CLEVELAND, Ohio — What was expected to be the final pretrial hearing Monday in Dr. Akram Boutros’ lawsuit against MetroHealth instead turned into a tense dispute over evidence a whistleblower claims the hospital failed to disclose.
Boutros, who was fired in November 2022 over allegations that he received unauthorized bonus payments, originally sued MetroHealth weeks after his termination. He later dismissed the case amid health issues but refiled last year, accusing the hospital of defamation, wrongful termination and breach of contract.
The amended complaint also alleges MetroHealth destroyed evidence that would show Boutros was authorized to receive about $2 million in performance bonuses.
He was scheduled to go to trial Jan. 26.
The latest twist came Nov. 24 — nearly a year after the amended complaint was filed — when an anonymous MetroHealth IT employee emailed Boutros’ attorney, Kevin Spellacy, and Cuyahoga County Common Pleas Administrative Judge Brendan Sheehan a copy of a whistleblower complaint.
The employee said he found documents and emails related to Boutros’ employment in a company file path that had not been turned over to Boutros’ attorneys as required by legal rules.
MetroHealth’s attorney, Mark Wallach, acknowledged in filings that senior hospital officials were unaware of the archived documents. He said they have since been provided and argued they won’t affect the case.
Wallach attributed the oversight to a change in email software, the passage of time...
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