In Scheer v. Regents of the University of California, the Second District Court of Appeal held that the McDonnell-Douglas burden-shifting framework applies to claims asserted pursuant to Health & Safety Code Section 1278.5. For claims made alleging violations of Labor Code Section 1102.5 and the California Whistleblower Protection Act, the Scheer Court confirmed that the more plaintiff-friendly standard announced in the recent Supreme Court decision of Lawson v. PPG Architectural Finishes will apply.
Because most private California hospitals do not employ physicians, most retaliation claims by physicians would be brought pursuant to Section 1278.5.
After Lawson, some physician litigants claimed that the plaintiff-friendly framework described in that decision would apply to Section 1278.5 claims.
Notwithstanding the Scheer Court’s reversal and remand of summary judgment in that case, hospital and medical staff defendants will be able to assert legitimate, non-retaliatory reasons for disciplinary action on summary judgment and shift the evidentiary burden to the plaintiff to show evidence of pretext.
In 2016, Arnold Scheer, M.D. was terminated from his position as Chief Administrative Officer of the UCLA Department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine. A year later, he sued his former employer and supervisors for whistleblower retaliation. In the complaint, Dr. Scheer alleged that he was...
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