USC Tyndall Sexual Misconduct Settlement a “Step Forward” for Victims of Abuse at USC

New op-ed piece by Cherylyn Lebon includes comments from Lieff Cabraser partner Annika K. Martin who represents women in the class lawsuit against USC

The Los Angeles Daily News has published an opinion piece praising the terms of the recently-announced federal class action settlement of the lawsuit filed against George Tyndall and the University of Southern California (USC) on behalf of hundreds of women alleging sexual misconduct by the former head gynecologist at the USC student health center.

Cherylyn Lebon, a lawyer and longtime advocate for women and children, lauds the $215 million fund (of which no part will be payable to the class attorneys) as innovative, noting that it is “one of the largest settlements of its kind.”

The agreement covers every patient who saw Tyndall during a specific period of time and is arranged to be tiered so that individuals who saw Tyndall in his professional capacity will receive $2,500 with no questions asked, with a second tier that allows individuals to seek an additional payment of $7,500 to $20,000 simply by submitting a written claim. A third tier provides for the payment of up to $250,000 based upon documentation of Tyndall’s conduct, personal impact, and any resulting injury. As Ms. Lebon notes, the proposed settlement system provides survivors with degrees of privacy by allowing them to choose the extent to which they wish to participate in the process.

Ms. Lebon references statements from Lieff Cabraser attorney Annika K. Martin, who helped arrange the settlement, and who expressed satisfaction that the deal would provide survivors with compensation and security without raising the potential trauma (and possible negative outcome) of individual trials.

Martin further noted, “whenever you litigate, there’s a risk. And, sure, you could have come up with a verdict of more than $250,000, but you could have come up with a jury verdict of zero.”

Read Ms. Lebon’s full article on the Daily News website.

Contact Sexual Abuse Lawyer Annika K. Martin at Lieff Cabraser

Lieff Cabraser partner Annika K. Martin, herself an alumnus of USC’s law school, is leading the litigation for our firm on behalf of women who suffered violence, abuse, and harassment by George Tyndall and USC. She is a partner in the firm’s New York office and has represented plaintiffs since 2005 in environmental, mass tort, consumer protection, and sexual abuse cases. She can be reached at akmartin@lchb.com or 800-541-7358. There is no charge or obligation for your outreach, and all information will be held in the strictest confidence.