St. Louis Cardinals Medical Director Sues Group of Area Doctors

Longtime St. Louis Cardinals medical director and team physician Dr. George Paletta is suing a group of prominent area physicians in the St. Louis County courtroom of Judge Barbara Wallace.

Paletta is seeking a judgment from Surgery Center Partners for damages he alleges to have suffered concerning a blown operating agreement regarding an outpatient surgery center operating as Timberlake Surgery Center located at 1028 Kirkwood Rd.

Ownership of the surgery center is split between Tennessee-based short-stay surgical giant Symbion Healthcare, which is the operating member, and Dr. David Brown, Dr. Joseph Ritchie, Dr. Mitchell Rotman, Dr. Tony Sudekum, Dr. Mark Miller, Dr. Richard Howard, Dr. John Galanis, Dr. Lyndon Gross and Paletta.

Symbion operates more than 70 short-stay surgical facilities across 28 states.

Paletta alleges in court documents that Dr. Tony Sudekum violated the operating agreement by performing the vast majority of surgeries on his patients at a surgery center he constructed at his own office in O’Fallon, MO.

According to Paletta, this violated an agreement prohibiting members—while owners of the business and for a two year period thereafter—from participating in a competing business within a 25-mile radius of the center.

A quick check on Google maps showed a distance of 23 miles from the Kirkwood surgery center to Sudekum’s Missouri Hand Center in O’Fallon.

According to court documents, Paletta further alleges that on Sept. 20, Dr. David Brown forwarded him a proposed restructuring agreement that acknowledged Sudekum’s  conduct and proposed the conduct be forgiven in exchange for the redemption of Sudekum’s shares in the business.

Paletta, in an attempt to distance himself from the group, has requested for the redemption of his shares. He has been denied and alleges that he has been told that the group expects an increased effort and divestiture of another business owned by Paletta.

Paletta further alleges that Brown and members Dr. Joseph Ritchie and Dr. Mark Miller are each co-owners in Chesterfield Spine Center, LLC (St. Louis Spine Center).

Paletta alleges in the court documents that St. Louis Spine Center is a competing business within the restrictive 25-mile radius and in violation of the operating agreement.

Paletta is also asking the court to declare the operating agreement unenforceable because of the defendant’s wrongful actions.

Paletta has been the medical director/head team physician for the Cardinals since 1998 and was the head team physician/medical director for the St. Louis Rams from 2000 to 2002.

Matthew Jacober of Lathrop & Gage is representing Paletta and declined comment.