals are resolved.
A fairness hearing in the Charleston Area Medical Center settlement is set for May 6, 2021.
The deadline to opt out of the settlement is April 19, 2021; the deadline to file an objection is April 23, 2021.
No claim form is required for participation in this settlement.
Who’s Eligible
Any female patient of Charleston Area Medical Center who had a colonoscopy or sigmoidoscopy procedure performed at the medical center by Dr. Steven R. Matulis and Charleston Gastroenterology Associates PLLC (his practice group) between Jan. 1, 2010, and Feb. 17, 2016.
Potential Award
$5,000
- Class Members’ initial payments are expected to be at least $5,000. However, the exact amount has yet to be determined.
- The exact amount of the payment will depend upon the number of Class Members who ask to be excluded, the number of Class Members who fail to cash their checks, and the amount of attorneys’ fees and other expenses to be paid from the settlement fund.
Proof of Purchase
No proof of purchase is required for this settlement.
Claim Form
No claim form is required for Class Members to benefit from this settlement.
NOTE: If you do not qualify for this settlement do NOT file a claim.
Remember: you are submitting your claim under penalty of perjury. You are also harming other eligible Class Members by submitting a fraudulent claim. If you’re unsure if you qualify, please read the FAQ section of the Settlement Administrator’s website to ensure you meet all standards (Top Class Actions is not a Settlement Administrator). If you don’t qualify for this settlement, check out our database of other open class action settlements you may be eligible for.
Claim Form Deadline
No claim form is required.
Case Name
A.H., et al. v. Matulis, et al., Case No. 18-C-176 in the Circuit Court of Kanawha County, West Virginia
Final Hearing
05/06/2021
Settlement Website
Claims Administrator
A.H., et al. v. Matulis, et al.
c/o ILYM Group, Inc.
P.O. Box 2031
Tustin, CA 92871
Phone: 844-744-8424
Fax: 888-845-6185
claims@ilymgroupclassaction.com
Class Counsel
L. Dante diTrapano
David H. Carriger
CALWELL LUCE DITRAPANO PLLC
P. Rodney Jackson
P. RODNEY JACKSON & ASSOCIATES
Ben Salango
Kristy Salango
PRESTON & SALANGO PLLC
Defense Counsel
Lee Murray Hall
Charlotte A. Hoffman Norris
Sarah A. Walling
JENKINS FENSTERMAKER PLLC
Heather Heiskell Jones
Joseph A. Ford
SPILMAN, THOMAS & BATTLE PLLC
Read About More Class Action Lawsuits & Class Action Settlements:
8 thoughts onCharleston Area Medical Center $23.1M Female Patients Class Action Settlement
I did get 5.000 out it by right we should get more because it happened to us woman he did it to
Has anyone heard or received anything from the final settlement on 5/9/22??
The final hearing for class action settlement was for 5/9/22 has anyone heard about this???
I received a settlement check but not for the $5000. How was the amounts distributed determined?
I was his patient during this time but was never contacted. I did not wish to opt out
Please add me
Add me
Please add me. Thank you so much