Michael J. Jordan

Partner
Practice Head, Business Litigation and Arbitration
Practice Head, Health Care and Bioscience Litigation

Professional Experience

Michael represents clients in all types of commercial matters. He has appeared in state and federal court in both Michigan and Ohio, and has argued successfully before the Ohio State Supreme Court. While serving as chair of the Commercial Advisory Council of the American Arbitration Association of Northeast Ohio, Michael was awarded the Rosewood Gavel for distinguished service.

Michael has significant experience in representing physicians and hospitals in dispute resolution, including the arbitration and litigation of health care related cases. Specifically, he has appeared at numerous hospital due process hearings involving physician privileges, litigated several noncompetition agreements, represented physicians and hospitals in a variety of business disputes and defended physicians in actions brought by the United States Attorney's Office pursuant to the False Claims Act. He also provides general business counseling to physician practice groups in connection with Fraud and Abuse legislation, the Stark law, and antitrust concerns.

Michael’s general litigation practice encompasses all manner of disputes involving closely held corporations, including dissolution actions, minority shareholder claims, and disputes involving the enforceability of covenants not to compete. Michael has successfully represented plans, corporations and their insurers in a variety of ERISA and non-ERISA employee benefit cases involving claims such as fiduciary duties, fraud, self-dealing, denial of benefits and benefits discrimination.

A frequent lecturer, Michael has addressed issues ranging from the assertion of contract and tort claims against hospitals, the pursuit of wrongful denial of reimbursement by third-party payors, employment counseling issues, and physician options with respect to insurance coverage. He has addressed the Annual Meeting of the American Health Lawyers Association on the topic of representing physicians in the dissolution of hospital/physician relationships and the American College of Legal Medicine on representing physicians in claims against hospitals, insurance companies, and wrongful deselection from managed care plans.

Michael has significant experience in representing physicians and hospitals in dispute resolution, including the arbitration and litigation of health care related cases. Specifically, he has appeared at numerous hospital due process hearings involving physician privileges, litigated several noncompetition agreements, represented physicians and hospitals in a variety of business disputes and defended physicians in actions brought by the United States Attorney's Office pursuant to the False Claims Act.

Areas Of Emphasis

Obtained a court order compelling a hospital to provide a physician with a due process hearing
Successfully defended a hospital against a claim that it failed to follow due process- Been awarded jury verdicts in favor of his clients and against hospital systems in claims stemming from physician practice acquisitions
Obtained a preliminary injunction from the United States Federal District Court which prevented a hospital from attempting to enforce an adverse privileging decision and enjoined the hospital from making any report to the National Practitioners' Data Bank
Successfully defended a hospital-based physician practice against a claim it had interfered with a competitor’s contract
Obtained an injunction which prevented a hospital from seeking to enforce a noncompetition agreement against a physician/former employee
Represented physicians in False Claims Act litigation and negotiated with the Office of Inspector General in Washington, D.C. regarding Medicare and Medicaid participation
Developed Compliance Plans designed to minimize the risk of liability under the False Claims Act

Presentations

"The Disruptive Physician Controversy," American College of Legal Medicine Annual Meeting, Orlando, Florida, March 6, 2010

"Discoverability of Peer Review Document in State and Federal Litigation," Ohio Hospital Association, Columbus, OH, January 30, 2009
“Regulations Affecting the Organization of Oncology Group Practices,” American College of Legal Medicine Mid-Year Meeting, New Orleans, Louisiana, October 2, 2004
"Review of Lawsuits Involving Professional Component Billing Issues," American Pathology Foundation, Chicago, Illinois and Nashville, Tennessee (1992 and 1993)
Member, Panel Discussion on Arbitration Hearings, 1993 American Arbitration Association Annual Meeting, Cleveland, Ohio
"Litigation Aspects of Professional Component Billing," American Pathology Foundation Special Meeting, September 8-9, 1990, Dallas, Texas
"Basic Commercial Arbitrator Training," Instructor, American Arbitration Association, Cleveland, Ohio, 1993, 1994, 1997
"Recent Amendments to the Ohio Rules of Court," Seminar sponsored by the Cleveland Marshall School of Law, Feb. 4, 1995
"Ohio Employment Law," Ohio Dermatology Group Managers Association, Mansfield, Ohio, April 29, 1995
"The Consulting Expert: Creating, Maintaining, and Benefiting from the Relationship," The Cleveland Bar Association Business Litigation Seminar, Cleveland, Ohio, December 11, 1996
"Professional Liability Insurance Issues for Ohio Physicians," Cleveland, Ohio, March 26 and April 1, 1998
“Insurance Coverage Law,” National Business Institute, Cleveland, Ohio, September 10, 1998
“Medicare and False Claims Threats,” University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio Teleconference, June 23, 1999
“Hot Topics in Physician Representation,” Cleveland Bar Association Health Care Committee, November 17, 1999
“Representing the Physician,” Cleveland Bar Association Business Litigation Seminar, Cleveland, Ohio, December 15, 1999
“Breaking Up Is Hard to Do: Representing Physicians in the Dissolution of Physician/Hospital Relationships,” American Health Lawyers Association Annual Meeting, Washington, D.C., April 2000
“Physician Representation: Current Issues in Health Care,” Toledo College of Law Alumni Association, Toledo, Ohio, October 13, 2000
"Arbitration: Current Issues and Recent Rule Changes," Cleveland Bar Association, Business Litigation Seminar, Cleveland, Ohio, December 13, 2000
“Current Issues in Representing Physicians,” American College of Legal Medicine, 41st Annual Conference, Atlanta, GA, March 10, 2001
“Current Legal Issues for Physicians,” Cleveland OB/GYN Society, Cleveland, Ohio, March 21, 2001
“Employment Law Issues Confronting Health Care Facilities,” Association of Assisted Living Facilities Annual Meeting, Las Vegas, Nevada April 6, 2001
“Health Care Litigation Trends,” Cleveland Bar Association Health Care Committee, Cleveland, Ohio, September 26, 2001
“Current Issues in Peer Review,” American Health Lawyers Association, national teleconference, April 26, 2002
“Economic Credentialing: Risky Business for Hospitals and Medical Staffs,” Cleveland Bar Association Health Law Seminar, May 3, 2002
“Erosion of the Peer Review Privilege,” Moderator, American Health Lawyers Association, national teleconference, May 29, 2003
“Current Labor Law Issues Affecting Health Care Practitioners,” Panel Discussion, American Health Lawyers Association Annual Convention, San Antonio, Texas, June 30, 2003
“Current Legal Issues Involving the Practice of Medicine,” presentation to Case Western Reserve University Law and Medicine Class, October 29, 2003
“The Fraud/Tort Exception to the Attorney/Client Privilege in Civil Litigation,” Cleveland Bar Association Business Litigation Institute, Cleveland, Ohio, December 12, 2003
“Credentialing and Peer Review,” Cleveland Bar Association Health Care Institute, Cleveland, Ohio, April 30, 2004
Case Western Reserve University School of Law, Speaker at Health Care Professions Class, 2001-2005
"Investigating Concerns About Physician Conduct (and Misconduct): How to Satisfy Both Healthcare Peer Review and Labor Law Requirements," American Health Lawyers Association, Teleconference, January 2006
"Non-Competition Agreements in the Health Care Setting," Cleveland Metropolitan Bar Association Health and Litigation Sections, March 21, 2007

Professional & Community Associations

American Bar Association
Michigan State Bar Association
Ohio State Bar Association
Cleveland Metropolitan Bar Association - Business Litigation Committee
American Health Lawyers Association - Chair of the Labor and Employment Committee
American College of Legal Medicine
The Hermit Club, Shoreby Club, Cleveland Yachting Club, and Tavern Club
Westlake/Bay Village Rotary Club
American Arbitration Association - Arbitrator
American Health Lawyers Association - Arbitrator
Shaker Heights Municipal Court - past Acting Judge

Education

George Washington University National Law Center, J.D., 1979 Member, Law Review, 1977-1979
Ohio Wesleyan University, B.A., 1976 Phi Beta Kappa

Licensed to Practice

Ohio
Michigan
U.S. District Courts for the Northern District of Ohio and Eastern District of Michigan
U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit

Awards & Recognitions

2007: Awarded the Academy of Medicine of Cleveland and Northern Ohio (AMCNO) Presidential Citation Award in recognition of his legal services to the medical community in Greater Cleveland

2007-2010: Law & Politics magazine, Ohio Super Lawyer: Health Care; Business Litigation; Alternative Dispute Resolution

AV rated by Martindale-Hubbell

Included in the 2006 through 2011 editions of The Best Lawyers in America; he is currently recognized for his practice in the areas of Alternative Dispute Resolution; Commercial Litigation; Health Care Law; Insurance Law

Recipient, Rosewood Gavel Award for Outstanding Service, American Arbitration Association

Articles by Michael J. Jordan

June 2010 - In the article, "Courts will examine PPACA's constitutionality," published in Managed Healthcare Executive, Michael J. Jordan discussed the nature of pending legal challenges to the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (PPACA).

Winter 2010 - In the article, "A Physician's Last Chance," published by the Federal Litigation Section of the Federal Bar Association, Michael J. Jordan and John E. Schiller discussed the challenges facing attorneys when contesting, through the state or federal court system, a physician's loss of hospital privileges.

September 2009 - In the September 2009 edition of the American Bar Association's Health eSource, Michael J. Jordan, recommends a proactive approach in his article, "Representing the Disruptive Physician."

March 2009 – Cleveland Metropolitan Bar Association's Bar Journal; "What's Left of the Peer Review Privilege?"

November 2007 – In the November/December, 2007 issue of Northern Ohio Physician, Michael discussed the practical implications of the Health Care Quality Improvement Act of 1986 in his article entitled, “Concerns with the National Practitioner Data Bank”

September/October 2006 – "To Compete or Not to Compete", as published in and reproduced by permssion of Cleveland Physician Magazine

September/October 2005 – "So, Why Don't You Agree to Arbitrate..." as published in the Volume 90 issue of Cleveland Physician Magazine

2005 – "The Biggest Legal Mistakes Physicians Make and How to Avoid Them:, SEAK, Inc. Two chapters:
Commercial (Not Professional Liability) Litigation; and
When A Practice Or Other Business Is Being Acquired

May 2002 – Client Briefing on Health Care: Court Holds Medical Staff Bylaws are Binding Contract Between Physician and Hospital and Upholds Findings of Interference with Patient Relationships.